Need ideas thoughts on bunkhouse for family of 4

[Rte1985]

I know there are probably a billion threads/posts on a/this subject but here I go anyway.

My wife and I are now just starting our search for our future family camper. This is hopefully a sub 18 month plan before we pull the trigger but being such a large purchase and being so anal about things I don't want to get tunnel vision on a certain brand or model. We plan on going to our local rv show next time it is in town. Also in a couple of months we hope to get to a few local dealers to physically get into some unit to get a better idea. As for right now we are at the internet searching phase and I can say I have put in who knows how many hours on forums, dealer web sites and such soaking up as much info as I can! Here is where we are at

We want a bunkhouse, we have two toddlers at this time (3 yo and 2 yo). Price wise we would like to be under $35,000 (Ideally under $30,000)
I really like the bunkhouses with a slide because I feel that they offer so much growing room for our kids and their (future friends), also they can spread out and play if we are forced inside. But the weight of a slide in the bunkroom adds up. Speaking of weight I really want to stay under 9000 lbs gross weight (which would probable be 7000-7500 dry weight range)

If anyone has some thoughts on brands/models. We are really leaning toward fiberglass siding. This will also have to be a travel trailer since we will be towing with an suv. Some of the models that have peaked our interest in no order are.
Coachmen Freedom Express 310 (azdel, fireplace, large outside kitchen)7500 dry
Keystone Cougar 31sqb (love the cub couches, king size bed)7100 dry
Grand Design 3150bh (Love the looks, top end of budget and no TUB!,wife really wants a tub for the kids) 7500 dry

If anyone has any ideas or owns one of these brands or models I would love your thoughts. We don't want buyers remorse. We have dealers for all of these brands close by. Thanks for any input (like I said we have plenty of time to make a choice but I'll research myself to death and be more confused than when I started. Thanks and sorry for the long post.
Ray

[RinconVTR]

I tow a Grand Design 2800bh (paid 26k) with an SUV and will tell you now, its not about the weight its about the length. Be it SUV or 1/2 ton truck, 7000lbs and 32' length is not super heavy but it is long.

You will want a premium hitch such as the Hensley or Propride if you go with something as large. Dont take my word for it now, you'll wish you did after you tow with couple times.

Believe me, or not. Research. Ask others. Spend the money now, or pay in various forms later.

[djsamuel]

Check out the Camplite 21BHS bunkhouse. We really like ours. Very well built and rugged. Four years later, just as solid as the day we bought it.

Camplite 21BHS

[Kevinwa]

WE have a Mini Lite 2504S for our family of four. Our boys are now 6 and 4. I really like it. WE did buy it when we had an F-150 as a tow vehicle. We soon realized that trips to the mountains with the 5.4L V8 were tiring and slow. So we upgraded to an F-350 power stroke. That being said, if our use was local then it would easily be towed with the 1/2 ton. While having smaller bunks then some, the 2504S has lots of storage and also a huge amount of floor space for the boys to spread out on with their toys and hot wheels tracks etc.
Everything with purchasing a travel trailer is a balance. I wanted lighter weight, which means the trailer has small (30 gallon) water tanks. This isn't an issue in full service parks, but I like to go to the national park campgrounds in the mountains and few of these have water or sewer at the site. I wanted under 27' because over that limits us to the larger campgrounds in the mountains, and I wanted freedom to camp wherever.
Oh. One thing I really recommend staying away from is the U dinette. Nobody, not even my kids, want to scootch around the table to the back seats. I am actually pondering how to convert mine to a normal booth.

[Hemling]

We pull a 2017 Keystone Sprinter Campfire edition. Nice rear bunkroom on a slide out and solid door partitioning it off from the living room/kitchen. We liked it because the bathroom is between the master bedroom and kitchen, really isolating the master bedroom from the rest of the unit. It is huge though. 37' I think interior space and about 40' tongue to spare tire. 8,000 dry. We have a 6 year old and 4 year old and do not pack lightly. Have never run out of space and it never really seems crowded.

[Rte1985]

Will do James! I like the jayflight and jaycos warranty just wanting fiberglass sides. The apex trailers are nice and lighter. I like the 289 tbss bunk layout over standard quad bunks. So many pros and cons when shopping for a trailer!

[xteacher]

Look at Coachmen Apex.

[rcracerguy]

Rte1985

Me and my family are in almost the same boat. We are looking to buy in early 2019, and renting a trailer next summer to confirm that it is the right thing to do before spending $30k, I have a young son who is 21 months. We really like the Jayco Jay Flight 32bhds floor plan as it has an external door to the bathroom so the kiddo does not track mud and stuff in the trailer so much, a tub to clean him and a door to the bunkhouse.

