Going from 5th wheel to class A

[eagle281]

Hello everyone
For the last 12 years we have been pulling a 5th wheel camper. Now on our 3rd one.
We are now thinking of going to a class A.
Has anyone out there done this,, and if so are you glad you did, or do you regret it.
It will be a big decision and need all the help we can get.
Thank you so much

[americanrascal]

T-riff wrote:

gemert wrote:
We went from 5er to A last year. Love it. Setup is easier and faster. If you stay in one spot 5er is best. If you move a lot the the A is best in my humble opinion.

several people have said this but have not explained why. I would appreciate some explanation whya 5er is best if you stay at a spot for a while. thanks!:@

I just found that the overall spaciousness in the 5ver was wonderful. Height and width of slides made for a massive amount of space that 30 years ago was unheard of in any type pf RV. While I didn't have front seats (driver /passenger) to manipulate when in the 5ver, I still had to manhandle the recliners after set up to get them positioned in the living area.

Hooking up water/sewer/electric/cable is the same between both units . For me the fiver was the slow travel and attention to moving such a large heavy mass around on the highways and in cities with a huge pick up truck.I just never liked driving it around and maneuvering- required much more driving attention.

Having immediate access to restroom, kitchen area etc while on the road in the MH makes for overall easier and much more comfortable travel. Downside of the MH is poorer fuel economy by about 2 mpg.

I just never had any desire to take my fiver west of the Mississippi or north of Tennessee when traveling. With the MH I pretty go wherever the wind blows.

[dezolen]

Only bonus I see in a 5th wheel is the high ceiling in living area which makes it feel more spacious.
I never liked having to drive around in a 3/4 or 1 ton truck to do our site seeing or trips into town.

[gemert]

T-riff wrote:

gemert wrote:
We went from 5er to A last year. Love it. Setup is easier and faster. If you stay in one spot 5er is best. If you move a lot the the A is best in my humble opinion.

several people have said this but have not explained why. I would appreciate some explanation whya 5er is best if you stay at a spot for a while. thanks!:@

Most 5ers I've seen just seem more open and homelike. Although more time consuming to setup and take down, once there you don't have drivers/copilots seats to deal with. The floorplans just seem to be more user friendly. If you move around a lot, then the setup/tear down time makes a difference. Also the convenience of being able to move around (to have the co-pilot make lunch or whatever) makes the Class A a lot more desirable to me!

[T-riff]

gemert wrote:
We went from 5er to A last year. Love it. Setup is easier and faster. If you stay in one spot 5er is best. If you move a lot the the A is best in my humble opinion.

several people have said this but have not explained why. I would appreciate some explanation whya 5er is best if you stay at a spot for a while. thanks!:@

[cbr46]

You might ask the same question in the Fifth-Wheel forum. This forum might be kinda biased (ya think?).

I use a Class A for weekend events - in one day and out the next. That works GREAT for me but I can't get the DW on independent travel trips because we have no mobility once parked. Both of our daily drivers can't be towed and she nixes the idea of another vehicle (toad). For 1-2 DW trips / year it's not economically feasible so it is what it is.

. . . but with a toad I'd stick with a Class A.

Happy Travels,
- bob

[eagle281]

Thank all of you so very much.
After reading this many responses we have made up our minds
To a class A it is

[msturtz]

