Bath and a half?

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I find it interesting how our "needs" evolve to suit our changing tastes.  I grew up in an 800 sq ft house with one bathroom and an "emergency" toilet downstairs in an unfinished basement.  There were three people in the household and the number of times anyone used the downstairs facility was quite small.  So "needing" a bath and a half in a MH with two people is perception not reality.

As a slightly off-topic note, I was struck by the fact that in two of the previous posts people noted that their bathrooms were not usable (or at least easy to access) with the slides in.  When my DW and I wrestled with the MH vs 5er decision one of the deciding factors was that in our MH we have access to 100% of its cabinetry and other amenities with the slides closed.  In extremely bad weather we have lived with them in for ~ a week without serious inconvenience.  I had always assumed that this was a common MH characteristic, maybe it's not, or isn't with today's designs?
 
You're right DocJ, we don't need a half bath, we wanted it and we really like it. I also think that MH manufacturers have pushed the limits of livabiliy with full wall slides, multiple slides etc. (Their ads rarely show pictures of their MHs with the slides in). But to give credit where credit's due, we think Winnie did a remarkable job of engineering a floorplan that's very livable (but not roomy) with the slides in. Limited access to some of the motorhome's amenities when the slides are in is a necessary trade-off if someone wants a motorhome with a floorplan like the 42QD. We fell in love with it.

When the slides are in, we have full acces to the kitchen and all kitchen cabinets living room, sofa-bed, TV, fireplace (now there's a real "need"  ;) ), refrigerator, dinner table, one of the two bedroom closets and, of course, the half bath. I wouldn't want to live in those relatively tight quarters for long periods of time, especially when you put our two dogs in there with us, but it would be very doable and heck, that's why we bought a MH with slides in the first place - to give us a larger, more comfortable living area. We feel the same way about the half bath - it's really a nice feature.

It's funny that you mentioned your criteria for choosing a MH or 5vr. Our decision was HEAVILY influenced by the simple benefit of having easy access to the bathroom while traveling. My wife considered this a necessity.  ;)

Kev
 
And I'd  like to stay with Winnie, too;  their Adventurer 37F is beautiful. Now that the gassers are starting just now to have bath & 1/2 it's so tempting.  But a big trade in value difference; on the other hand I've heard the trade ins later for such are much higher, too.  Could be a sales technique but I would believe it true.  If I could find a '12 or '13 with it I'd pounce but they don't  seem to exist.
We had company staying last week and it would have been nice, but once again, not necessary.  I keep trying to tell myself I'm 'camping' which is about as far from the truth as one can go.
 
Carolyn wanted the bath & a half floor plan, because we frequently have friends with us.  The other reason she liked it is because the main (rear) bathroom has a few more square feet than many side aisle and split bath plans, in our case, big enough that it has a full bathtub.

The downside (and obviously the reason for the half bath) is that when the slides are in, you have to crawl over the bed to access the rear bath. 
 
Yes we have the bath and half Winnebago Adventurer 37F and we will never have another coach without a bath and a half. It is the one thing that we would not compromise on. If your house has more than one bath, then you know the benefit.
 
Interesting. Strong opinions all over the place on this.
For us, it was very important to have the toilet apart from the shower / vanity. No need for two toilets.
Needs vary. Gotta do the floor plan that's right for you.
 
There are a bunch of different floor plans because there are all kinds of people using RV's differently. For us, we really dislike split baths. Personally, I think people buy split baths because their first RV's had such a small bathroom that they just have to have a larger bathroom in their next coach and the split bath gives them more room in their mind.. Our last coach was a side aisle and had an all in one bath. We loved it. Consequently, our next coach was going to have an all in one bath. Our new Dutch Star has the full bath across the rear of the coach. It's REALLY roomy and nice to use.

With that said, I think people miss one of the most obvious reasons for the half bath. For those who want the full bath in the rear, (popular in many floor plans) there is a need for a toilet while travelling. The rear bath is often to much of an obstacle course to use. Ours is not accessible while driving unless you crawl over the bed.

Now that we have the half bath....it's great. It's convenient and gives me a bathroom when my wife goes to bed early.
 
The increased space of a split bath is a reality, not a conjecture of the mind...  :)
In our case, when the queen takes a shower, or otherwise undertakes the arduous task of primping herself for a night on the town, I like to have the toilet available. Which it is while rolling.
Like I said, different floor plans for different folks. YMMV......
 
A split bath usually takes more floor space, not less, than a walk through bath.  On our coach, a split bath would result in the loss of a full set of galley cabinets and that was unacceptable.  Everything is a trade off and the split bath is no different, the floor space has to come from somewhere.
 
Our present Vista35F (for sale) has the bath and a half, we found it to be very comfortable. Each morning we each get a bathroom....guess who gets the larger one :-\
When we decided to move to a DP we looked at both the split and bath and a half units but the only one we found that fit our needs etc was the bath and a half 40 QBH Phaeton
Would not be without one now and they are sure handy when company stays overnight...
 
Jeff said:
Listening to this reminds me of the myriad of discussions about slides when they first appeared; those that had them would never go back while those that didn't thought them an unecessary maintenance issue.<$1alt="" title="" onresizestart="return false;" id="smiley__$2" style="padding: 0 3px 0 3px;" />
Click to expand...
It goes right along with, how many people here, lived in a time without microwave and convection ovens, Cable TV, and Cell Phones (well maybe no cell phones wouldn't be such a loss...lol), and would want to go back to being without them.  Hell,  I had a tough time adjusting down to a short queen (the bed, not my other half) in the motorhome, after years of sleeping in a king bed.
 
We don't have access to the back bath when the slides are in so yes we like the extra bath. I like the rear bath as the bed isn't over the motor. We have gotten so used the the 1/2 bath not sure we would do without.
 
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