I got a 2003 f250 diesel about 4 years ago with the expectation it should be able to tow any bumper pull I want, I have to put a new hitch on next year as who ever had it before had a Class 3 on it.

I will be watching with interest please keep us posted on your progress.

James

[mleekamp]

Check out Cherokee Travel Trailers at Cheyenne Camping Center in Walcot IA. We just got one there....literally saved $4,000 over the exact same model in IL. They have folks come in from all over the country...and they do the paperwork for your state. Walcott is just past the Quad Cities, was only 120 miles from Peoria (where we live).

The Cherokee we bought a few weeks ago was a 274BDH. 31.5 foot long, 6200lbs dry (no, i have not weighted it yet...thats sticker wt), 16 foot slide out, and bunks. The front has closed door bedroom for mom/dad. GREAT layout for rainy days...tons of storage and room..and a rack on back for bikes/spare tire/grill.

Ours is aluminum sided, which was fine for us. Either way, Cheyenne Campers offers huge discounts on many, many models.

I sound like an commercial..but seriously, it is worth checking out their website.

[RwaSmith]

Glad to have another RVer from Indiana on here.

You have a great SUV I have a 2010 2500 and love that thing. We just towed to Yellowstone and back with zero issues.

Our trailer is a Forrest River Vibe 308BHS. It works great for our family of 4. The kids love the bunkhouse.

When we did have issues with our TT I called the Vibe division and they had be bring it up to Elkart the very next day and fixed everything for me and gave us a factory tour. I have been sold on them since that day.

Hopefully see you at a campsite soon.

[modern_family]

Prices start to climb quickly, especially when you want fiberglass. Whatever you do, stick to your guns and get fiberglass. We had 2 fiberglass units and our new TT is the corrugated siding. Big mistake on my part. It is just a cheaper and poor quality unit all around. You get what you pay for. The stability alone is terrible. We bought it on the fact that we wanted bigger and didn't want to pay the extra 10 or 15k for the fiberglass equivalent.

Our keystone Laredo was a great TT and we had zero problems. The outback and Laredo are just about identical, not really sure if there is a difference. I would put my vote in for a keystone product with a bunkhouse slide for sure.

[Rte1985]

Wow everyone thanks for the responses! I'll try to answer some ?s. First we plan on having full hook ups majority of the time. We actually plan to do Michigan trips as a norm so I'm going to have to check out their limits. Gear ratio is 3.73. If I feel the need for more rear end I'll swap to the 4.1 gears. (Barely hurts fuel mileage but will hurt wallet for the swap. I'm definitely putting the curt on. The price is to cheap not to! And yes the liberty edition fe has a lot going for it! I'll check out the outback. Everyone time I get on keystones website my head starts spinning with all of their models and similar floor plans. The timber ridge looked good although I didn't see a separate bunk room model? For the weight they must be built solid! Thanks for all your responses. I have more homework to do now!

[kerrlakeRoo]

Check the Keystone Outbacks, the 29' bunk model has a separate room but no tub, but only weighs 5880 empty, They also have a 32' with the tub and bunk slide room but weight goes up to 7200 empty,

[Community Alumni]

We have a 16' Freedom Express 310BHDS and love it. We've used it quite a bit during the last year and a half. It's has plenty of space for us. It's been comfortable for us parents, three kids (5,3, and 1), a large dog, and our recently departed cat. There's plenty of storage space throughout. On a recent trip we were able to store our normal gear and food plus 5 full sets of family member's golf clubs.

As you know its a unit that's on the heavier side, but it's built quite well. Lots of real wood throughout the trailer instead of particle board. There's there's not a lot areas I felt like I needed to upgrade or improve, but then again we purchased the upgraded Maple Leaf edition.

It's been mostly problem free except for the brake wiring, which is a common problem industry wide. We also had a door lock that got stuck in the locked position. Turns out there was a recall on the lock. Other than that we haven't had any problems out of it. After owning this one I would buy another Coachmen.

[wing_zealot]

I have an Aerolite 282DBHS. Best thing about it is it has a storage space inside you can put the bikes in for travel (or if no bikes you have a huge storage space for chairs, coolers, grills, or whatever).

Bunks are on a lift system and it has a big bike door in back. Bunks go up to the ceiling and bike storage area is then created under bunks. I put 4 bikes in there (I built a PVC bike rack that fits in the storage area). After the bikes come out, bunks go down and now you have a bunkhouse.