Travel Trailer Recommendations

My wife and I would like to get a small travel trailer, thinking in the 20'-24' range and under 4k lbs. (preferably closer to 3k lbs.). We'd likely be towing it with her 4Runner Limited rather than my truck, and would likely mostly be sticking to campgrounds with hookups.

I know nothing about the various brands and manufacturers, and most in that size seem to have a very similar interior layout. Looking for advice on what brands to avoid, what brands are good, other things to consider. Would love an Airstream Bambi, but seems like you can get something comparable (lower but sufficient quality) for half the price.

Let me know your thoughts!

 

Thanks for the response!

We are leaning towards something with a queen bed + bunks, inside toilet. My wife likes her nest, I'd get the top bunk and dogs get the bottom. I would like to avoid slides, too much added weight and complexity. I'll have to check out toy haulers, although we don't have toys to haul. This layout seems to be pretty standard across the different brands.

Tow vehicle is a 5th gen 4Runner Limited, 5000 lb towing capacity. I want to stick to under 4k lbs, closer to 3k if possible. Pulling 5k lbs. is no fun. I've done it a couple of times in a 2nd gen Tacoma (moving my project car on our last couple of moves), and it's fine for that occasional use but not something I'd want to be doing all the time. I might pull it with my 3rd gen Tacoma at times, but probably not much since my truck is used a bit differently and I use my RTT.

We'd likely spend 2-3 days in one spot, but we might be out for a couple of weeks at a time. Probably hit a motel at times. We'd be going all over, mountains included, but mostly sticking to pavement.

My wife is not really a camper, but she's not a 5-star hotel girl either. We'd likely rent something similar to what we want first and hit some nearby spots before committing. We'll probably learn a lot from that. She was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer, and she has relatives and other sights she wants to see. Meds are working well, so we have some time, we just don't know how long. She's never been to the Grand Canyon, so that is high on our list. She's wanted to downsize for a while and had dreams of building a tiny home compound with places for the kids and relatives to stay when they visit, but I've got a few more years before I retire (5 to 7), so this would be a good test to see if she can live in something smaller.

For me, form follows function, and I would want something of decent quality, not on the low end, but probably not on the Airstream end (just yet). Just need quality basics, not a lot of additional features/gimmicks like exterior kitchen stuff -- I'm fine cooking on a Coleman stove. Budget is flexible, but it looks like we'd be in the $25k - $35k range to be in the middle. The price range seems to be pretty broad, starting in the low teens and hitting $70k+ at the Airstream end.

 

I would say that first renting one would be a smart move. That way both of you can decide what size, layout and features are most important to you.

Sorry to hear about your wife - F**k Cancer

 

We have this little R-POD. It's 19' and with a GVWR just under 4000 lbs. That's about as much as I want to pull with my Tacoma. I also have a 2014 F150 that has 100,000 fewer miles on it. I usually pull the trailer for shorter trips with the old Tacoma, but use the newer, bigger truck for long road trips.

Last summer we pulled it almost 7000 miles traveling from GA to Glacier NP and back. With several side trips. We were gone 3 weeks. Summer before that we took it to Maine and back.

It's perfect for 2 and 3 can stay in it in a pinch. It has no real living space. Just a bed, kitchen and wet bath. But that's all we want or need. Even with my bigger truck I appreciate the small trailer when crossing the Rockies.

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/r-pod/RP-171/9910

 

Escape makes a solid unit. Fiberglass and light weight (comparably). The 21 is about 3600 dry, the 19's about 3200 dry. Bigfoots, Casitas, Olivers about the same. If you were looking at Airstreams, something like those might be a viable option. Plus the resale value on those is just crazy. They aren't inexpensive, but not in the Airstream ballpark.

Cheers.

 

Thanks for all the input and empathy. Yeah, f#@k cancer. Most people seem to have been touched by it in some way or another. Sometimes you just get dealt a bad hand. I'm happy for those that win, and sorry for those that didn't. She did well the first and second time around and may do well this time, but you just don't know. Probably shouldn't have shared that much, but on to things more positive.

My head was already on the "do the math" path. Mainly because as much as my wife says she's going to go camping with me, I know she doesn't really like it. She's a bit impulsive and not in a great state of mind, so I pressed a bit and laid out the math. We could spend $60k+ on a trailer and camping stuff and extra gas and trouble, or spend 240 nights in a $250 Airbnb and she'd be WAY more comfortable. Plus we can't keep it in the driveway due to POA rules so have to store it somewhere, and there's a learning curve for me to switch to posh camping, etc., etc.

I still think we will rent an RV at some point, probably for a Grand Canyon trip. I think she wants to try it, and who knows, she may love it. But after 32 years, I think I know her well enough to know that she won't. It's kind of sweet that she wants to spend some time with me doing the things that I enjoy, though.

