We are newbees that currently have a truck camper but are considering a 5'ver for the additional comfort, space and ease of entry. There's just my wife and I, but we are used to just jumping in the truck and camper and going at the spur of the moment, without a whole lot of advance thought about park accommodations or RV length restrictions. With a 5'ver we have been told that the longer a unit is, the fewer the park sites with spaces available to visit (e.g. length restrictions). We are looking at a 31 and 34 ft LOA units, but would consider smaller if we must. Would these lengths present a real problem as far as finding a park to stay in? Would a shorter length unit be much better? If so, what would be the ideal length for finding an avalible park space? Also, when a park quotes a certain length space available (say 35 feet), does this length include the truck and 5'ver together or just the length of the 5'ver alone? Sorry for so many dumb questions but we want to be sure we can use the 5'ver when we want before we jump in to buy one. Any help from the experts would be much appreciated!
We went from a no slide 28' 5er to a 33' double slide. This new one will be our full time home soon, so we wanted to make sure it was comfortable for us. The one thing I regret is its just too big for those "quick spur of the moment trips" we used to take with the first one. Also have heard that many state parks have a 29' limit. I never used to worry about getting in and out with the 28' but am constantly vigilant with the new one. So I guess I'm thinking something under 30' would be preferable for you for the type of RVing you do now. Just an opinion.
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The 31' overall would not be near the problem as a 34' will. I have no experience in California camping but in the southeast most state parks have at least some big spaces that will accomdate the 34' trailer
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I have a 36 footer and now wish I had stayed around thirty..Some parks are very tight and one we used to go to is out of the question now...Also I believe that either all or most of the National Parks have a thirty foot limit...
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Ours is a 27' model, 30' overall. We've not had any problems with GA state parks or COE campgrounds we go too. I have been on one site where I had to let rear overhang go past end of site. Luckily there wasn't a tree there.
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My 32' Cruiser has fit comfortably in several VA state parks this year. When we stayed at Chippokes near Williamsburg, they advertised 40' but I could have parked the space shuttle in their pull throughs. Had to be 80' long and paved.
Wife says she's never seen one too long but I believe it gets to the point of being too long to take out for play on a weekend or short trip. Our 32' 5th wheel is bordering on this. Being there with a long one is great but, getting it there, once the novelty of having a long one wears off, can get a little cumbersome. Most state parks I've been in limit your unit to 35'.
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We have a 28 5'er, and in going to the national and state parks here in Wisconsin, we have parked next to 36's and even a 42 ft. Definitely the longer the less parks that can accommodate the length. But here in Wisconsin, it seems most parks do accommodate over 30.
I am not sure that longer is better though. I know its more room, but its also more storage room which equals more weight. Remember stuff will accumulate to fill all possible space.
I'm currently in the same boat. My current fiver is 31' long. I want to upgrade but find it difficult to get many triple slides under 35'. Personally, I don't want to go over 35'.
We went with a Carriage Cameo 31'11" with three slides....plenty of room for two and a well made rig. Our experience with state parks up and down the east coast is that 32' is about as large as we wanted to get.
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