Two Part ? - Largest size MH that would still get you into Anywhere

Part 1 - Largest length where you would have the least number of restrictions, including most scenic drives, RV parks, and national forests, and such?  I keep hearing 30' as some magical number, but am wondering if even shorter would get you into a lot places or onto many scenic drives a 30'er might not be allowed?  What are your personal experiences with size/length limitations?

Part 2 - Suggestions for MHs that would meet that length limitation, but still give you the Most Storage space for personal items, and if possible, not just Class As.

30' would get you into most campgrounds in terms of length.  You may still get jammed up in cities, towns and tourist type parking lots.

Height is more of the challenge in terms of scenic drives.  Class B vans like Sprinters may just get in under many restrictions when you consider Northeastern parkways or low threshold places like Acadia NP.  You would want to be very cautious and use your specific vehicle as the reference and not some generic rule of thumb.

There is really no magic number of a length that will get you "anywhere."  I have a 32' Class C and have encountered pnly a handful of roads or campgrounds where I was too large.  That is over 5 years of full-timing. New York Parkways were one instance and there is a road in the Black Hills that goes through some very low tunnels.  That is about it.

If you want zero restrictions, a regular car or van would do that, but no storage or sleeping room! 

I will say that a Class A usually has more storage for the same length as a Class C because the chassis is usually higher and the underneath bins larger, but I won't guarantee that.  You just have to go out shopping and see for yourself.  Most online manufacturer sites will list the inside and outside storage for each model.  One important thing, however, is how accessible inside storage is.  Sometimes you really have to reach to get at something or a cabinet or drawer is not accessible with slides pulled in.

I assume you are full-timing because you ask about maximum storage, but really, how much stuff are you planning on bringing along???

I've had this same question in the back of my mind for some time now....
as I think about some day maybe setting up a toad...and also think about an eventual change to a class A when our kids move on...

Ours is 31 and change.  We call it a 31 but it's technically more like 32 ft I suppose. I've never measured it.
Anyway, there are some sites we can't get into, and I guess a few times now in state parks when sites of our size were NOT available...so in that sense there have been parks we can't get into.... but normally there's not much problem in my experience.

I also don't have problem fitting into the RV spaces at Cracker Barrel, for example
and find that I can usually just barely fit into a parking lot across two space "lengths" when the don't have the little curb bumper things at the head of the spaces.....but when doing this there are times I'm concerned about getting boxed in and maybe unable to make the swing to turn out if others park too near.
These are examples of when I watch folks in the larger motorhomes, especially with a TOAD.... or folks with super long TT's couple up to a long truck....not fit well and it makes me think that ours is about right....and it makes me question if I ever really want to get something set up as a toad.

I'd say that more than length though, it's height.  Not so much under bridges or tunnels, but tree branches in campgrounds or parking lots.  Stuff like that.  There might have been a few low bridges I've routed around, maybe, but not many if at all.  I have thought many times though, that I'm glad we are not in a taller class A at that moment.

And I'll add this, I look on with a bit of jealousy sometimes when I see these little sprinter van B's or even small C's (like maybe 22ft?) parked in a single parking space.  I think they look like great road trip vehicles for a single or couple....IF looking at them more like an upgraded van for road trips, rather than a full RV for living

Brad, here's one advantage to having a toad with a larger motorhome.  If we're parking parallel to the curb in a large parking lot and are worried about some one hemming us in so we can't maneuver out of the space, we park the car in front of the motorhome and facing the curb.  That means we can back the car out and use its space to drive the motorhome out.

Every time we talked about changing motorhomes we talked about size but it really doesn't matter much because your needs and wants also change over the years.  When we first started RVing we usually parked in places like state and national parks and were able to do so because we had smaller motorhomes.  Back then we were really limber and it didn't matter if we had to climb a ladder to get into bed.  But, the fact is, as we've grown older we like our creature comforts more and are just as happy to park elsewhere and drive the car to do our sightseeing.  We have fewer hassles while sightseeing because we're in the car and don't have to fight for limited parking and fewer hassles parking the motorhome in a nice long drive-though space in a commercial campground.  So, my advice is to do what suits you the most NOW and let the future unfold as it will.  We all tend to stress about things and most of the time it all works out just fine.

ArdraF

a lot depends on the driver, confidence and ability. where you point it the rest will follow but still needs common sense.

beaverfever said:

a lot depends on the driver, confidence and ability. where you point it the rest will follow but still needs common sense.

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That's for sure. Even with a large rig, we do like to get off the beaten path. It is doable. ;D

I've put our 34' coach on several sites that were listed as 30 foot max. Some of those sites would have been very difficult to get a similar sized TT into though, so I suppose that was the reasoning behind the restriction.

That question is way out there. A spot a 20 year old 30 ft coach may fit in a new 30 ft coach may not. Most new coachs are much taller and wider than ones built 20 years ago.  My 95 Damon Challenger 30 ft coach sat much closer to the ground and the interior didn't have the height that my Dolphin does. I haven't measured my Dolphin yet but I know it is at least 1 1/2 foot taller and maybe 10" wider. My buddy has a 96 Storm and his coach is the same wheelbase as my old Challenger and it was 11" taller and 8" wider, So there is NO answer to a generic question like that. 

My 98 34 ft Daybreak had a 216" wheelbase, on a P32 chassis, 19.5 " wheels,  my 34 ft Dolphin has a 208" wheelbase, on a W22 chassis with 22.5 wheels. Can't even compare the two coachs. The Daybreak was much more stable in cross winds, because it sat closer to the ground and had a much more sloped nose, got much better fuel mileage too, but it didn't have the power this Dolphin does. Turning radius on the Dolphin is much better, so I can put it where I want it, most times on the first try. It doesn't scrape when backing in the drive like the Challenger, and the Daybreak did. Pros and cons for most coachs, and most like what THEY have.

