How do you like 16' ?

[dieterdog]

Hi Ron,, like was previously said in prior posts,,, both sized trailers have advantages and disadvantages, own a 16 foot ccd and a 25 foot safari for longer trips and perhaps snow birding in the future,,, could not part with the bambi,,, amazing how much you can pack in the underbed storage,and in your tow vehicle. i carry a toaster oven,,lots of pots and pans. maybe 19 or 22 would be the middle of the road. go and sit in all sizes and really get the feel of them. the trailers will speak to you,, donna

[lewster]

Originally Posted by Turtle

I ditto what Frozen, RDM, and Betty said. My wife and I have had our 16' CCD for 3 years now. We've taken five 2 weeks+ trips, plus other shorter trips and hated coming home. We tow with a 4 liter Ford Ranger. No problems. There really is an amazing amount of storage inside. We've fit into some amazing campsites that I wonder if a 19' could have fit. In campgrounds with a fixed dump station, it's a 30 minute turnaround to hook up, dump and fill with water and return. We went from backpacking and tent camping to this. Deluxe! Can't go wrong either way. I have a question for 19' owners. Where is the counter space for food prep? Jamie

Food prep is done on the stove and sink covers. The lack of counter space was the only drawback that I found in the 19CCD, but then I usually do most of my cooking on an outdoor grill and don't really need more counter than what's there. Plus, the dinette does double duty as well.

[Silvertwinkie]

The 25' also isn't much better in terms of counter space....though it does have the dual kitchen sink with covers that does help.

We had our niece and nephew with us in the 19' Bambi and although they were small enough and we made due, the reality is that a number of folks (myself included) buy the smaller units cause they are cute, our tow vehicle can easily tow them, we say it's better than tenting, etc. However, I believe 16' through 25' are the most traded. Of course, not everyone trades up and are very happy with their exisiting coach.

After trading to a 25' SS, we had our niece and nephew with us again. It was a night and day difference.....particularly when it was raining outside. I would strongly suggest that you go out to a dealer, might not even be as crititcal that it be an Airstream, just compare the sizes with as many folks as you plan to bring with you on a trip. Stay inside the coach for about 15-20 minutes and that will be what it will be like when it's bad outside and you're all stuck inside. Start from there and then look at the tow vehicle as you start to get above 16' or 19'.

[jane]

Well, here we are ready to go... sold the beloved Eurovan, purchasing the Tundra...Have fallin in love with the 16' quicksilver...now thinking should we go to the 19'?? Not so cute , like the layout of the 16' better...But the shower!!.
One more rescue jack russell...brings it to three. ??? plus two small adults also rescues of sorts .
My heart wants the 16'
My head is thinking 19'
Mostly weekend trips is all...even just out to my parents .
And best place to buy?...Southern Calif area. Will travel to pick up though.
Any thoughts?
CAN not wait to hit the road.
Thank you so for you input
julie

[bradk]

Julie,

now having spent a rain/snow weekend or 2 in the 19' bambi, we're glad we went the way we did. We found that there is more liveable space in there vs. the 16'. Having our one Airedale "Spokes" in there and us, it's comfy but more peoples/dogs would be a stretch.

Also, the shower, seperate from the biffy, is huge for us.

We're happy with our 19' and feel comfortable with the size. A larger one would be nice but I don't have the TV for it and the logistics of getting going would seem to be tougher with a larger trailer, but that's completely an unresearched opinion.

good luck with your decision!
brad.

[uwe]

Originally Posted by jane

Well, here we are ready to go... sold the beloved Eurovan, purchasing the Tundra...Have fallin in love with the 16' quicksilver...now thinking should we go to the 19'?? Not so cute , like the layout of the 16' better...But the shower!!.
One more rescue jack russell...brings it to three. ??? plus two small adults also rescues of sorts .
My heart wants the 16'
My head is thinking 19'
Mostly weekend trips is all...even just out to my parents .
And best place to buy?...Southern Calif area. Will travel to pick up though.
Any thoughts?
CAN not wait to hit the road.
Thank you so for you input
julie

Julie,

The majority of trailer owners trade UP after a while. Very few owners get smaller trailers, from what I have observed.
You have opened up a broad range of possibilities, now that you have a Tundra to tow with. With dogs and such, you might even consider going to a 22ft model, which is still easy to handle and park, but gives you soo much more living space. My vote would go to the 19, at least.
Come to Orange County, take a look at Travel Land's Airstream offerings. They had many models on their lot last time I looked.

I-405 S to Sand Canyon Exit, go East to the Travelland Entrance, just before the I-5 Underpass.

