Toy Hauler VS Travel Trailer

[Phanes]

So my wife and I are looking into getting into seasonal camping to get the kids off the electronics and outside more during the summer. We are big into ATVs, we have trails that connect to our land, so we started looking initially at Toy Haulers. If we get one we are probably going to go with an ATC 28 foot with bedroom.

Anywho since we are looking at seasonal campsites with hookups I started thinking maybe a travel trailer would be better because it focuses 100% on living and not living + toy hauling.

My wife however still likes the Toy Hauler because when we are not at the site the ATVs can be parked inside out of the elements.

I did look at some Airstreams today and our budget is up to 80k but for the one I looked at that was 82k which includes setting up my truck I felt a bit underwhelmed by it. I realize an airstream will last almost forever vs say a Forest River and probably most of that price is how durable they are built.

I was hoping you guys could give me the upside and downside of Toy Hauler vs Travel Trailer and some suggestions on what a good Travel Trailer is with our budget being 80k.

We are not really interested in park or destination trailers. The main reason being if we want to try a different seasonal spot it will be easier to move the trailer.

We need to sleep 5 and would prefer trailers with dedicated beds as we don't want to have to take apart the dining room for the kids to sleep every night. With the ATC we just plan on using the tip out bed option and tossing down nice air mattresses in the cargo area.

My truck is a 2010 Toyota Tundra with the 5.7 and tow/haul package. It is rated to pull 10100 and is pre wired for brakes.

Thanks in advance.

[Dirtclods]

1jeep wrote:
I ride both south and north, I only know of one place in southern nh with trail access out of the campground and now there has been some trail closure over there.

Good luck with the new trailer!

Check out : http://www.riderplanet-usa.com/

[Dirtclods]

Stuff to look at:

http://www.crankyape.com/PhotoViewer/PhotoViewer.asp?ItemNumber=69374&NumImages=51&CurrentItem=1



http://www.crankyape.com/default.asp?pg=DisItems&Cat=6&il=0

[Phanes]

1jeep wrote:
I ride both south and north, I only know of one place in southern nh with trail access out of the campground and now there has been some trail closure over there.

Good luck with the new trailer!

1jeep hey can you toss me the name of that campsite. I actually had a hard time finding anything in Southern NH with ATV trail access. I might want to check it out in the future.

[1jeep]

I ride both south and north, I only know of one place in southern nh with trail access out of the campground and now there has been some trail closure over there.

Good luck with the new trailer!

[Phanes]

Up in northern NH we looked at some closer to us in Southern NH but it did not feel like we were "getting away" being 20 minutes from the house. Plus the trails down here are not that good as opposed to coos country with over 1k in trails.

We have settled on a campsite and a trailer we are picking up the Forest River RV Sierra Destination Trailers 402QB

I know there is no way in hell my Tundra can pull it but it is delivered and setup for free and the site allows winter storage. However since we only hit 40k of our budget I am pushing the wife towards getting a used 1 Ton cause you know I might need to use it once or twice a year.....

[1jeep]

ive had both and love having a toy hauler, BUT I am not at a seasonal site. If I did have your situation I would look into a bunk house travel trailer and enclosed trailer to transport the toys on the weekend if need be.

Just curious where are you looking at seasonal sites?

[JAC1982]

OP, based on your kids' ages, and the fact you want this new trailer to last at least 15 years, I would just go for the travel trailer with lots of living space. It's easy for little kids to sleep in smaller spaces, but in 15 years you'll basically be 5 adult-sized people in that trailer. Since you've got the budget and aren't going to be moving it often, go for something that has lots of space, both living and bed-wise (ie a bunkhouse style trailer.

Also, I can't think of any toy hauler that can be remotely pulled by a 1/2 ton truck and still have comfortable living space, that would also be able to fit 5 full size quads anyway, so having a separate trailer will probably always be a thing. You can also upgrade your truck later if you did decide to not have it parked at a seasonal site.

