Living Aboard Your RV: [Take your Home on the Road!] by Janet Groene, & Gordon Groene

Imagine a life with no deadlines, no neighbors, no leaves to rake, and no lawn to mow. The open road beckons, and your home goes with you wherever you travel. Welcome to the world of fulltime RVing-self-sufficient, comfortable, and mobile. Living Aboard Your RV will help you decide if this lifestyle is the right choice for you, taking you through every step of hitting the road fulltime.

Frommer's Exploring America by RV by Shirley Slater

In the seventh edition of this perennial favorite guide, renowned travel writing team Harry Basch and Shirley Slater offers updates on their favorite RV trips around the U.S., including scenic routes along Virginia's Skyline Drive and the New England coast, plus jaunts through the Heart of the Heartlands (Indiana, Iowa and Illinois) and to Alaska via Canada. On each trip you'll get all the famous, infamous, and off-the-wall attractions; campgrounds along each route, from luxurious private RV parks with heated swimming pools and golf courses to quiet, forested campgrounds in state and national parks; tips for making life on the road easier and more comfortable and a complete guide to buying or renting an RV, with tips on how to decide which type is right for you. All this, plus information on wildlife watching and scenic views, the best parks and beaches, quick-and-easy recipes, packing suggestions, info on road etiquette and safety, and more. Head off the beaten path with Frommer's, to discover the real life lurking around the bend.

Trailer Life Directory, 2012: Guide to RV Parks and Campgrounds

The only place where you will find a complete list of Good Sam discount locations, the Trailer Life Directory is the official directory of the 950,000 member Good Sam Club. Celebrating Trailer Life Directory’s 40th Anniversary, this new edition lists over 11,800 RV parks; highlights the 400 Top Rated Parks, including the Top 100 Good Sam Parks and the Top 300 Trailer RV Parks; provides RV troubleshooting & safety tips and identifies service & repair facilities; points out tourist attractions appealing to the entire family; includes money-saving coupons. This comprehensive RV campground directory for RV Parks, RV travel services and tourist attractions for the RV enthusiast was the bestselling title in its category according to BookScan for 2010 and 2011.

Christmas shopping can be about more than hitting the malls. There are some wonderful shopping experiences outside the city. Combine your shopping with lunch and a drive through the country, an educational visit to a woolen mill or a trip to a museum.

PaSu Farm ia a working sheep farm and has a great boutique which sells a range of moccasins, fine wool fashions, sheepskin coats, hides, blankets and other products, made locally and from around the world. You can then enjoy a meal in their restaurant, with a view of the Rockies on a sunny day. They are also offerning a dinner theatre in December. The farm is located north of Calgary a short distance west from the Queen Elizabeth Highway, off Secondary Highway 580, with lots of signs to lead you there.

Custom Woolen Mills is another great place to visit and shop. They produce woolen and exotic fiber products, such as carded wools, rovings, spinning balls, batts, wool yarns, knitting kits, socks, comforters, mattress pads and hand-woven blankets. Not only are the products produced on-site, but this is a working museum, using industrial revolution machinery. Take time to do the self-guided tour. According to their web site, they are only open 9:00 - 3:00, Monday to Friday. Go north on Highway 2, turn east at Highway 582 and follow the signs.

Saskatoon Farm is another fun place that is out of the city to do a little Christmas shopping. During the summer, the farm is noted for their saskatoon berries. This time of year they have a nice gift shop and cafe.

If you are in the mood to go further afield, the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller has a wonderful gift shop with all things dinosaur. A visit to Drumheller makes a great day trip for the family and you can do some Christmas shopping while you are there. One of our staff members shared her impressions of the museum in "Walking with the Dinosaurs".

If you would like to take the road less travelled as you are on your daytrip, why not check out these books, Back Roads of Southern Alberta or Day Trips from Calgary.