Thanks again, all. Most of this TW community is pretty cool.

 

Our situation is different than yours, but a somewhat similar boat. My wife's mom has dementia and she wants to spend as much time with her as possible, while she still has decent memory. To that end, she's retiring early (this year) and we're looking at getting a 17' Casita to park at her parents. This will allow her to have her own (getaway) space, and not disrupt her mom's routine (which can confuse her).

The other part of that is my wife is extremely sensitive to fragrances. We use fragrance free everything, but staying in hotels has become nearly impossible. Even bringing our own sheets and towels doesn't work anymore. I can't count the number of times we've had to check out at 2am, 3am or 4am in the morning as the scented products just got overwhelming. We like to travel and see this as a way we can do that.

Sorry to hear about your wife and hope she will be one to beat it. Fu** Cancer and Alzheimers.

 

Thanks, and I hope your wife gets to spend some lucid and meaningful moments with her mom. That fragrance sensitivity thing is tough. Most people don't realize how much we depend on our sense of smell and how much it can affect us.

Unfortunately for my wife, she beat it back for 16 years after the initial diagnosis, but it's now Stage 4 and only treatable. The best guess is that she's got about 5 years before all the current treatments available are no longer keeping it at bay. Could be longer, could be shorter. The good news is that they know a lot about how to treat her specific situation.

Funny note on the travel trailer thing: My wife thought she could ride in the trailer while we travel between locations. When I explained that no, that is unsafe and illegal, she started to understand why the Airbnb route may be a better option. We may look at Class C motorhomes, but she seems to have lost interest at the moment.

 

sorry about the wives!!!

what about a smaller trailer like a Bean Trailer. basically a teardrop type?

 

An inside bathroom is a minimum requirement from my wife. She'd also want a place to hang out. Teardrops don't fit the bill here. She doesn't really like riding in the car for long hauls, gets bored and restless (and then very annoying, so I don't like it much either). That's why she thought just riding in the trailer would be cool. We are still considering a Class C.

 

Hey @TenBeers, did you decide on a camper?

We've been looking for a used Casita for the last few months that was reasonably close to where we live. No luck. Most have been in the mid-west, and were only a few thousand less than a new one. I've been in contact with Casita and decided that on Monday I'll pull the trigger. They have a promotion running until the end of the month- free air conditioner, furnace/heater and rear bumper hitch. Don't care about the hitch, but in total, those all add up to +/- $2500 we would have had to spend.

 

Hey @916carl, we're still looking at Class C motorhomes. Considering whether to rent first or just buy one -- renting for an extended trip is pretty dang expensive.

If anyone has some tips on Class C rigs, feel free to share them. Thor seems to be the biggest brand with low prices, but quality seems to be an issue. I like the MB chassis with diesel power, but maintenance and repairs can be problematic and expensive compared to a Ford E350 or E450 chassis. Winnebago seems to be well-regarded, but most of what I am finding is on a MB chassis. I figure lightly used is probably wiser than new -- all the kinks potentially worked out. But, I have trust issues. I found some local independent inspectors, so would do that before pulling the trigger on one.

 

I remember looking at renting a motorhome for a week and was shocked by what the costs were going to be; the rental itself, gas, cleaning fees and what I thought was a pretty weird restriction - no solids in the black tank (no poo in the bathroom) - made it unappealing.

 

I haven't seen that restriction yet, but maybe I just haven't looked close enough. That would be a deal breaker for my wife and totally defeat the purpose (she's on meds with particular side effects). We have a trip to Vegas we'd like to do, see some sights along the way, and 2 weeks rental would run us $6k - $7k just for the rental and fees on a Class C. Fuel would be about another $1k, but that wouldn't change whether we rented or bought.

On the one hand, it might be worth it to rent if we decided we hated it. But if we love it, that's a significant amount that could have been saved. So yeah, still on the fence.

 

Take a look at the T@b 400. It's a nice camper and fits all your requirements.

 

So sorry OP, not everyone gets a wakeup call so at least you two are seizing the day while you have the time and energy.

renting is a good idea as you can upgrade as time goes on and you may need more creature comforts than you do at this moment.

starting small like a weekend trip in a comfy sprinter is always nice, im sure the big trips in big rigs can be a bit daunting. dont have to get it right from the get go.

wishing you the best of luck and good memory making.

 

Those things are nice, but wife needs access to the living area while on the road, so looking at Class C. However, bookmarking that for later in life when it is just me and a dog.

Thank you.

 

We bought a Geo Pro g20FBS last year. We love it. It’s not a 12k Coleman. It’s very nice. Tows great but definitely noticeable uphill and the stupid transmission in these things. Weighs about 4200 loaded to camp. A good WDH and 10 ply tires on the truck help a lot.