Insite for First Time Class C Buyer / RVer
My wife and I are recently retired, in our early 60's, and generally in good health. We want to travel throughout the US and Canada in probably month or less chunks. We won't be sitting in any parti...
Forum Discussion
I think the size issue is best determined by where you want to go and how you want to camp. If you want to minimize access issues and have a feeling* of being able to go wherever you want, smaller may be better.
*I said "feeling" because I think the 32' size range you've outlined would have relatively few restrictions. Maybe some NP and NF campgrounds and/or some limited gravel roads, but even then 24' may be too long. In my <26' Class C I "feel" confident I can go where I want. I really don't worry about how I will turn around if I go down a road and find a dead end, etc. I don't even pay much attention to campgrounds that state there max length on campsites that is less than my length - I figure worst case I can let the rear hang over the curbstops and that I am not likely to have problems with turns, etc. like a bigger rig might.
It seems many people have found themselves intimidated by size, buying small, then upgrading to a larger size. We intentionally bought small to provide maximum access to go where we wanted, and because we didn't see it as a place we would stay within, but as a place to sleep and have shelter if weather warranted. Turns out, as only two people (plus two large dogs) we've found it provides plenty of room, even on rainy days.
If you're not worried about the issues above, the larger one will likely drive just the same as the smaller. Maybe you'll have to watch out more for the rear corner swing on turns (which I only worry about except at gas stations).
As for Class C vs. Class A - generally it seems Class C is geared more toward families, providing a greater assortment of sleeping areas. We are only a couple, but we prefer the Class C as we've found the overhead bunk space to be a great area to store stuff (extra clothes for an extended trip, metal detectors, shoes on plastic boot trays, etc.). Having that stuff out of the way on the bunk means there is less need for room in the rest of the camper. But, if it's just a short trip and we want to bring friends/family, we have the flexibility of that extra sleeping space, without converting something else into a bed.
I'm guessing the 24' plan you're considering would either require climbing a ladder to get in the bunk, using a rear corner bed, or converting something into a bed every night. I personally wouldn't want to convert something from bed to day use (and back) every morning and night. Even if that doesn't sound annoying to you, I think the comfort of the convertible options is significantly less than a fulltime bed unless maybe you're looking at one of the murphy bed options or some really fancy couch? Our jackknife couch and dinette would NOT be fun to sleep on regularly. (For the record, neither was our mattress, but a memory foam topper fixed that issue - having to store and deploy a topper onto a converted couch sounds like a pain to me.) For the climbing and corner bed issues, that seems to be a personal preference based mostly on age/agility. I was 33 when we bought our rear corner bed C and had rented one for several weeks before, so I was comfortable that it would be a non-issue.
And x10 on the rental idea. I think it's a REALLY good way to help refine the decision points. We rented the standard 24' C (rear corner bed) for a three week trip before the idea of buying an RV had ever crossed our minds - I just thought it would be a fun roadtrip. That trip sold us and also taught us what we did/didn't like about that layout (liked the bed and overhead bunk area, didn't like the barrel chair).
*I said "feeling" because I think the 32' size range you've outlined would have relatively few restrictions. Maybe some NP and NF campgrounds and/or some limited gravel roads, but even then 24' may be too long. In my <26' Class C I "feel" confident I can go where I want. I really don't worry about how I will turn around if I go down a road and find a dead end, etc. I don't even pay much attention to campgrounds that state there max length on campsites that is less than my length - I figure worst case I can let the rear hang over the curbstops and that I am not likely to have problems with turns, etc. like a bigger rig might.
It seems many people have found themselves intimidated by size, buying small, then upgrading to a larger size. We intentionally bought small to provide maximum access to go where we wanted, and because we didn't see it as a place we would stay within, but as a place to sleep and have shelter if weather warranted. Turns out, as only two people (plus two large dogs) we've found it provides plenty of room, even on rainy days.
If you're not worried about the issues above, the larger one will likely drive just the same as the smaller. Maybe you'll have to watch out more for the rear corner swing on turns (which I only worry about except at gas stations).
As for Class C vs. Class A - generally it seems Class C is geared more toward families, providing a greater assortment of sleeping areas. We are only a couple, but we prefer the Class C as we've found the overhead bunk space to be a great area to store stuff (extra clothes for an extended trip, metal detectors, shoes on plastic boot trays, etc.). Having that stuff out of the way on the bunk means there is less need for room in the rest of the camper. But, if it's just a short trip and we want to bring friends/family, we have the flexibility of that extra sleeping space, without converting something else into a bed.
I'm guessing the 24' plan you're considering would either require climbing a ladder to get in the bunk, using a rear corner bed, or converting something into a bed every night. I personally wouldn't want to convert something from bed to day use (and back) every morning and night. Even if that doesn't sound annoying to you, I think the comfort of the convertible options is significantly less than a fulltime bed unless maybe you're looking at one of the murphy bed options or some really fancy couch? Our jackknife couch and dinette would NOT be fun to sleep on regularly. (For the record, neither was our mattress, but a memory foam topper fixed that issue - having to store and deploy a topper onto a converted couch sounds like a pain to me.) For the climbing and corner bed issues, that seems to be a personal preference based mostly on age/agility. I was 33 when we bought our rear corner bed C and had rented one for several weeks before, so I was comfortable that it would be a non-issue.
And x10 on the rental idea. I think it's a REALLY good way to help refine the decision points. We rented the standard 24' C (rear corner bed) for a three week trip before the idea of buying an RV had ever crossed our minds - I just thought it would be a fun roadtrip. That trip sold us and also taught us what we did/didn't like about that layout (liked the bed and overhead bunk area, didn't like the barrel chair).
