truck camper or class c?

[NatParkJunkie]

After years of dreaming, I'm planning on buying my first RV this year! I've looked at truck campers and class C's, and I'm torn between the two styles. As I've been evaluating them, I can see definite pros and cons to both, so this post is looking for some feedback from real world experiences from other owners.

about me: I'm an IT consultant, with the ability to work pretty much anywhere as long as I have a reliable internet connection (Verizon grandfathered unlimited data plan). It will be me traveling solo, with the dog. I finally talked my boss into letting me work remotely part-time. Boss made a contingency that I have to have a fixed location (slight bummer, but still moving in the right direction). So I'm planning on spending next winter down south in the general Phoenix area, and back home in Pennsylvania for the summer. The goal will be to establish a general home base at one or maybe two campgrounds somewhere around Phoenix, with the ability to take weekend trips wherever I can.

When vacationing, I love visiting state and national parks out west. I keep eyeballing truck campers as the perfect setup for visiting the parks. They're much more compact to drive around, and you have the ability to offload the camper to use the truck for touring the parks. My biggest concern is overall living space, since I'm still working 40+ hours a week, and also want some space for lounging and kicking up the feet at the end of the day when not visiting a park somewhere. As I've been looking at tuck campers, that leads me to the Lance 1172 that has a dinette/table/desk space for working, and a couch for relaxing.

Looking at the overall length of truck plus camper, I then start thinking I may as well get a 25-26 foot class C that has probably more living and working space with the same overall length. However then I need to tow a toad to get around. Both because when I'm set up working for the week, I won't want to move the camper to get some figurative milk, and I've visited enough national parks to know that I definitely don't want to drive around a class C for touring the parks on a weekend getaway.

Either way, I need to buy a truck camper and a 1 ton truck, or buy a class C and a new tow vehicle, because my car is not flat towable and I don't really want to deal with towing it on a trailer. I'm torn on both types of setups. I see pros and cons of both, neither of which is winning. Looking in the lightly used market, the initial purchase cost of both options seems roughly comparable to each other.
I'm leaning slightly more towards the truck camper route right now.
Does anyone have any advice? Have you switched from a truck camper to a class C or a class C to a truck camper and prefer one or the other? I would appreciate any thoughts or feedback before I start spending lots of money! 🙂

thanks!

[Kayteg1]

Unless you already have a truck, ClassC will be easier to buy and more comfortable.
Unless you buy the monster-C, why would you need a toad?
Bad news it is hard to find C with diesel.

[Jack_Hart]

If it's just you and your dog, you really don't need much more than a bed, a place to sit, cooking facilities and a toilet. The bigger and heavier you go, the less flexibility you'll have and the more hassle you'll have loading and unloading. I'd go with a TC, but I'd concentrate on those that will work well with a SRW long bed 3/4 or 1 ton. Keep the size and weight down and you'll be happier in the long run. I'd avoid heavy slide-outs and look at campers with a dry weight less than 2000#. If you need more room, go outside.

[kohldad]

I'll throw out a 3rd option and the one I would go with.

Get a 1-ton SRW truck, a used small 8' TC that is well under the payload, then a 25-30' used travel trailer. Set up the TT at your home park for the season so you get a better rate by being there longer and have amble room to set it up as an office. Then you still have the TC for exploring the remote locations on the weekends. By being well under the truck's payload, it won't be a problem using it for the weekday errands, plus you will be able to tow the TT. If you still have a brick house in PA, you can put the TT in storage so you don't have to haul it back and forth. This option is the one at the top of our list when we slow down our travels a few years after retirement. Best of both worlds.

Instead of TT, you could just set up a 12' or so trailer with a couch, TV and desk for your office. But with the TT, you would get the fridge and bathroom in the same space.

I have a 2,400# 8'6" TC on my SRW and once it's loaded for a trip, don't take it off until I'm home. Usually it's on the truck two or three days before I leave and after I get home despite the fact it is my daily driver. If my HOA would allow it, I would keep it on there for weeks between my trips.

[PAThwacker]

I have been consultanting 5 years after the demise of domestic pharmaceutical companies. Slowly transitioning after my family was destroyed (coincided with pharmaceutical collapse)
I'd recommend a class c and jeep road. My issue now is weekend kids every other weekend.