My husband, dog and I are taking a year sabbatical starting next year. We will be in FL around February and want to make our way up to Main. We are expecting to spend several months making our way up. We are not going to pull a car behind but our RV is manageable in most places. We will spend every few nights in an RV park. We don't want to have an exact plan in case we find that we want to spend more time somewhere or less... We would like to do a lot of coastal driving but also want to see the Smoky Mountains etc. I have no clue how to start planning! Help!

Get a real paper map and stick pins in it. Make your trip "yours'--what you want to see and do.
Fill in the times
Ask about dining here
ETC ETC ETC
You do some planning and then ask from time to time.

You say you will spend every few night in an RV park. Not sure what this means. Do you mean you plan on spending several days in each place? Or that you plan on spending some night in places other than RV parks - and where would those places be?

Are you aware that by later in the spring many parks may be full if you don;t reserve in advance?

I know winging it sounds like fun but when kids are out of school for spring break - or at the end of the semester - parks may fill up fast.

I agree with much of the above. Since you apparently have all the time in the world for this drive . . . come up with at least a basic itinerary and then Fodorites can help you refine it. A paper map of the eastern seaboard and a few guide books will get you started

You say you’re not towing a car. How exactly is that going to work? Let’s say you’re staying 3 nights in a park outside of Charleston but want to go into the city. You’re going to use the RV to do that? Maybe I’m just not conceptualizing this correctly, but that sounds like a pain at best.

Get an RV camping guide for a directory of parks.
Have you driven this RV in a town like Charleston or Savannah--or St. Augustine?
Of course, there is always the possibility of parking it at train station, for example, and Ubering into the town. Trying to accomodate your thinking. But I would sure like to have the ability to leave my campsite intact and drive around to places of interest.

How to visit Charleston is a good question. I would make a list of the cities you would like to visit and then figure out how to get there. For example, to visit Boston you might park at a remote lot (park and ride) and take a bus in ... but I did not see info about whether you can park an RV.

One glorious summer we spent a month camping along the skyline drive and then another month around PEI and Nova Scotia. We really just read brochures and stayed as long as we wanted which usually wasn't more than 2 or 3 days depending on how much to see and do. This was before the internet was invented.

We towed a camping trailer. RVs did not seem convenient for doing a lot of exploring. Last summer our son and his family went cross country with two other families all with their own truck campers. They did a lot of WalMart parking lot camping but it appeared to be kind of sketchy. They made sure to be out of the way and had the three trucks parked to provide some privacy and an area for the children to be. OTOH they found some great campgrounds elsewhere. You might check out air b&b. There are some people who will let you camp on their private property for a fee.

I would go RVing out west. I might use an RV as a portable cottage in the east, the way snowbirds do in Florida. But as a way of touring, especially of seeing anything in a city, I would be wary.

It is can also be cold and or foggy all along the coast from NY to ME into May and even June. We once saw a movie about the Boston marathon, which takes place around April 16. We knew the movie wasn't made then because there were leaves on the trees. There aren't any leaves to speak of in Boston in mid-April.

Just sayin'

Getting a paper map is great advise.
Also RV campground book..We stayed in a lot of KOA parks, they have a great internet site and reservation system..
Also check www.rv.net/forum...
We found that big cities were not very RV friendly..Parking on city streets difficult if RV is much longer that 20 ft.
.Usually stayed on outskirts and took mass transit....however that would mean leaving dog in RV and some parks have rules prohibiting that.
All these issues just need a little planning...trial and error are often they way you learn...RV travel is not for everyone but we really enjoyed it for many years.
One time we even stayed in a motel that had great parking and a pool...it was August and very hot....Happy Trails....