Best bunkhouse under 30ft

[ahatfield1]

I am looking for recommendations on a travel trailer bunkhouse that is under 30ft. I have 3 small children so I would need one of the bunks to be a double. I really want something that gives the most privacy when sleeping but is small enough to still use at campgrounds. I would like to have slides for more room but no tent hybrids. I feel like I have searched every possible TT and cannot seem to find one I really like. Does anyone have one they want to recommend?

Thanks in advance!

[mrp116]

Jayco White Hawk 28dsbh

[Mooreagreen]

Third for Shadow Cruiser. Looked high and low for the perfect plan at minimal weight and ended on the 280QBS.

4 bunks - one is a small table and 2 seats that converts into a bed. Perfect for playing games. Seperate solid door seperates kids room.

Outdoor kitchen - never thought much of it during purchasing but would not have another trailer without it. The bumper grill is very convenient and swings over to the kitchen.


If you can tow more any of the 30' quad bunks are decent options. I tow with an Infiniti QX56 just fine.

In a t case I would absolutely get one that has a seperate room for the kids with a solid door that goes top to bottom (Forest River uses short doors).

[Jnbaun]

We have a KZ Spree 289KS that we tow with a Ford Expedition with the 5.4L V8.
There's 4 bunks up front in a separate room and a king bed that slides out the rear. It also has a "U" shaped dinette that slides out. It's about 28' when towing and 31' when the rear slide is out.

[puttd]

I have a Keystone bullet 281bhs and would recommend it as well. It's great for kids because the double bunks are a bit of a "hidy hole' so the kids feel like they have a "room". It has tons of storage space and cargo capacity -- 2400 lbs. With the double bunks, it also works fine for teens. The U-shaped dinette is a good for accommodating more for dinner than the bench dinette and there is seating for six after dinner. One of the things that is tough is alot of rigs have tons of sleeping, no place to eat or sit in the evening if it is raining. I spent a long time finding something that would not put my SUV over the limit with room to spare and the 281 BHS was the best bang for the buck and weight.


I have towed this combo with a 2005 Dodge Durango Hemi in Colorado, etc -- I do have Bilsteins on the car and if I were keeping the bullet, I might add airbags. The 2005 Durango has, I think, a 7200 lb tow capacity, and 1000? hitch weight. The biggest issue is the wheelbase, so I also have a blue ox weight distribution hitch. I don't drive 75 mph, but you shouldn't do that anyway. It's gone east to west and back twice, so I know the combo works fine.

Here's some pics of my rig inside and out: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/rvs/3958565714.html

[Doug33]

krobbe wrote:
Keystone Bullet 294BHS.
I chose this floor plan so the kids have a separate room from the living space. The back room will sleep one over the EC(entertainment center), one on the trundle under the EC, one over the couch, and 2 on the roll over sofa(which is large enough for two adults). I removed the trundle for lots of storage space.
The weights are: dry-5635#, carry capacity-1890, and dry TW 725.
I load 1300# in my 2009 and it tows nicely.

Very nice layout and similar identical to ours, except with the separate bunk room. I would have loved to have this model, but it was a couple extra feet longer and an extra 500 lbs dry weight. I felt I was already pushing the envelope with my Avalanche as the TV and the space I had on the side of the house to store it.

[Cecilt]

Wrong TV choices for campers you are considering. SUV's have limited payload and with 5 in your family you will max this out very quickly. Not what you want to hear I am sure but if you want to tow safely your family and others on the road while you are traveling you need a stouter TV or stay with your hybrid.

[mrsarbogast]

We have a 2012 Coachman Catalina Deluxe Edition.
Slide in Living area, rear bunkhouse with a double and two singles, queen bedroom, and bath. We also have an outside kitchen. I insisted on that feature, lol. I believe my husband has said we are 36' tip to tail and we pull with an excursion as well.

[APT]

ahatfield1 wrote:
I am looking at the Durango, Tahoe and Yukon Denali.

You will limit your RV choices with those. Tow ratings are fairly meaningless for larger families and RVing. A 6k dry RV will be 7000-7500 pounds loaded for a long weekend. That means 800-1000 pounds of tongue weight. I highly recommend something with at least 1500 pounds of payload.

What years are you looking at?

I test drove a Yukon Denali including towing my TT which was about 6k at the time. The power from the 6.2L/6-spd trans was great. But even my wife agreed the ride while towing was uncomfortably bouncy.

If you are going with Ford or GM full sized SUV, I highly recommend the long wheelbase version (EL, XL, Suburban). It improves stability while towing. It offers significantly more 3rd row and cargo space. And the cost is within $1k.

[SprinklerMan]

Look at larger tow vehicles , you wont regret it , and you open up your options for a bunkhouse . I have a 29 ft sunset creek by sunnybrook quad bunk house with slide , pull it with a v 10 excursion . Pleanty of room in the camper , and the truck , pulls great , gas mileage is what it is , power to spare .

[ahatfield1]

The kids are 7, 3 and 8 months. Right now they will double up but I want a long term solution. We currently have a Toyota Highlander that tows 5000lbs but are looking to upgrade. With the 3 kids we need a 3rd row seat but dont want anything too expensive or too big. I am looking at the Durango, Tahoe and Yukon Denali. It just depends on what price I can get but all those should tow 6200 or more depending on the package. If you have any car suggestions I am all ears!

[ktosv]

Here is another vote for the Passport 2910. There are lots of great floor plans out there and this one works for us. Other then having a dedicated bed for each kid, we love the deep slide that the 2910 gives over some of the other similar models.

What are the ages of your kids? If you are considering putting two in a bed, with my current 12, 9, 7 and 5 year old I am willing to bet that only 50% of the time we would be able to get two to sleep together nicely.

Do you already have a tow vehicle? Just wondered what your towing limitations might be.

[ahatfield1]

These are all great suggestions! I think our best bet is to attend an RV show so we can see the options in person. I know some of you said you did not have a problem towing or camping above 30 ft but if we can get everything we want in less than 30 ft then that is what I want to do. I grew up tent camping. 2 years ago I bought a pop up and this past year a hybrid. Now we have decided we want to go further and on longer trips so we need something bigger. I read on this forum that you want it to be as small as possible to tow and then as big as possible when you park. I think that puts it perfectly! Thanks everyone!

[wdenton07]

I would check out the Passport 2920bh
That is the camper we bought this year so all the kids could have their own bed. It is 29ft box and 31 over all. It pulls like a dream also.

Its under 5400lb dry too

During my search I narrowed it down to the shadow cruiser and the passport and the passport won for 2 reasons
- the frame was much more stout then the cruiser
- the beds were 32 inches for all 4

One caveat is that the mattresses are horrible on the bunks in both trailers so I am going to buy foam and put it under the mattresses.

If the bed size and frame don't matter the shadow cruiser was nice and it was only 28ft box and 30 overall

[chracatoa]

30ft with tongue? Mine is around 30ft but the box is 26.