In order to do this we ordered a 32 foot camper and bought a new truck. So, for the past 6 months all I have done is research campers. What I have learned so far...
All camper companies are similar but some are more well made than others. There are also different levels of campers; economy, mid-grade, and luxury. There are also travel trailers, 5th wheels, and class A or B campers, which have the vehicle built in. We chose a mid-grad travel trailer with some amenities but nothing like what a rock star would live in. We also chose Jayco as the manufacturer because we have family and friends who all have Jayco brand campers, loved the dealer we found, and it had the layout that we wanted. The name of our camper is a Whitehawk and it comes with 2 slides, one in the living room and one in the master bedroom. Because we have 2 teenage boys, one that is 6 foot so far, we also needed a camper that had full size bunks for them; twin bunks were too short and too narrow. Our camper will have double over double bunks in the front of the camper, a queen sleeper sofa, and a master bedroom with a queen size bed. One of things that helped me most in my research, besides going online, was going to an RV show to see all the different brands, and get an idea of the size I wanted, could afford, and the different layouts. You can also go to RV dealers and look at the campers but be aware, most dealers only carry 1 or 2 brands of campers. And there are a lot of brands out there. None of the Jayco dealers had the layout we wanted in stock, so we ordered ours. We were able to see all the different features, like the u-shaped dinette, the double bunks, the bathroom layout, etc, within several different campers so we are confident in our decision.
The top things you need to decide on when camper shopping are:
1. Know you budget but be aware that camper prices are highly inflated. What the MSRP for the camper we ordered and what we are actually paying for it is about a $12k difference. So shop around, get quotes from several different dealers. (That's what we did) That way you know you are getting the best price.
2. What are your needs? After camping in a tent or at church camps (cabins with bare basics), I knew if I was going to do this for 5-6 weeks at a time, I needed some basic necessities, like A/C. Also, I have these 2 sons, a husband, and a 15 lb dog- (love my Loki), and I was going to need some space!
Each kid has to have his own area (hence the bunks described above) and I wanted a bedroom that I could retreat too. The main reason we chose this layout is because the bunks are in the front of the camper where the front wall curves. Campers that have the master in the front tend to make me feel claustrophobic. I wanted large windows in the master and a slide to give us walking room around the bed. Plus we have a large dresser and a closet for lots of storage. I also wanted the master bedroom close to the bath. My boys like to sleep, so I didn't want the bathroom next to their bunks since I am most likely going to be getting ready 1st in the morning.
3. Know your towing capacity. The more your camper weighs the bigger the truck you are going to need. The dry weight (weight with empty storage tanks and empty water tanks and minimal items inside) for our camper is 7150lbs, loaded it is 8950lbs. We went with a 3/4 ton truck to make sure that we wouldn't have any issues hauling the camper loaded or unloaded and over steep mountains. We literally bought the cart before the horse. We went camper shopping and ordered our camper then we truck shopped after. Now we know we got the vehicle that has the ability to tow our camper no matter how full we pack it.
4. It is a second/vacation home. This is our vacation home on wheels. We decided that with my husband and I both being teachers we needed to take advantage of our time off together before the kids go to college. For us, this is an investment in our family. Time to get away, unplug (to an extent) and hopefully be closer and still like each other when we come home.
