Best Travel Trailer for Fulltime RV Life (solo female and her cat)

It would help us if we knew what vehicle you owned to tow this future trailer.

Welcome. As Mark stated, it would be helpful to know what size tow vehicle you have as that is the limiting factor in the size/weight TT you can tow. That said, there is no "perfect" Rv and most people never buy their last RV first. Because until you start RVing you don't know what you don't know about what you need and want from an RV. These are personal choices and no one can really tell you that. When asking for opinions on what RV to buy, most people will respond with what they have and you should buy that. You need to make a choice that works for you. You are correct in that some brands are better than others and that takes research and looking at reviews of various RVs. Airstream, per your example, used to be very fine and well built and you get what you pay for. However, Thor has purchased Airstream and Thor is not known for their quality - quite the opposite. My last and current RV is a Forest River product and of all the brands I've owned, I have been very happy with them. Fit and finish is good and the customer support is outstanding. Something you will NOT find in most manufacturers. The next choice is floorplan, floorplan, floorplan. Find one that works for you. Go to shows, dealerships etc and walk through as many as you can and see how daily activities would work in each one. Where would the litter box go, where is the trashcan, storage in side and outside, windows, etc etc. Once you narrow down a floorplan, shop around. It's definitely a process. And if you choose poorly, it's expensive as RVs depreciate dramatically when driven off the lot and you loose money trading up to a different model. And as always, there are TONS of used RVs on the market. If you find a good used model, well taken care of, bugs worked out, it's easier on the wallet. Good luck!

Do you have a house or apartment on the east coast or will you be truly living in it full time?

If it's just longer trips to the west coast,  I would go with the smallest you can be comfortable in. Also keep in mind,  it's a fun way to travel but long cross country hauls can be expensive in terms of gas. If the real reason is for a couple cross country runs per year,  it's an expensive alternative. 

Airstreams last because people pay for repairing them. They still have plenty of problems. It's almost a weird cult thing.. But really most are built the same way with the same appliances.  None are intrinsically safer.

As others have mentioned,  what truck do you have to tow with as that can really limit your options. 

First make a list of your must haves.  Size of bed, hide a bed or against a wall or with open walking space, size of bathroom and shower, kitchen counter space and storage, slideouts for extra floor space or not, kitchen table or bar or none, sofa or recliners, etc.  

I also suggest renting at least 1 to see what it is like to cook, shower and sleep in it.  

We lived in our East to West Alta 30ft for 4 months and I loved it!  I prefer a bed that is in it's own room, especially with 2 of us going to bed at different times, but also so I don't have to constantly make the bed every night.   Lots to consider!

***Most important: Change the door lock to a key pad for your safety.   The factory locks are easily opened with other keys.  We were able to open our friend's door with our key!!  They only make so many different ones. I heard only 7 kinds. 

I’m gonna predict 1 and done post before I even scroll down…

Yup…