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sportzfann's avatar
sportzfann
Explorer
Jul 09, 2022

Fifth wheel length question

Fifth wheel owners
What seems to be the consensus on the best length of fifth wheel to purchase when you will be using it for 2 weeks up to 6 mos at a time? I would be staying at some national parks, and some boondocking locations. We are Thousand trail members so most size rigs will be accepted there. I have owned a 30 ft. Bunk model when we had kids, and I could manage that pretty well, but wanted something for the dear wife and me, rear lounge type, with bed slide.
I have a 2017 f350 Dually and truck camper at this time, for towing, but wanted more room than that.
?? thanks Sportzfann
  • ReneeG's avatar
    ReneeG
    Explorer
    Jul 21, 2022
    Our first four RVs were trailers starting at 17', then 22', then 24', then 32'. Now our fifth is a fifth wheel at 35' 5", and we still camp in all the same places we did with the others except for one. We do have to consider the width of the interior roads and obstacles when selecting a site, but the same as with our previous trailers. We primarily camp at FS campgrounds and boondock. It's hard to camp with our tent set up or even our popup when our FW has so many nice comfy amenities with the recliners being one!!
  • jffnkrn's avatar
    jffnkrn
    Explorer
    Jul 20, 2022
    Might as well add another comment, thought, etc. When we upgraded form bumper pull to fifth wheel, we really never thought about our favorited spots as we can still camp near by, do day trips for the sights and activities. So the larger one is great, still get to do all the travelling and camping we want and then some. When we stay for three to five weeks at a time, it does make it nicer to have the extra room. As others have said, floor plan is one of the main issues. be happy with what you want to spend time in, the spot, it will be there, somewhere.
  • 4x4ord's avatar
    4x4ord
    Explorer III
    Jul 18, 2022
    I think ours measures 35.5 feet. We often camp in older camp grounds that were designed for smaller trailers. Sometimes it’s a little tight but we are always able to make it work. We like the floor plan of ours but the new fivers with similar floor plans seem to be just a touch longer. I think if we were to get a new 5ver we’d end up sticking with a similar floor plan …. maybe go to a lKing size bed and end up about 38 feet.
  • Campinghoss's avatar
    Campinghoss
    Explorer II
    Jul 17, 2022
    When we were going back to a fiver from a 40 foot dp, we were only concerned with the floor plans and what would fit our life style. I never let length dictate the floor plan we wanted. It took us around two years to find and decide on the fiver in my sig. I have talked to a lot of folks who regretted letting the length take precedence over the floor plan that was actually desired. Every foot makes a difference somewhere in the floor plan.
  • JKJavelin's avatar
    JKJavelin
    Explorer III
    Jul 17, 2022
    After many years with a popup, then 20 years of no camping, we looked for a fifth wheel and fell into our Open Range, a leftover 2016. 31.5' long with 3 slides and a wide body and large tanks, it was the shortest they made that year. It has a split bath and the toilet/sink room is quite small and I think that's why it was a leftover. We are always looking at other floorplans and have yet to find one we like better in a similar length.
    JK
  • Veebyes's avatar
    Veebyes
    Explorer II
    Jul 16, 2022
    Determine what you will use it for. 36' is not going into many places.40' is not going into many more places.

    Smaller is better. Then there is the question of how small? Too small on a multi month trip is not going to work.

    Thoroughly do the research before going to a dealer. Buy what you need, not what some salesman has in stock to sell to you.

    Buying a mistake is expensive. We were years researching & months searching for a model on the very short list.

    15 years later we still have it.
  • cummins2014's avatar
    cummins2014
    Explorer
    Jul 16, 2022
    Went from 38' to 35 , although not a lot ,and no difference in GVWR , much preferred the 38'. More the floor plan then anything , room is not the factor .
  • Curly2001's avatar
    Curly2001
    Explorer II
    Jul 16, 2022
    Overall I think that 30' is about right for us. We have one super slide and that gives us enough room to move about and if one of us wants to go "up stairs" to the bedroom, it gives us some separation.
    Curly
  • wowens79's avatar
    wowens79
    Explorer III
    Jul 11, 2022
    We are looking at going to a couples type 5th wheel also, and I went to the websites of our favorite campgrounds, and put in random dates like 10 months out, and put in different camper lengths and looked had how the availability changed. Once you got over 35-36ft, the number of sites really dropped off.

    We were looking at state parks in AL, GA, FL.
  • JTrac's avatar
    JTrac
    Explorer
    Jul 11, 2022
    Our favorite park has a 38' length limit so we only looked at units under that length when we bought a couple of years ago. There are plenty to see but it seems 40 plus foot fifth wheels are the norm. Ours is 36' 8" which is just right for us. It's still very roomy and comfortable.

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