[Toasty's Dad]

16' CCD. no experience with SOB or larger AS.

we chose the 16 over the 19 cause we plan to get as far off the map as we can with a trailer, and figure smaller is better for this purpose.

have to use our TV in "real" life for commuting, so wanted a 6 cylinder for the gas mileage; the 16 was 1000 lbs lighter than the 19, and more comfortably in the TV's limits. WARNING: mileage while towing with a 6 (at least our V6) is NO better than with a V8; might even be worse .

we also like the way the 16CCD looks better than the 19, YMMV.

water management is crucial, but not difficult. we can easily go 3 days without a dump station, and could probably manage 4 with care. as backcountry campers, we find that this level of thrift feels like shameless luxury.

the small fridge seems HUGE to us - can't imagine filling it.

it's a pain to get in and out of the sideways bed for the outboard person. access to the dinette is tight for a 6' male on the kitchen side, as is access to the bath. no oven. 2-burner stove (though ya get some more counter space in excahnge for losing the 19's 3rd burner).

seems like there's exactly just enough of room for us, and tons for storage - we hit the weight limit long before running outta storage.

very squirrley to back up; the 19 may be also.

all in all, we LOVE our 16' Toasty. our first big (2 week) trip is in a few weeks, so i guess we'll find out if this size is really workable for 2 adults and a cat.

hope this helps,
jon

[Bettymsb]

We love, love, our little Bambi. Had a fantastic 3,750 mile trip to Texas via Nv.
Az. NM. Utah with our two Kerry Blues. Just arrived home from five days in Hells Canyon and the Snake River. We like to look out at all the stars at night
and feel very comfrotable. Use your outside shower to save on black & gray
tanks...works great! We have sooo many people gawking and asking about
it....fun to show off. Happy Trails, John & Betty

[safari57]

Ron - We are mid 50's, not retired yet, and have had 17ft trailers (SOB's) until we acquired our 21'. We were fine in the 17's for a couple of days away when the weather was decent but found a week with mixed weather made coming home a pleasure and two weeks away was too much. We found we spent most of our time under the awning and given the length of the trailer it wasn't as large either. With the slightly larger trailer we still tow any where, any time, there's zero difference in hook up or set up, it fits everywhere the 17's did, and we have space inside. We travel light but still it is nice to have a few extra clothes and camping supplies when on the road for more than a few days, and the ability to do things inside is a nice option. The extra couple of feet on the awning also makes outside use a bit nicer as well. We would find it very difficult to go back to a smaller unit and I suspect my wife would be less inclined to go for more than a few days at a time. Gas mileage was not impacted by the move to the slightly larger unit because our 21' AS weighs less than our 17' SOB's did. When we retire we may consider a 25' but don't feel we really need to.
Barry

[elfirebob]

Great Info.
I'm also looking into these two units though favoring the 16'CCD.
I am wondering though, is there another stove/burner option from A/S or other folks?
Camp Safe-
Bob U-

[jane]

TV challenge.
Ok, found out Tundra will not fit in our garage...That just will not work for me. So, Jeep commander with V-8 hemi engine...
Any thoughts?
Jeep - Commander
I love the way it looks...I am told towing a 16' Bambi will be no problem.
Lots of room to put stuff (doggies)...yank out the 3rd row seats.
Nice ride.
willing to pass on the 19' as an option if need be.
I looked at the VW Touareg...Beautiful, but seems toooo small to tow??? and $$$.
Thank you!
julie

[rcaldwel]

I don't own a 16' but do have a question. Is there a sink in the rest room. I was wondering how you would shave etc. if there wasn't one in the 16' ?

[frozen chosen]

Nope, no sink. At least in the 16's made today.

[PWRSTRK]

Originally Posted by jane

TV challenge.
So, Jeep commander with V-8 hemi engine...
Any thoughts?

Since you ask... the back seat of the Commander is amazingly UNcomfortable. I'm 6-3, but I have strong opinions about these things... I should add that the Toureg folks on here seem to love towing with them.

[PWRSTRK]

We went with the 28, complete with slide. For us, two 40-something men, the spaciousness was key. We are territorial, after all.

And we just take vacations in it, from a weekend up to two weeks. But nothing longer, and mostly shorter. We like being able to spread our wings and enjoy it.

I would love to pick up a 16 or 19 for weekends someday, but not for anything more than that. Ever. I can't imagine the storage problems, etc. (I want the 19-foot Winnick 75th!)

I wouldn't personally go for anything smaller than the 25 for real travel. And I think the 25fb has the best layout of the various 25s.


Tom

[anussia]

I'm so happy to hear the great comments on the 16. We are picking up our 2005 this weekend. I loved it from the beginning but the dealer tried to put us in the 19. For a while I was convinced but we went back to the 16. I fell in love with it. I really like the layout of the 16. I didn't really like how the bathroom was right by the bed in the 19. In the 16 it almost feels like a little room in the back, plus the bed is just a bit bigger. That is good because I'm 5'11. I also like that you have the window by the bed to look out of while you nap. We will be taking it out this weekend so I'll let you know how it goes.

[anussia]

What size sheets do you get for the 16' both beds. Looks like queen.