Rent an RV first before you purchase. You may not like the lifestyle and be sorry you purchased. Plus you can practice using all the equipment on the rental and see what floor plan fits your needs. I think you model is 31 feet similar to my 31 SS Greyhawk, so you will also have to make plans for a toad to bring along. It is not fun to take a short skip to the store for groceries or to tour around in to sight see. If you are thinking a un hooking and using the RV as you transportation while sightseeing, I would consider a smaller Class C or a B+.
I see you just joined this forum. BEFORE you buy anything, learn what you can from here on a good versus a bad motor home. DON'T assume every motor home is made of the same quality standards like cars generally are. Other than making sure the rig facilitates your needs, the biggest concern is the quality of the house construction. Lesser quality means water gets inside, then mold, mildew, and rotting materials will plaque you until you rid yourself of it. Forest River is not known to be at the top of a "quality" list. There are so many stories to be read here where people have bought new motor homes and they get water coming in. If not when brand new, then just a few years later.....of coarse, long after any warranty period.
I would say, if you want to head out 12/1, then buying a brand new rig at the end of the normal RVing season in September/October/November as it will yield your best deal BY FAR. By then you will have learned a lot more from the good people here as well. Don't buy hastily becasue a dealer say's he can give you a great deal. Buy "wise". First get educated so your purchase will be a long lasting, much happier experience.
BTW: Two cats in a motor home is no trouble at all. Not with them, and not with the liter box. Take them along and enjoy your time together.
* This post was
edited 03/25/12 09:50am by ron.dittmer *
Quote: We want to semi-retire. Picked out a Forest River Sunseeker 3010ds today. Have NEVER RV'd. Had a target date to go south Dec. 1
Buying and storing if that is your intent is not the best idea.
Buying new with no experience may also not be the best idea. Very likely you will learn and wish you had done something different. Consider good quality used, save the extra money, learn and you will be much more informed for your next decision and very likely be much happier.
The dealer wants your money now, ignore him. We often travel w/o reservations and doubtful you will have any problems. Sure a particular CG or site may not be available but RV travel is off and there are many places available. Don't make long term reservations, move around and find out what you like.
Cats: You have to address the 2 cat fighting issue. It doesn't sound good for a small home. Do they travel in the car? If not start now and take them everywhere. Our cats took a month of travel to settle down.
We now have the best loving cat that travels everywhere with us. Car, airplanes and 6 months in the rig. When outside she is on a leash. When we bring the rig home she runs to the door to get in. Not so for a car as it represents trips to the vet. Except for airplane travel we never use a cage.
We met a couple who had starated full timing and doing camp hosting to help pay for space at state parks. They had a large Class C with a large screen room. Sold their home, tried it for a while, wife badlymissed their home town and contact with their families, etc. despite having a sewing machine and craft. They could not afford to buy another home at the time. Try it first before committing.
Buying and storing is not the best option! The worst treatment for any RV is to let it sit! If you research used RV's you can find many 5 and 6 year old vehicles with under 10,000 miles, (like new you say! No batteries go dead tires dry rot, engines get gummed up, and many many more!! On the other hand you do not want your first outing in the RV to be your "dream trip" south! You need time to learn all the little things and some big ones to about your RV. Weekend trips are a great start, what to pack, what not to bring, what works for you, how it drives, how to back into a site, the hook ups, etc, etc, etc.
Unless we want to go to a specific RV park, I have not made reservations, but I am only staying from one night to a couple of weeks. If your planing several months you need to make reservations. Post on this forum and there are other venues out there to Post as well and ask the questions, what is a nice place in (name your City), what is there to do, where to go, anything to watch out for, etc. Read the responses and choose then make your reservation.
As for the cats, should be no problem. I would not advise to let them run free anywhere, but a litter box, their carriers and any play toys will help them adjust. We travel with a cat and two small dogs, (cat is bigger than either dog, and almost as big as both combined! Yes our cat is de clawed, I don't think I would do that again, but she climbs trees, jumps fences and generally has a great time around home. She does not like traveling since we keep her inside, but tolerates it. Good luck on your adventure!
When driving we keep a red leash on the cat - easy to find the cat. However she is usually asleep on the 12V electric blanket - are you thinking spoiled rotten!
i actually just bought the same model. it was my second rv and i like the floorplan.
i'm not big on renting an rv because a rental doenst have nearly the options you might purchase, and the ride wont be all that great. there are ways to address the ride issues which can be found in this foruum,. If you rent and get a crummy unit that rides terrible, you might just decide not to rv based on that. my first new rv had a horrible ride right off the show room floor, but after addressing the issues, it now rides like a big suv, and i very much like to travel by rv. if I had rented first, I would not have gone to the trouble to learn how to fix the ride, and would not have continued in rving.
Well, the buying thing. I would argue that if the deal is real good, the rig is what you want, I'd go ahead and get it and do weekends till fall. Weekend RV trips are fun and because the RV stays mostly packed it get's easy. Then, when you're ready for the long trips there wont be any surprises. We went used when we bought ours and I suspect that I will never buy a brand new unit. But, I have a buddy that wouldn't dream of buying used. He doesn't know which end of a screwdriver is the business end. The first couple of years of depreciation is tough on a new unit.
As for the cats.. Since my wife does the occasional dog she we have done a few days with six dogs. Yep, six. I don't recommend it for an extended period of time but, two cats wouldn't be difficult at all. You must keep an eye on them though. If an animal runs off 1000 miles from home your in a fix.
We have traveled without reservations but, it can cause problems. I wouldn't recommend it. This is what I would do. make a reservation for a week or so. If you don't like it move on. But, if you do like it most campgrounds will try to help you out since you're already there. We have done that a lot of times and never once had to leave because there were no sites. Also, read the reviews on-line about where you want to go. i have found them to be pretty reliable. If users say it sucks it always does. If most people rave about it it's usually pretty good.
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