How to find EV-friendly accommodation for road trips

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The Great American Road Trip is alive and well. However, it’s more challenging when driving a vehicle that doesn’t use gas.

America’s EV charging infrastructure improves each year, but there are still expansive regions of the country where you have to plan carefully to avoid running out of charge when stopping for the night. This is especially true if you’re road tripping to national parks, which tend to be far removed from major cities and interstates.

On a recent road trip, I knew I’d be looking at 1,500 total miles in an EV. EV charging stations are sparse in Appalachia, which meant that I’d need to do a bit of planning ahead of time.

For those scouting a similar trip, you’ll be pleased to know that most of the major hotel chains — as well as Airbnb — now list “EV Charging” as an amenity that you can filter by. Just note that EV charging amenities are self-reported and not guaranteed, especially for Airbnbs.

En route to pick apples and peek fall foliage in the mountains of Virginia, I used IHG’s EV Charging filter to select a hotel that would allow us to fill up on charge overnight. I also picked the overnight stay at a point where I’d arrive with under 10% of charge remaining.

When we arrived, one of the two EV charging parking spaces was free, which allowed us to get back to 100% by the time we departed in the morning.

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One additional tactic I’d offer in using this strategy: Have a backup plan.

In the event of both EV charging spots being taken, I knew that there was a Tesla Supercharger in town. While that would’ve been less convenient, I made sure to arrive with enough charge to get us to that Supercharger if I had to.

For non-Tesla drivers, it's also worth checking a public charging app like PlugShare ahead of time to confirm there's a reliable fast charger nearby.

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Our family is planning an 800-mile one-way trip in our EV in the coming months. We’re strategically planning an overnight stay roughly halfway. With 410 miles of EV range, the goal is to book a hotel just prior to that length. This will allow us to leave home with a 100% charge and arrive at our hotel at close to 0%. (You'll want to adjust that buffer based on your comfort level, of course.)

This minimizes our time spent charging on the road, and maximizes the amount of charge we’ll get from the hotel charging station. We’ll arrive in the evening, let the vehicle charge overnight as we sleep, and depart for day two of the trip with a full charge.

Depending on your EV, a free overnight charge can be worth $25-$50, which I look at as offsetting the overall cost of the hotel.

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