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fooljoe

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 15, 2011
Messages
646
Location
Seal Beach, CA
I recently took a weekend trip from OC to Carlsbad and seriously considered taking my EV, but after a lot of thought I figured there was just too much uncertainty/inconvenience around having a reliable place to charge and ended up taking the ICE. Once I got to my hotel, however, I saw that there were outdoor 120v outlets by each of the 3-4 entrances to the hotel that I could've reliably reached for L1 if I just had a short extension cord, so if I went there again I'd definitely take the EV. And now I'm excited to plan another weekend trip where I can go electric.

So anyway, I thought it'd be a good idea for people to post their "EV scouting reports" of hotels or vacation rentals in their area to help people plan EV getaways. Obviously there are other resources out there like Plugshare that list things like hotels with L2 stations, but that doesn't cover situations like the one I found, and still doesn't give a detailed enough picture (even if a hotel has an L2 station what are the odds that you'll be able to use it on a busy weekend, etc.) Please chime in with your experiences.
 
I'll start: I stayed at the Homewood Suites in Carlsbad. No official charging stations, but it has 1 120v outlet by each entrance (3 or 4 entrances). The staff member I spoke to indicated it would be fine to use one of these outlets to charge, but it was against their policy to reserve parking spots. For that reason I opted not to take my EV for this trip, but when I was there I found that each time I parked it would've been easy to secure a spot within reach of one of these outlets (with a 25' extension cord, at least.)

Also, I had a 1st floor room along the exterior wall, and I figured I could've easily parked my car near the room and ran a cord out the window to it. Since the room also included a kitchen, I figured it would've likely worked to get 240v with a quick220-like device (didn't have mine with me to test though.)

In short, didn't take the EV this time but it definitely seems doable with a good portable EVSE, some extension cords, and possibly a quick220.
 
I'll try again to get this thread going:

I have my first EV vacation to report! Over Mother's Day weekend I took my Rav4-EV 120 miles from Seal Beach to the Renaissance Esmeralda in Indian Wells.

The place has 2 EV parking spaces in self parking serviced by GE Wattstations. There being only 2 charging stations for a relatively large hotel made me a little nervous, but I was able to snag one of them (the other was occupied by a red Leaf with local plates.) I also noticed a very interesting panel labeled "Electric Car Charging Station" on the grass area near the charging spots. (I posted some pics on Plugshare.) Upon closer inspection, I found that this panel had 5x CS6364 50 amp outlets, 2x 120v outlets, and 1 L14-20 outlet. I measured the voltage at 202-203.

So it's a pretty weird setup, but if you go out there I'd bring a portable EVSE and adapters for at least one of these outlets as a backup plan if you can't get one of the "official" spots. Unfortunately, it'd be pretty tricky finding a place to park where you could access power, even with extension cords, as the spots next to the charging spots were all reserved for Hertz vehicles, and all occupied when I was there. There's a place on the other side of the grass area where the valets park some cars, so perhaps they'd let you park there and run a cord to one of the outlets if you're stuck.

Anyway, it was a great trip at a very nice hotel, and awesome making my first EV roadtrip! I'm trying to plan my next EV trip now so I'm eagerly awaiting some more posts here for ideas.
 
There are many long threads here on whether or not it is acceptable to just plug in anywhere you see an outlet. You might want to have a peek at those.

And you also should capture notes on whether or not the property is cool with 120v charging.

But isn't this kinda the whole point of plugshare...to share info about where people can plug in?
 
ITestStuff said:
There are many long threads here on whether or not it is acceptable to just plug in anywhere you see an outlet. You might want to have a peek at those.
Yes, I've seen those threads, and that's obviously a good idea. Since the outlets I mentioned for the Indian Wells stay are on a panel clearly labeled "ELECTRIC CAR CHARGING STATION" it seems pretty clear what their purpose is. For the potential Carlsbad stay, as I mentioned I called the hotel to check about using a 120v outlet.

ITestStuff said:
But isn't this kinda the whole point of plugshare...to share info about where people can plug in?
As I mentioned in my first post, Plugshare is great - it's how I found the Esmeralda - but it doesn't give room for the "whole story". Also, I'm sure there are many hotels out there with at least accessible 120v outlets (possibly even 14-50s) that don't list themselves on Plugshare, but would be cool with charging if asked. That's precisely what I'm trying to capture here.