An interesting anecdote about a towable vs. a motorhome. We too a trip to Crater Lake National Park with our newborn twins. Originally we planned on bringing the toad with us but at the last minute my wife and I decided to just go with the motorhome. We had made the same trip the prior year with our towable and truck so we have a good reference point. The park was full so we had to stay in the nearest town about 20 miles outside the park. We pulled into the RV park and I pulled out all the hoses and power cords etc. I hooked up within 10 minutes we were set including the slides out and satellite TV working. Each day of our trip we would just disconnect from the park and leave the hoses on the ground out of the way (the water hose I put up a little on the hose bib) and within 5 minutes we were on the way. Pull in the slides, retract the landing jacks double check everything is disconnected and pull out. Hookup was equally easy. Again about 5 minutes and we were back hooked up. Now here is the real benefit. Since we were out all day with the babies we didn't have to pack a cooler and snacks for the babies or for our 8 year old daughter. We had hot lunches and drinks whenever we wanted them. We had a clean bathroom whenever we wanted it. When it got cold we had blankets and coats. Parking was simple and easy. We never had a problem finding a place to park the motorhome inside the park at each lookout and trailhead. It made the trip very pleasant. Open the curtains so our daughter could look at the beautiful views as we were driving by. With the towable we would have to pack the truck every morning for everything we needed for the whole day including snacks and drinks, diapers etc. Changing the babies in the motorhome is vastly easier vs. the truck! We made another trip where we toured the entire length of US 101 along the Oregon coast. We stopped at parking lots and state parks along the way. We were able to see a lot that would have been very difficult and tiring with a truck and towable. I did a similar trip with my old towable and truck on the Washington coast. It was a lot more complicated and tiring. I hope this helps!

[gemert]

We went from 5er to A last year. Love it. Setup is easier and faster. If you stay in one spot 5er is best. If you move a lot the the A is best in my humble opinion.

[dezolen]

Went from 5th wheel to gas class A 2 years ago. So glad my dw changed my mind to switch as I was leaning toward a high end 5th wheel. It is so nice to sightsee in a much more economical toad. No looking back

[msturtz]

We started with a TT, then another TT, a Class C and finally a DP Class A. TT like all towable units are less expensive if you don't include the cost of the truck. We have 3 kids 2 20 month olds and a 9 year old. A motorhome is vastly easier to use and travel with. I regret purchasing the Class C. It was too small and didn't have enough payload, water etc.

[dahkota]

We fulltimed for six months in a 27' tt. We have been fulltiming now for six months in a 33' class A. Both had almost the exact same interior space and storage space (because of the truck bed for the tt) so neither aspect has made a difference. However, we greatly prefer the class A. The set up and break down is faster and easier. We enjoy running around in the jeep we tow behind rather than the F250 we used to pull the tt. If we want to tour an area between camping locations, we can with the class A/jeep but we could not with a truck/tt combo - most places won't allow you to drop a trailer and drive off, but we can with the A. We probably will never go back to a tt or purchase a 5er.

[mike_brez]

We went from tent to class c to a 5er then a gas A for 12 years and now our first class A diesel pusher. We like the class As the best.

[mayo30]

mike brez wrote:

mayo30 wrote:

352 wrote:

mayo30 wrote:
We did it twice but our experience was mostly because of our preferred use.Best way to travel is a class A,best way to camp,fish boat etc. for us was 5th.wheel.Best way to retire was extended stay trailer.Did not like the idea of a tow behind but tried it two different times to make sure and did not like it but knew I needed a tow car,for the freedom to move around a lot.We explored a lot,didn't like pot luck supper style parks very much.

Where is Up here in the cold,cold north?

Saskatchewan,your neighbor to the north.It is -15 Centigrade on the deck today.Much the same weather as North Dakota and Montana to the south.

That's colder than a witches........icebox :B

Ya it just gets stupid sometimes, tonight forcast -39 with the windchill mind you.Health prevents us from travelling south now,but summers are very nice here.Sorry for hijacking post.

[mike_brez]

mayo30 wrote:

352 wrote:

mayo30 wrote:
We did it twice but our experience was mostly because of our preferred use.Best way to travel is a class A,best way to camp,fish boat etc. for us was 5th.wheel.Best way to retire was extended stay trailer.Did not like the idea of a tow behind but tried it two different times to make sure and did not like it but knew I needed a tow car,for the freedom to move around a lot.We explored a lot,didn't like pot luck supper style parks very much.

Where is Up here in the cold,cold north?

Saskatchewan,your neighbor to the north.It is -15 Centigrade on the deck today.Much the same weather as North Dakota and Montana to the south.

That's colder than a witches........icebox :B