I'm a lifelong tent camper, but my partner and I are interested in switching to an RV for added convenience and comfort during our trips. I'd be happy to get some feedback on traveling in a small travel trailer.A fifth wheel or Class C might be in our future a few years down the line, but I think we'd like to experiment with a smaller travel trailer in the meantime. It's just the two of us for now (hopefully with a canine friend in the near future!), so we don't need a whole lot of space. We like to visit National Parks and camp off-grid. Right now, I'm thinking that a small travel trailer with a kitchen area and bed would be great for us. I've seen various teardrop designs and other small campers that fit this description. But what's it like to stay in these? Do you feel cramped and crowded? Do you bring along a tent/shelter to give you more space to spread out on bad weather days? Happy to hear your thoughts on the matter!

Small trailers will almost always mean small tanks. That then means lots of trips to dump stations and to refil water tanks. Small trailers do have their place, but you need to decide what is a good size for you.

We have a small 17' trailer and are upgrading to a 19'. We really like the small trailers, but as pointed out, they typically have small holding tanks.As far as going bonkers in bad weather because of being cooped up, that happens to me in our house! No matter what the weather while we use our trailer, we always do something outdoors. It's why we have a camper.

I second the opinion of getting a "regular" TT that is around the 19' range over one of those "compact" models. Especially when the compact models are the same price as the larger units! I had a 19' TT and was glad I bought it instead of a smaller one or one that had tent siding on it!If you are concerned with gas savings with a compact unit, don't be. You have to drive tens of thousands of miles to really save anything on gas versus a regular sized trailer.

Here's the typical sequence for RV'ers:1. Start out tent camping2. Buy a small RV and like the RV lifestyle3. Buy a bigger RV right away for comfort4. Buy an even bigger RV for more comfort and because you can afford a bigger RV or the family has grownMost people start out with a small RV because they are afraid of driving or towing a larger vehicle. In reality once you get used to driving a large vehicle it's not much different than a small vehicle.My advice to folks contemplating what to buy is to buy the largest RV you can afford at the time. Find one that meets your needs now and what you feel your needs will be in the next 5-10 years.Keep in mind it's a lot more comfortable to wait out a storm for 3 days inside of a 25 to 35 foot RV than it is to be stuck in a teardrop.

A pop-up trailer gives you a lot more usable interior space than a teardrop, which is more along the lines of a hard-sided pup tent (okay, somewhat bigger than that, but not a whole lot).Maybe a little "egg" trailer like a Scamp or Casitas or similar would be worth considering. As was mentioned, they do have quite small tanks, so water conservation is important if you don't have hookups available.If you'll be spending a comparatively large amount of time actually traveling from place to place (rather than spending the time at any destination), a motorhome of some sort is definitely more convenient than a trailer. You don't need to go outside to get to the bathroom or fridge, just pull over and walk a few steps back. When stopping for a night, a minimal setting up of camp consists of setting the parking brake and turning the ignition and headlights off assuming the area where you're stopping is reasonably level, and breaking camp in the morning is pretty much just the same steps taken in reverse.

Making the jump from tent camping to RVing | Good Sam Community

zcookiemonstar
Explorer
May 14, 2018
Merrykalia wrote:
zcookiemonstar wrote:
Rent Rent Rent Trying out a few different size units will give you the best idea of what you want. How big of a trailer also depends on your tow vehicle. You need to find out what your towing capacity is if you even have a vehicle that you can tow with. You can rent motor homes too but they are a lot more money.

That's great advice if you live in a large city, but there is nowhere within a 150 mile radius of us that will rent an RV.

I know there is a campground In Charlotte NC. that rents travel trailers in their campground all you have to do is drive up.(at ZMAX Dragway) Not saying you should go there but if they do it I am sure other places do too.
SoundGuy
Explorer
May 13, 2018
Boomerweps wrote:
Edit: I added my TT to my signature, see earlier post. Wow, it did not add it to this one even though it's marked to do so!