And beyond hotels - I'd be very interested to hear of others' experience with vacation rentals that are cool with EV charging. Again, not something you're likely to find on Plugshare.
 
I wish Plugshare had a feature to only see hotels. That's the point of this thread, and I had to click on every spot in Tucson to see whether or not it was a hotel. And BTW, I think Tucson Inn is only one there, but they have 8 Blinks.

Westin Kierland, Phoenician, Days Inn Camelback, Royal Palms Resort, Fire Sky Resort, Clarendon Hotel, and the Biltmore Ritz Carlton has charging next door. All Blink, all J1772.

Getting to Phoenix in an EV is an entirely different problem.
 
jspearman said:
I wish Plugshare had a feature to only see hotels. That's the point of this thread, and I had to click on every spot in Tucson to see whether or not it was a hotel.
Great idea! I PMd you the email address of the person, who should hear about it :)
 
fooljoe said:
Also, I had a 1st floor room along the exterior wall, and I figured I could've easily parked my car near the room and ran a cord out the window to it. Since the room also included a kitchen, I figured it would've likely worked to get 240v with a quick220-like device (didn't have mine with me to test though.)
this is a great idea!
one of the programming/creative types around here could create an app that would be like plugshare so EV friendly hotels can be found easily.
however, schemes like running a wire from the room would more than likely be frowned upon, especially if the wire ran across a public area. in order to keep it friendly between hotel owners and people who want to charge their EV it is important to be as unobtrusive as possible when charging up.
 
Best Western in the UK seems to have the right idea.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&p=295165#p295165" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

KevinSharpe said:
Best Western will have 50 locations in the UK with Charging Stations by the end of May 2013. The Charging Stations allow eco-friendly electric car owners to charge up their car’s battery by plugging into the latest, future-proofed power.

Working alongside Zero Carbon World (ZCW), the no-nonsense charity committed to reducing the UK’s carbon footprint, bosses at Best Western have pledged that its green campaign will roll out to include half of its 270 hotels by September this year.

http://zerocarbonworld.org/news/best-western-best-for-charging-in-uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
I live in San Diego by the airport and since we got our Leaf, we have been wanting to take a trip to OC, specifically Newport Beach where we go several times a year for a n overnight or two. I had planned to top off in Encinitas or Carlsbad, then charge up in Newport at the mall or Nissan dealer while killing some time eating lunch, and then heading to the hotel, then doing the same thing on the way back. Seems completely doable. Only difficult part is going to be keeping the speed down between Oceanside and San Clemente. Hopefully I can find a big truck to draft off of.
 
OP, you'd want to charge at the Oceanside or Encinitas Transit centers along the coast and kill some time/eat lunch whatever then head to your destination. Although the Sheraton in Carlsbad has Blink Chargers, but they're a timeshare, and renting a room there could be costly! Also, they're 1.5 or 2 miles inland.
 
One last thought!!! As a former hotel van driver, many hotels have a courtesy shuttle that runs for free within 5 miles. My hotel was 10 miles! Anyway, you could have the van driver shuttle you to and from wherever you are getting your vehicle charged. They don't care as long as you give then a tip. I usually recommend $3 min or $5 max unless the driver really floats your boat. (Of course I got stiffed quite often, just part of the job.) And maybe if this happens enough, the hotel would consider putting in an EV charging station, or at least some L1 outlets convenient to parking spots so nobody would trip over your cord.

Hotels are really focused on the guest experience, and seem to be a target for lawsuits and at the very least, criticism. A cord ramp might be something to invest in if you plan on traveling a lot, or sneaking "juice" from L1 outlets somewhat often. Here's a link I found:

http://www.electriduct.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
pointlomadave said:
I live in San Diego by the airport and since we got our Leaf, we have been wanting to take a trip to OC, specifically Newport Beach where we go several times a year for a n overnight or two. I had planned to top off in Encinitas or Carlsbad, then charge up in Newport at the mall or Nissan dealer while killing some time eating lunch, and then heading to the hotel, then doing the same thing on the way back. Seems completely doable. Only difficult part is going to be keeping the speed down between Oceanside and San Clemente. Hopefully I can find a big truck to draft off of.
Did you find a hotel in Newport where you can charge? I don't see anything on Plugshare.
 
pointlomadave said:
One last thought!!! As a former hotel van driver, many hotels have a courtesy shuttle that runs for free within 5 miles. My hotel was 10 miles!
Great point. I actually talked to the Homewood Suites in Carlsbad about this when considering taking the EV there. In the end I figured it'd be too inconvenient/weird, and I couldn't be sure about the availability of nearby charging stations.
 
