Recommend a small high quality bunkhouse model?

[texasdiver]

My wife and I had been contemplating buying a 30' Airstream Bunkhouse trailer to replace our current pop-up camper but after looking at them in person she thinks we need something a bit larger for our family of 5. So we are thinking of 5th wheels instead but frankly the market is just overwhelming in terms of makes and models. But I suspect others have gone down this same road. Can any of you recommend some makes and models we should be looking at that meet the following criteria?

1. Small and light enough to be readily towed by a 3/4 ton diesel truck like a Ford F250 Powerstroke or Chevy 2500 Duramax. I don't want to run to the max in terms of tongue weight and trailer weight so lighter is better.

2. Small enough to fit into as many state parks and older campgrounds as possible. That was one reason for looking at a smaller airstream. We don't want to be stuck just going to KOAs and the equivalent because we can't fit into public parks.

3. Floor plan with a separate kids bunk room with at least 3 bunks as we have 3 kids. We do NOT want to be converting sofas and dinettes into bunks for the kids because we want to be able to put them to bed and still have the living space available to us in the evenings and mornings.

4. Dinette with seating for at least 5. I've noticed that a lot of 5th wheels have movable chairs. We would prefer a booth style dinette that the kids can just squeeze into.

5. High quality construction and finish. However from my initial shopping it appears that quality correlates with size and the high end models that everyone lists as the highest quality units are also massive in size. So I'm not sure if small/light and high quality are mutually exclusive qualities in a 5th wheel.

6. Not so concerned about having massive storage or lots of luxury features. We generally do long weekends or weeks at the beach and don't need TVs, outdoor kitchens or that sort of thing.

[texasdiver]

Seymore wrote:
Not sure what part of Texas you are in but I would suggest going to an RV Show. There is one coming up at Market Hall in Dallas Feb 20-23. That is what we did and were able to narrow our choices down.

Thanks, I have that on my calendar. We live in Waco so basically 1.5 hours to DFW or Austin and 3 hours to Houston or San Antonio. Is there some master calendar of all the RV shows? I found out we just missed the one in Fort Worth when we were up there looking at campers this past weekend.

[Seymore]

Not sure what part of Texas you are in but I would suggest going to an RV Show. There is one coming up at Market Hall in Dallas Feb 20-23. That is what we did and were able to narrow our choices down.

[MickeyBrennan]

How many different models are copies of the famous Prowler 31G?

That might be your best bet!

[WoodGlue]

It's not a 5th wheel, but it might fit your needs: Lance 2185.

It's superior construction w/ room for 7. 3 bunks in the rear and a queen sized bed in the front.

WoodGlue