I Miss My *Smaller* Camper

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steelmooch

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Aug 5, 2010
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280
Hello, all...hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for your time and consideration in reading my post. :)

Like many people, we started small and purchased a larger camper after a couple years of use.

We took a 17' floor plan (21' travel trailer) from the Pittsburgh area locally, regionally, and to Key West & Acadia N.P. successfully.

It was *tight*, though. The kids were rather stuffed into their narrow bunks, and they're a lot bigger now. Neither adult was thrilled with one having to crawl *over* the other to get in and out of the bed at night. There was no slide...if someone was working on dinner, the center aisle of the camper because impassable to everyone else in the family. Etc.

We bought a 24' floor plan (28' travel trailer) that has worked well for us, BUT that we cannot fit in the driveway at home. :(.

We ended up keeping it at a permanent campsite at a campground that we really like. It's inconvenient to get the camper in and out, but doable...I can foresee us pulling the camper out probably once per summer, but no more than twice because of the "process" involved with cement blocks, 4x8 deck sections, etc. It's also a rather large expense for us.

I miss having a camper at HOME and going to more/different places, but I know that a 17' floor plan is not something we can go back to in its prior configuration. Any longer than 21' total length isn't going to work for us.

Does anyone know of a smaller camper (*length-wise*) with some big, opposing slides that might work for us? I don't think we want to get involved in a hybrid trailer with the flip-out beds, as we get very rainy seasons here at times.

Any suggestions? Innovative models that you're aware of that would suit our needs? Something that *really opens up* via *slides* to provide living space? We need to sleep 5, preferably without having to tear down the dinette every morning and night.

Thanks and happy travels! (y):)
 
Depend on where you live and how far into shoulder seasons you like to camp there I believe still a few hard side TTs made with canvas pop out ends for bunks. One of those might just work for you
 
Like you, not sure I'd be up for a hybrid trailer, but they sure do pack a bunch of extra room. IMO, best bang for a smaller TT with more room inside. To sleep 5 in a smaller TT, will be tough without breaking down the table.
 
You might check out Trailmanor, a hard-sided folding trailer. The 2720 model I used to have would fit in a garage when folded, but was the equivalent of a 27 footer when opened up. It was less than 10 minutes (after a bit of practice) to set it up at camp, including leveling. We had it for four great years before deciding to get a motorhome.

 
I have a Jayco Hybrid that has everything you are looking for....small enough to park in an average driveway( 23 feet closed up, 29 feet opened up), weighs under #5000 dry, tows like it's not even there, with 2 HUGE beds, one on each end, and a couch slide, that's also a jackknife bed. The thing I like MOST about the rig is..If it's noisy or cold out, I can close up the end beds, and sleep inside just as easy, couch and dinette both become beds..."turtling" as they say lol
 

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I concure on all points. But going back to smaller campers in our senior years has some reservations as it relates to the amount of interior room that we now enjoy, even though we really do not need the room for just sleeping in our own known bed on the road overnight. Now if we were serious wilderness campers, of course size will matter and can limit where you can go. We really don't need huge amounts of counter space and a huge open kitchen with large pot and pan storage since most of our cooking is done outside and now with the invention of the Blackstone that's all we really need now outside other than a toaster. If the weather is bad of course, there is always a fall back inside in the smaller area. But all campers are a compromise, unless you want to drag a big double wide trailer down the road.:)
 
we fulltimed for 5 years in a 37’ triple slide 5th wheel. Fast forward from 2003 when we stopped Fulltiming to 2016 when we purchased a 17’ TT. The TT is very small. It has everything but on a micro level. We have taken many trips with two grandchildren and not going lie, it was crowded. The TT is now permanently parked on our property in SW Virginia. I don’t even sleep in it anymore. After two knee surgeries I can’t get up into the bed. We have a 10’x10’ that I sleep in on a nice roomy cot. Be very careful about the size RV you purchase. If you are uncomfortable and cramped you won’t have fun.
 
I also missed having the smaller size so we have a popup and an RV. The popup and Mother Nature is like my mother in-law. I enjoy visiting but only a few times a year. :)
 
A lot of people beat me to it but it seems a hybrid is what you might be looking for. It might not solve the narrow alley unless they make one with a slide out in that section but should help with the sleeping arrangements and with fitting in your drive way.
 
I have a Jayco Hybrid that has everything you are looking for....small enough to park in an average driveway( 23 feet closed up, 29 feet opened up), weighs under #5000 dry, tows like it's not even there, with 2 HUGE beds, one on each end, and a couch slide, that's also a jackknife bed. The thing I like MOST about the rig is..If it's noisy or cold out, I can close up the end beds, and sleep inside just as easy, couch and dinette both become beds..."turtling" as they say lol
Very nice. You are right this might be the answer for them. Availability might be an issue but might be with anything camping related now. I looked at a few of these at manufacturer sites but found nothing in dealerships last August. We ended up finding that checked all our boxes except for being under 5K dry weight.
 

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