IMHO, bottom line is don't plan to tow more than 6500 lbs. considering you'll have four people in the truck and probably some stuff in the truck bed.
I totally agree with this. For 6 years, on some extended trips (5000+ miles, 5+ weeks), we towed a 34-foot, 7500-GVWR trailer with our Tundra. Length and weight were not an issue for our truck's engine and brakes, any more than any trailer would have been, but I knew that we were at the upper limit. Only 2 of us along, but we carry pretty much gear with us in the truck, and we were over our truck's GVWR (though not over the axle ratings) with the old TT. For various reasons, only one of which was related to towing, we downsized the trailer last year and as the driver I am much happier; our current TT is 8' shorter and 1000 lbs lighter (GVWR) than the previous, and it just seems to "fit" the truck better. We also added LT tires to the truck a couple years ago, and have been happy with those results too - much better than the street tires we got originally. And we also have an Equal-i-zer (brand name) hitch, which has been working very well.
Years ago, someone on this forum once described the Tundra as "more engine than truck," and I would tend to agree. The engine is a beast and can pull more than the much-vaunted 10,000-lb tow rating, but the weak point is the low GVWR of the truck itself.
As for campers, for your family a hybrid trailer might make sense, and you might give those a look. Jayco and Rockwood make them, among others, and are popular brands. If you want a fully-enclosed trailer, then I'd suggest a model that has a set of bunkbeds for the kids. Unless your kids are really small, sleeping on a dinette won't work very well - they're usually enough to hold two people under 4'6" comfortably. :)
P.S. Hi, aftermath. Nice to see you still on here, and still with your Tundra as well. :)