Dude.... you need to just buy a motorhome and put these hypothetical, obtuse, unanswerable, and irrelevant questions to bed.

BinaryBob said:

Dude.... you need to just buy a motorhome and put these hypothetical, obtuse, unanswerable, and irrelevant questions to bed.

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Buy to your comfort level and you're desired floor plan. A 25 year old with a family may be comfortable in a 30 footer. Me and my wife at 66 yo are comfortable in our 40 footer. We have to plan ahead on places to park but would not use a 30 footer to go to a more scenic place and be cramped.

And if you want headaches and maintenance issues - buy new.

Tom and Margi said:

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We went with a 27' as a lot of the NY State Park sites on the water we like have a 30' max limit.  Our 27' fits in a pull through parking lot space also when we travel although we often pull a trailer now with the motorcycles inside and canoes and kayaks on the top. That brings us up to 44' but we can usually unhook the trailer off to the side and still fit into the sites we like.
Be more concerned with a floor plan you can live with.

Charlie 5320 said:

That question is way out there. A spot a 20 year old 30 ft coach may fit in a new 30 ft coach may not. Most new coachs are much taller and wider than ones built 20 years ago. 

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You sure hit on something there.  I was out looking at a couple MHs today and walked up behind several really big new Class As and was shocked.  I felt that I was looking up at a skyscraper, they were so huge from behind on ground level.  I am still shocked by the feeling it left me with.  I will really have to void my mind of that thought if I ever am driving one.  I definitely don't want to think about how big of a thing I am speeding down the road with.  Never realized how much bigger they have become.  Wow!

Yeah, they do have a way of looking a LOT smaller in the promotional photos, this even holds true of the "small" 22-24 ft Sprinter based coaches.  Now my take on parking and fitting in spaces as the owner of a 28 ft class A (2002 Safari Trek 178 inch wheel base, P32 chassis 98.5 inches side wall to wall not counting mirrors / awnings, and 11'1" tall to top of air conditioner).  Height only matters when there are low hanging limbs, and the occasional low clearance underpass as no RV is going to fit through the drive through window at a fast food joint, at 11'1" I generally don't have to worry too much about limbs, which just means I get lulled into a false sense of security until I hit a small town that does not trim their trees.  Length is an issue depending on where you plan to travel, if you are looking at national parks, some state parks, etc. being under 30 ft helps.  We are going to Yellowstone next month, we made reservations about 7 months ago, and at that time we would have been out of luck if we were any longer as most nights we wanted to stay there only 30 ft spaces were left available.  Having said that you will always find places that don't allow RV's over 25 or even 23 feet, which I feel is a bit insane since my crew cab F-250 is 21 ft long.  For places outside campground length for smaller motorhomes is not really that big of issue, a standard full size parking space as found at most big box stores is going to be 9 ft wide and 22 ft long, so few motorhomes will fit in a single space, and most will fit in 2 spaces end to end.  The problem is getting in and out of those 2 spaces without intruding on too many others due to off tracking and tail swing when making corners.  Even with my relatively small class A I find I need to take up at least 4 parking spaces (2x2 grid)in a typical parking lot. If I try to squeeze into 2 spaces end to end, and someone parks next to me I would hit them pulling out if I could not pull straight forward. thanks to off tracking and tail swing, I would likely intrude into 2 parking spaces with tail swing on the outside of the turn, and 1 other with off tracking on the inside of the turn for a total of 5 parking spaces needed pull out of being parked in 2 spaces end to end, and even then it is hard to make a sharp enough turn in a typical big box store parking lot to clear the next row of parking spaces.

BinaryBob said:

Dude.... you need to just buy a motorhome and put these hypothetical, obtuse, unanswerable, and irrelevant questions to bed.

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Yes please buy one!  You will be fine.  I thought I had Analysis paralysis!

Adding a few feet to the end really does not make a big difference in driving.  Mostly, and I use the term lightly, the rear end follows the front end.  (There is something called "tail swing.")

I started out looking at 22-24' motorhomes, then decided that a corner bed was too hard to get into and out of, and I needed a real bed in the back I could walk around at least enough to make.  So I moved to 28' and then bought 32' and have never regretted it for a single second.  There is no magic number for finding camping spots.  I don't tow, so in nearly all state parks I have an extra 8-10 feet left over in my camping spot. 

I agree that they look HUGE, especially in a showroom.  Once you get used to driving one, and that happened fast for me, they shrink in your mind. I have gotten mine into and out of some very tight spaces. 

I will say that when my son dropped me off to pick my new motorhome up, I had never driven anything bigger than a mini-van.  My son was so terrified, he "followed" ahead of me, and I think it took him 3 or 4 years to get used to the idea of his mom driving such a big vehicle without crashing it somewhere.  (That first trip with him following was good payback for those times I rode with him when he was 16!) 

The point is that we all are a little scared at first, but we all survive and get competent with a little experience.  Just go and buy what you want and then drive it. 

I consider the MH the Mother Ship so I keep her in orbit while I explore in my shuttle craft.  It was never my intent to buy a  MH that i can cram into those rare hideaway places I can do in a tent or truck camper, rather my intent was full use of comfort offered in 43.5 ft.

Here is something to help with visualization of vehicle lengths,  and where vehicles can fit.  Using common delivery trucks like the ones used by Fed-Ex and UPS as reference as seen on residential streets all over the country.  Looking at the boxy wedge nosed Step Van style trucks, one size range larger than the sprinter / promaster van-chassis models, the smallest of which have an overall length of 24.5 ft, and the most common mid size step van delivery trucks measure in at 29.5 ft long, and the largest step van delivery trucks measure in at 32 ft of length overall.