[lincster]

Hahahaha. Comparing a motorcycle and trailer to a toyhauler and truck. I won't even type a reply.

Bear down, sorry u didn't like my reply in your post.

Most folks that don't like to hear the truth respond like u just did.

[BeardownAZ]

Sprink-Fitter wrote:

lincster wrote:
Please go read the other post in this forum about 1/2 ton towable toyhaulers.

They only want to move it if they switch permanent sides, some of you people worry too much about towing a big trailer.

I towed a camper behind a Goldwing motorcycle for about 80,000 miles over 15 years of camping and riding, by a lot of your standards with the weight of the Goldwing (900 lbs) to the weight of the camper (about 400 lbs) I should've never been able to do it.

Good luck, they don't listen too or read the entire post. All they see is toyhauler and its "you have to have diesel to haul that". :R

[Sprink-Fitter]

lincster wrote:
Please go read the other post in this forum about 1/2 ton towable toyhaulers.

They only want to move it if they switch permanent sides, some of you people worry too much about towing a big trailer.

I towed a camper behind a Goldwing motorcycle for about 80,000 miles over 15 years of camping and riding, by a lot of your standards with the weight of the Goldwing (900 lbs) to the weight of the camper (about 400 lbs) I should've never been able to do it.

[Phanes]

Thanks BTW for all the help. We are going to look at the following TTs on Saturday on our way to the campsites we are looking at.

Coachmen Liberty 320BHS
Grand Design Reflection 312BHTS
Forest River 294BH

Thanks for the postings BTW I mentioned to the salesman we would want to do a PDI before delivery and would need some water in them. He said it would not be a problem. We are not buying anything Saturday TBH we probably won't pull the trigger until Jan sometime.

Since we probably won't hit our 80k budget we are also going to look at F-450, Sierra 3500HD, and the Ram 3500. I can always use another truck.

[Strabo]

Tundra is a starter truck, will work fine for a TT. Toy haulers require a big truck.

[Aridon]

80k is a lot. You can grab a 44ft KZ for 65k or less for the most part and be fully loaded. Same with most of the other stuff in that price range. There isn't much of a reason to pay much more than that honestly. We've owned the "high end" fifth wheel and were not that impressed.

Make sure you visit these units and see what you like. There is a world of difference in a fifth wheel and a travel trailer. Much less an Air stream. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the materials and craftsmanship I just find the units themselves to be lacking in livability compared to other units.

While you can't argue that aluminum will out live fiberglass the bottom line on these units is they will last as long as you are willing to keep them up and look at them. Most of the people aren't trading or getting rid of their units because they are falling apart or POS. They are getting rid of them to upgrade to the newest and greatest. There have been tons of advancements in floor plan layouts, electronics etc over the last 10 years and if you shop for older units or have been RVing awhile you know exactly what I'm talking about.

The options we have today are plentiful compared to what was there not so long ago.

Personally, I'm not interested in Air streams as the layouts aren't very good IMO for livability long term. Nothing compared to other fifth wheels or even other travel trailers. So that would lose me right there. As for the other brands, they'll last as long as you're willing to look at them.

[Y-Guy]

If it were me and I wasn't planning on traveling with my toys I'd probably get a travel trailer that fits my family needs, then look or a enclosed utility trailer to store the ATVs and haul them home in.

The TT will probably sit lower to the ground, thus easier to block up and stabalize. Cost should be a lot less as your not paying for an extra 12' or so of space that you don't sound like you really want. Plus you're not paying premium for that cargo space. You probably won't be able to use the fuel station anyway.

Before you jump at buying something new, look around at used units. If you use a hauling service then you're not worried about truck limitations too.

While we really enjoyed our Raptor Toy Hauler, having our Motorhome and the ability to haul our ATVs, boat and now Jeep have made it a better fit. Plus as you noted the extra living space has worked out well.