Minnesota’s Hidden RV Havens Await You!

LET'S HIT THE ROAD

Has your dream been to sell you house, get rid of most of your personal belongings and just get an RV and travel around the country? I literally had neighbors that did this a few years back. I wonder if they are still traveling like that or if they eventually found a new place to call home?

Well if traveling in an RV is your dream, and you want to see and do things on your travels, I ran across a really interesting business recently called Harvest Hosts. I reached out and asked them about their RV travel concept. This is what they shared with me.

Kelly: How did you decide to start this business?

In 2010, Don and Kim Greene were trailblazers for bringing the concept of Agritourism-based RV networks to the United States from Europe, pulling together the original Hosts and making Harvest Hosts an annual membership program. They began with locations in Oregon, California, and Washington and eventually grew their locations to just under 600. These included farms, wineries, museums, and more all over North America.

In 2018, the current CEO, Joel Holland, sold his company and was RVing around the country with his wife. Inspired by the concept, he bought the company and grew Harvest Hosts into the program that you see today.

Presently, Harvest Hosts has close to 6,000 Host locations across North America and almost 250K members. RV travelers and Hosts love the unique program.

Kelly: Did these Host locations reach out to you and sign up? Or did you reach out to them and encourage them to do it?

It works both ways! Harvest Hosts is constantly on the lookout for new and exciting hosts to join the platform, and hosts are always welcome to reach out if interested. Harvest Hosts has an entire department dedicated to identifying and recruiting new Host locations — the team attends all sorts of conferences and trade shows across the country looking for amazing locations to add to the network.

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Kelly: Are there any costs or upfront investments necessary to become a Host location?

There are no costs or upfront investments for the Hosts. They simply have to offer up an area for a Harvest Hosts member to park and allow them to stay overnight. The Hosts keep every penny of the incremental sales they generate from members. Harvest Hosts has helped small businesses and local economies generate more than $200M since 2010. On average, businesses make between $10K-15K per year through Harvest Hosts.

Kelly: This is an interesting concept. How have bookings been going?

As we settle into the new year, the early months are mostly spent planning out vacations and routes for the spring and summer trips. However, RVers are adventurers, and we see steady bookings throughout the entire year!

Kelly: So, what kind of experiences are people getting through Harvest?

Harvest Hosts offers guests unique, special, and affordable places to stay on their RV journey, including farms, wineries, breweries, distilleries, and attractions across North America. With Harvest Hosts, RVers can stay at amazing locations that they couldn’t otherwise – it’s a priceless experience.

Kelly: How does Harvest Host make its money?

Harvest Hosts memberships. A membership (beginning at $99/year) is based on having access to one-night stays at the Host locations. That said, the number of stays a member can have is unlimited -- if a member wanted to stay at a new Harvest Hosts location every night, they could and the price would still be just $99/year.

Kelly: What are some of your most unique locations across the country?

• Ice Cave and Bandera Volcano - Grants, NM
• Strataca - Kansas Underground Salt Museum - Hutchinson, KS
• The Dinosaur Museum - Blanding, UT
• Cave Without a Name - Boerne, TX
• Haven Hot Springs - Lowman, ID
• Champagne's Cajun Swamp Tours - Breaux Bridge, LA
• Riffle Farms - American Bison - Terra Alta, WV
• Pike Drive-In Theatre – Montgomeryville, PA

Kelly: What about notable Minnesota locations?

• Red Gate Alpaca Farm (Dundas, MN)
  Located in southern Minnesota, 68 beautiful acres overlook the Cannon River Valley. The farm focuses on the Suri alpaca.
• Promised Land Farms (Elko New Market, MN)
  37-acre picturesque views of rolling hills and an atmosphere of peace soothes the soul. Enjoy seeing horses, cows, pigs, chickens, kitties, and the family dog, Scout.
• Skaalvenn Distillery (Minneapolis, MN)
  Japanese-inspired cocktail bar, with spirits distributed to over 400 locations across Minnesota. Hand-crafted on-site, what more does a vacation need?
• White Bear Meadery (St. Paul, MN)
  Family-owned craft Meadery, aka honey wine producer, focusing on local honey and local fresh ingredients. It features an ancient Viking-themed mead hall!
• Pantown Brewing Company (St. Cloud, MN)
  Located on the grounds of the former Pan Motor Company, the innovative spirit of the Pan Motor Company blends into the award-winning craft beer – two US Open medals for The Classic Cream Ale and US Open, GABF, and World Beer Cup awards for Drop Forge Milk Stout.

DON'T MISS MY UPCOMING INTERVIEW

If you want to learn more about this unique traveling concept, I'll be interviewing the Chief of Staff for Harvest Hosts, Wes Clark on Tuesday, April 8th at 11:15am on 95.3 FM/1240 AM WJON radio on 'It Matters with Kelly Cordes.' I hope you have time to take a listen.