Not right nearby, but charging at the Fashion Island Mall is a mile + away from the Hyatt on Jamboree rd right near the 101. If that's unavailable, there's a library or community center or something right nearby.
 
We're looking at a trip within Colorado and I've been charting the locations of RV campgrounds wth EV outlets. A lot of these are combined with a hotel on site or next to the site. Of course, you'll need the EVSEupgrade and an appropriate RV campground plug, plus you'll need to make arrangements to use the outlet. But it's a feasible vacation method for the LEAF.
 
Two of the deluxe cabins at Ft. Stevens State Park have been posted on Plugshare as they have 120V outlets within reach with the standard leaf trickle charge cord. Many Oregon campsites have 120V outlets that are totally usable. Now Highway 101 in Oregon has QC sites at decent intervals. So come to Western Oregon. I do! - and I'm from Washington...
 
pointlomadave said:
I live in San Diego by the airport and since we got our Leaf, we have been wanting to take a trip to OC, specifically Newport Beach where we go several times a year for a n overnight or two. Only difficult part is going to be keeping the speed down between Oceanside and San Clemente. Hopefully I can find a big truck to draft off of.
Better plan on the way there is to make sure you mind your speed (keep it at 65 mph max) and QC at the San Juan Capistrano (65 mi from Point Loma) - should only need a 5-10 minutes to get you to your destination in Newport Beach via Hwy 1 another 20 mi away. Make sure you have a funded Chargepoint card ready.

On the way back it's a bit trickier since the SJC QC is a bit too close to Newport Beach to make effective use of it. You might stop and charge for 5 minutes, but I wouldn't waste any more time than that. You'll probably want to L2 charge somewhere between Carlsbad and Del Mar for about 2 hours (assuming 3.3 kW) at which point you should have enough juice to make it the rest of the way home. Again, maintain 65 mph max.

Hiding behind a truck or other slow vehicle will be a great way to extend your range, but unless you can drive the whole thing at 55 mph you're going to need to stop at least an hour or two for some L2 charging at a minimum.
 
Well I finally have a report to post to revive this old thread! I just recently spent a weekend at this vacation rental in Palm Springs. The management company left a little to be desired, but the place itself was great if you have a large party, and the 4 families we packed in all had a great time.

As far as EV amenities, the laundry room boasts an unused NEMA 10-30 ("old style") dryer outlet - there was a gas dryer if you actually want to do laundry. There are two driveways, and I was able to park my Rav4-EV in the left driveway and easily run extension cords up the side of the house to the laundry room. Well, mostly easily - it is a pretty long run, since the laundry room's all the way in the back of the house. I had to string together every extension cord I had and use all the length my EVSEupgraded LEAF EVSE could muster. There are security gates that you can close behind your car, which is nice - although it would've been nicer to be able to park in an enclosed garage and shelter my battery from the desert sun.

As an added bonus my "flat-style" 3-wire dryer cord adapter could even slip under the laundry room door so I could charge and still lock up at night. If you want to venture out there yourself, make sure you bring a similar adapter and plenty of extension cords! I'd estimate that a 100' #10 extension cord would do it if you want to charge at the full 24 amps, although I only had #12 available so I derated to 16 amps (still had no worries about charging time.)

Also there's an intersection just about a mile and a half away with 3 public charging stations available, so that's a nice back-up plan if you don't wanna bother with extension cords and portable EVSEs and such. I brought along my folding bike and initially planned to charge there, but was happy to discover I didn't need to.

Anybody else have similar experiences to share?
 
For those interested in a Vacation Rental in San Diego, I have a home listed on VRBO with a AV J1772 Charger installed. It is also listed on PlugShare.

There are actually 2 different units available for rent. Both have access to the charger.

VRBO listing 562175 is a 3 bedroom/2 bath home sleeps up to 6. VRBO listing 563107 is a stand-alone studio sleeping 2.

My home is situated in North Park, a great neighborhood for access to attractions in Balboa Park. Its also a great neighborhood for walking to restaurants and craft breweries. Check it out.

RS
 
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