RV length

Your 40' fiver is likely just a bit longer than me with a 30' travel trailer. I had a 36ft 5th and had an easier time backing that into spots and beside my house than I do with the current trailer. 5th wheels are the way to go as long as you don't need your truck bed for other things and don't mind either rolling with the hitch on board or lugging it in/out all the time. Those are the reasons I went back to the TT. Once I'm out more I'll be back in a 5th.... unless I hit the lottery and can afford I nice diesel pusher :)

Our 5er is 40' long and only had a problem once. Last year at a COE in Georgia we were able to get in our campsite but ended up having to back out of the loop. The turn around area was very tight with trees on outside and some trees on inside. Park attendant said some people had made it, some didn't and a few almost got stuck. He said a lot backed out, so we did, no big problem as the road was wide so it was easy to do.

As others have said, just have to watch when turning as it does take a long swing sometimes. Don't see us going to a smaller rig, maybe longer next time.

We have a 44' 3 axle unit. We treat it like a big rig trailer ie you don't drive somewhere unless you know your exit. Have not had problems at RV parks but could not fit in most np or sp. The sites might be long enough but you can't maneuver the tight roads. If you are familiar with Disneys Fort Wilderness we barely fit on their roads (actually drug one side through tree branches to make it around one of the camping loops).

We love the unit though and for our situation it is perfect. With the slides out we have about 480 sqft of space, a full bath and shower, laundry, and nfl on the 55" flat screen ;).

Also never, and I mean never, trust the front desk staff when they say no problem you will fit in this site. Take a moment to walk your route. That has been our biggest issue. Most people are not used to the maneuvering needs of this long of a trailer. Your tail doesn't swing, instead it tracks inside your turn arc so you need room to swing wide into sites.

We had a 40' but recently downsized to the 35. It had nothing to do with campground access though. The one thing I noticed with our 40 footer was accessing the actual camp site. Many roads are narrow, treed, curvy especially in state parks and some of the older private parks. Sites were always big enough but getting to it was sometimes challenging.

We have a 41' fiver and stay at only state and federal in Alabama and Georgia and had zero issues with the length. Had to ask a few folks to move cars off the side of the road in order to make a turn, but that is usually on Sunday when leaving and campground is full.

Good luck and get what you want so you don't regret it later.

We haven't had to leave any campgrounds because we couldn't get our 40' (actual length) RV into a site. With that said, we don't do unknown state or National parks that aren't big-rig capable or older campgrounds that were laid out before big rigs and slide outs.

Rusty

40' Fifth Wheel here and never didn't get in the spot I had reserved. I don't do state parks and do call ahead to let them know what I have. There have for sure been some challenges getting hacked in some tight spots but always got in. My next one will be at least 40'.

You're fine at walmarts, rest areas, etc. Old campgrounds may have issues.

I have a 40' 5'er and have no problems getting around or finding sites. Nevertheless a smaller RV will be able to access more sites and be somewhat easier to maneuver.

You might want to define what type of campgrounds you will use. I don't go to commercial campgrounds, but can tell you that you would be fine in the local state parks, but would have trouble in many of the federal campgrounds in the mountains.