And it won't - wish it wasn't so but due to forum software your SIG is restricted to one post per page. That's why I preset my "option to make my sig appear below my post" to OFF and only turn it on when it's relevant to what I'm posting or the subject being discussed, as was the case when you originally posted.
Boomerweps
Explorer
May 13, 2018
SoundGuy wrote:
Boomerweps wrote:
SWMBO & I just made the leap ourselves.

Our key concerns were keeping it small for our tow vehicle, no constructing/deconstructing our bed, and a dry bath. We also decided on bunks for the grandkids.

Would be helpful if you listed your new camper (2019 Cherokee Wolf Pup 16BHS) in your SIG, otherwise posts like yours above are meaningless to others like the OP seeking information on trailers like this. ;)

Don't see where it would make it meaningless but can see its usefulness. Done. Actually we decided on the above concerns after looking at other make campers. The outside storage door at the lower bunk, rear platform standard, open top bunk, and the USB ports sold us on the 16BHS.

Edit: I added my TT to my signature, see earlier post. Wow, it did not add it to this one even though it's marked to do so!
SoundGuy
Explorer
May 13, 2018
Boomerweps wrote:
SWMBO & I just made the leap ourselves.

Our key concerns were keeping it small for our tow vehicle, no constructing/deconstructing our bed, and a dry bath. We also decided on bunks for the grandkids.

Would be helpful if you listed your new camper (2019 Cherokee Wolf Pup 16BHS) in your SIG, otherwise posts like yours above are meaningless to others like the OP seeking information on trailers like this. ;)
Boomerweps
Explorer
May 13, 2018
SWMBO & I just made the leap ourselves. Previously we mostly primitive camped on lakes off our small sport boat. She said no more sleeping on the ground. We made a few long haul trips, staying in hotels and decided it would be cheaper to use a TT. Our key concerns were keeping it small for our tow vehicle, no constructing/deconstructing our bed, and a dry bath. We also decided on bunks for the grandkids.
2gypsies1
Explorer III
May 11, 2018
OP: Just wondering if any of these answers helped with your decision. Haven't heard from you!
nosebreaker
Explorer
May 11, 2018
I 2nd the option of driving to rent one. You checked rvshare to see if anyone had one closer? I just drove 1000mi to buy my RV!
DrewE
Explorer II
May 10, 2018
Merrykalia wrote:
zcookiemonstar wrote:
Rent Rent Rent Trying out a few different size units will give you the best idea of what you want. How big of a trailer also depends on your tow vehicle. You need to find out what your towing capacity is if you even have a vehicle that you can tow with. You can rent motor homes too but they are a lot more money.

That's great advice if you live in a large city, but there is nowhere within a 150 mile radius of us that will rent an RV.

Frankly, it may be worthwhile to go 150+ miles to rent one. It presumably would also be worth driving that far if needed to buy the right one when that time comes. I bought my motorhome from a gentleman who lived about that far away (and in a different state), and there's a decent RV dealer maybe fifteen miles from my house.
Merrykalia
Explorer
May 10, 2018
zcookiemonstar wrote:
Rent Rent Rent Trying out a few different size units will give you the best idea of what you want. How big of a trailer also depends on your tow vehicle. You need to find out what your towing capacity is if you even have a vehicle that you can tow with. You can rent motor homes too but they are a lot more money.

That's great advice if you live in a large city, but there is nowhere within a 150 mile radius of us that will rent an RV.
Merrykalia
Explorer
May 10, 2018
zcookiemonstar wrote:
Rent Rent Rent Trying out a few different size units will give you the best idea of what you want. How big of a trailer also depends on your tow vehicle. You need to find out what your towing capacity is if you even have a vehicle that you can tow with. You can rent motor homes too but they are a lot more money.

That's great advice if you live in a large city, but there is nowhere within a 150 mile radius of us that will rent an RV.

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