Choosing a small travel trailer

scbwr wrote:
If you like the North Trail, I suggest you take a look at the Winnebago 2201DS. It has more storage area and optional outdoor kitchen. Or look at other models in the Winnebago Winnie line.
IMHO, towing a 27' trailer or less is easy and will work for most state parks or regional campgrounds. PM me if you want more info....we've had our Winnie since last summer and are pleased so far.

But...have fun no matter what you buy!

when looking at Winnebago trailers be aware that for a short spell they were putting out ones with non-fiberglass roofs.
the Ascend line has "smaller" units with a fiberglass roof.
bumpy

If you like the North Trail, I suggest you take a look at the Winnebago 2201DS. It has more storage area and optional outdoor kitchen. Or look at other models in the Winnebago Winnie line.
IMHO, towing a 27' trailer or less is easy and will work for most state parks or regional campgrounds. PM me if you want more info....we've had our Winnie since last summer and are pleased so far.

But...have fun no matter what you buy!

Steve B. wrote:
When did 26 ft. become considered "small"?

:B

I was thinking the same thing. I guess everything is relative; maybe the O.P. is downsizing from a thirty-five footer!

To help you decide on what RV to buy you could go to www.rvknowhow.com and read Joe and Vicki’s suggestions and/or download their e-book `RV Buyers Homework’, which walks you through the process of choosing the best RV for your needs, selecting the right floor plans and features, determining the RV’s cargo-carrying and towing capacities and evaluating its livability. (Nov-Dec Highways, pg. 21)
RVtravel.com and the Better Business Bureau have a DVD that covers the same subject
(http://rvbookstore.com/shop/detail.aspx?p=710&m=2) and Chuck Woodbury has an ebook with similar advice that can be instantly downloaded from www.rvbookstore.com.

Given your two finalist, I would go with the one you like best. We bought a Keystone Bullet 248RKS last month after over three years of hard use in our 22' Crossroads Sunset Trail. For us, 24' was really pushing it length-wise but Crossroads no longer offered a floor plan that we liked. As far as the roof construction, etc. most TT's are pretty much alike unless you get into the high end units. Very best of luck to you. lizzie

See my sig. DW liked the big bathroom, the storage, and the fact there is no wall at the foot of the bed. Having the bathroom and bed at opposite ends isn't an issue with us since we seldom have guests sleeping in the trailer. We sometimes miss having a couch but have added two folding chase lounges for those times we want to watch TV.
There was a running change made in 2013 going from a shallow step-up slide to a deeper flush one. We opted to buy our TT out of town to get the flush slide. The whole trailer sits higher (3 steps instead of 2) but I appreciate the added ground clearance.

I'm not sold on the wide track axles. It tows fine but I don't like the tire scuffing on hard turns.
It has an enclosed underbelly and heated tanks, but it'll be a PIA if I ever need to do any repairs under the trailer.
The toilet doesn't drop straight into the holding tank. "Stuff" builds up at the bottom bend unless you use a lot of water during a flush, and when we're dry camping water use is an issue.
With an angled kitchen sink you seem to lose usable counter space. I didn't like having to run the coffee maker power cord over the edge of the counter so I added an outlet to the bottom side of the cabinet next to the microwave. There's no counter in the bathroom so I added a small shelf to add some space.
Overall, yeah we'd do it again. There are many campsites we like that have a 30' maximum length and the 21FBS length and floorplan works for us.
My $.02, YMMV.

When did 26 ft. become considered "small"?

petey42 wrote:
We are shopping for our first travel trailer and may have it down to 2 that fit our needs. One is a North Trail by Heartland, model NT21FBS, it is 26'6" with 1 slide. The other is the Keystone Bullet 207RBS, it is 24'2" with one slide. We would appreciate any comments/suggestions on reasons to go with one or the other. Of course the 2' difference is nice inside, but also gets longer to pull.

the North Trail has a rubber roof. I wouldn't want it with lots of others out there to chose from. couldn't find the construction of the keystone. that bed in the keystone looks like your head and feet are under cabinets.
sofa doesn't look like it makes up to a decent bed if you want that. I am not in favor of units that have the bath at one end and bed at the other in case you have others sleeping over.
bumpy