As I pondered entering retirement, I knew that I had wanted to travel across the US. I had taken a few sojourns of 10 to 40 days previously in my youth and these were wonderful experiences. I had covered the south and southern California but a lot of this was seen from the front seat of a pickup since I typically spent no more than a day in a specific location. There was a lot of the US remaining and now that I am older and slower I plan on taking my time and enjoying the journey.
I considered for a short time driving in a car and staying at Airbnb, or Bed and Breakfasts, or motels but I chose to buy a RV instead and I’ll lay out my reasoning here and provide a little information as well gained from the research I did. There are a lot of choices out there!
Class A Motorhome
A commercial bus that has been converted into an RV is a “bus conversion”.
Class B motorhome (campervan)
Built using a conventional van these are smaller which allows for stealth camping on a street and alleviates the need for a second vehicle since it can go most anywhere.
Class C motorhome
A Class C motorhome is usually known as a small motorhome. It will be based off a truck body with living space that extends over the cab.
Travel trailer
These are also known as bumper pulls since they are attached to the bumper of a towing vehicle
Fifth-wheel trailer
Designed to be towed by a pickup or medium duty truck equipped with a special in-box hitch called a fifth wheel coupler. Part of the trailer body extends over the truck bed, shortening the total length of the vehicle and trailer combined.
Choosing between a travel trailer and a fifth wheel is the topic of many articles available on the web. The most straightforward assessment broke it down to the following.
In the end I chose a Passport SL 268BH from https://www.wanarv.com/
The 268 means that there is 26.8 feet of living space length – i.e.”the box”
Add to this length an additional 4 feet or so for the hitch and you get to the listed 30’ 6”
This was a little longer than I initially wanted but I have had friends and family threaten to visit I wanted bunkbeds plus I wanted a “real” bed rather than a Murphy bed.
Standard are:
Exterior:
- Extended Season Camping Package – Heated & Enclosed Underbelly,
- Exterior Convenience Center
- Battery Disconnect
- Black Tank Flush
- Exterior Shower
- EZ Lube Axles
- Dual Battery Tray, Micro Diamond Plating
- Exterior Speakers
- 2-20 LBS LP Tanks
- Tinted Safety Glass
- Spare Tire & Carrier
- Exterior LP Quick Connect
- Oversized Pass Thru Storage with Slam Baggage Doors
- Adjustable Power Awning with LED Lighting
- Aluminum Wheels
My comments: I viewed a number of similarly priced and sized travel trailers and the options are almost all standard or nothing too special. For example, EZ Lube Axles are OK but torsion axles are deemed better. Exterior speakers may sound nice – or not. Items like this have no points of comparison and I could find no model# listed. This unit does have a small outdoor fridge and stove plus shower so that will be useful.
Interior:
- Motion Activated Lighting at Main Entrance and Pass Thru Storage
- 6 CU FT Gas/Electric RV Refrigerator
- Pleated Shades
- Upgraded Seamless Countertops
- Stainless Steel Kitchen Sink
- LED Lighting Throughout
- 3 Burner Gas Stove & Oven with Glass Stove Cover for Increased Countertop Space
- 6 Gal. Quick Recovery Water Heater (17.8 Gallons/hour)
- Hi Definition LED TV
- 4+ USB Charging Outlets
- Tri-Fold Sofa
Comments: Again, pretty standard items except electric only refrigerators are becoming more common while the one offered with this can run on propane as well. I did replace the sofa with dual leather recliners (theatre seating) plus I opted to pay more for 2 x 6 volt batteries rather than go with the 1 x 12 volt that was standard. I also opted for an Andersen Anti-sway weight distribution hitch to help with any potential sway.
Why did I make the choices that I did?
It was important to me to do business with a reputable and valued dealer. The experience of dealing with Lindsay Ram in Manassas educated me to just how low a business can go to make money. For fun, go to Yelp or BBB and look them up. Just like wedding rings, many people will purchase just one in their lifetime but some will purchase many and the learning curve is steep. I had enough sense to ask the local dealer I visited about the cost of various travel trailers. “This one is $19,995, sir.” I’d ask “Are there any additional charges that are not included in that price?” The typical additional charges are:
$1000 .freight. One salesman said they add that to all new and used models to help cover the cost
$500 dealer prep and walk-through
$500 document processing fee
Taxes, tags and registration fees which are ordinary at cost items
The Wana website says “Included in our sale price is a sewage hose, water hose, battery, filled L.P. tanks, toilet paper, chemicals and 30 day temporary plates. When sold, we go through the unit very carefully. We run the A/C and the furnace, we run all the appliances to make sure they all work. We run water through all the plumbing and try each faucet to make sure you have no water leaks. We even get up on the roof to make sure everything is sealed the way the manufacturer wants it.. As the salesman put it “the price I quote you is the price you pay. There is nothing additional.”
The video is from Campingworld but it is a nice overview.
Love it!!! Excited to keep up with your travels!