Looking for some friendly advice

[Tn Traveler]

I don't feel qualified to advise you on what to choose. Here's my personal philosophy. Buy the smallest trailer that fits your needs. Buy at least a 3/4 ton pick up for a tow vehicle. Then if you wanted to go with a larger trailer later, your pick up would be up to the task. If going with a F 150 I would order the extra payload option. The last thing I want is a marginal tow vehicle that is at its limits weight wise. Be warned that this is my opinion only, and worth about what you are paying for it. Good luck.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Well, we seem to have (yet again) scared away the OP ....

I've made a couple of wild guesses about their situation. If those guesses are wrong, it probably would be good to correct that bad steer ....

Bob

[OTRA15]

Quoting the OP in Post #12 should have got his attention . . .

[sangeetaka]

yeah - seems we may need at least a 28/30 ft just for our sheer size - my kids are young now (10 and 8) but we plan on using the airstream long after hte kids have left us! and also agree, don't want to keep changing sizes. not scared away yet from owning one of these things we have camped a lot in the past couple years in tents, and rented a class a motorhome this summer travelling across the upper peninsula of michigan. it is the combined experience of everything that makes us want our own trailer - we looked at airstream b/c of its reputation in the industry and the ability to last a long time. maybe we're going through a midlife crisis - but being out on the road gave us such a feel of freedom and adventure i want to capture it for many years to come! we met

[sangeetaka]

oh and to everyone who has been responsding with advice- i really do appreciate it - its so nice of everyone to take so much time in doing so! been doifng a lot of internet related research and this forum gives so much info - its great - gonna go next week to the dealer just to get a feel of the differnt styles/sizes and appreciate the advice about picking the trailer first before picking a TV - so we put the TV shopping on hold until we can finalize the trailer type!

[DewTheDew]

Originally Posted by sangeetaka

oh and to everyone who has been responsding with advice- i really do appreciate it - its so nice of everyone to take so much time in doing so! been doifng a lot of internet related research and this forum gives so much info - its great - gonna go next week to the dealer just to get a feel of the differnt styles/sizes and appreciate the advice about picking the trailer first before picking a TV - so we put the TV shopping on hold until we can finalize the trailer type!

We are doing this ass backwards and bought the tow vehicle first, but I already knew we were getting either a 25 or 27 so I bought the F150 (3.5 ecoboost with max tow package) that can haul about 11,000 lbs. The bigger issue was the tongue weight; an AS about maxes out a Ram (approx 800 lbs). Put a down payment on a 27 to pick up in about two weeks; will be our first trailer but we have also camped and stayed in trailers and I have towed a good-sized boat around a fair amount so hopefully it won't be too traumatic! Sounds like you are on a good path so good luck!

By the way, I've been AS obsessed for a couple of years and when I saw the movie "The Accountant" where he pulls a huge three-axle airstream with an F150 my first thought was "he should be driving an F250" :-)

[Troutboy]

The biggest issue with the F150 is payload, the max amount the truck can handle, including tongue weight. Yes it cantow a 10000 pound trailer, but with a 800 pound tongue, you will have around 1000 pounds or less (depending on the trim level), for cargo, which includes people and pets. So you won't have much left over for gear etc,

Pay attention to payload and make sure you don't underestimate your needs for hauling things in the tv.

For us, we have a 23D, four kids. Two are older so usually two younger ones, wife, and dog come in our Jeep Grand Cherokee. It tows well, but only people and pets in the vehicle or we are over the payload. We put everything we need in the trailer, in terms of gear.

What we miss are toys, like bikes, kayaks, generator, etc. I would kill for a truck and that extra payload, even that of the F150.

We can camp fine for now out of the trailer and jeep, but I am wanting a 2500 or F150 for the next vehicle, for the payload and ability to haul whatever we want....

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Ok, eight and ten years old is well out of the "infant" stage. You might as well look at this as being 4 adults. That's not quite true today, but it will be real soon now. You *could* try and stop feeding them .... it didn't work for us Way to many complaints ....

The whole tear down the beds / set up the beds thing is not that crazy. It works for many people. Some find it a pain. The FC 30 with bunks is the only thing I've seen in the AS lineup that gets you out of that. Is the upper bunk "big enough"? If so for how long? Only you can answer that.

This is a compromise no matter what you do. Comfort wise, the 30' wins pretty quickly with four people. That means being slightly more careful about sites. It may or may not impact your choice of destinations. Driving 20 minutes vs walking 5 minutes is a likely outcome. Not having that perfect view of the mist over the lake at 4AM is also a likely outcome.

If you have done the tent and general camping "thing" in the past, especially over several years, you know pretty well what you will run into. One thing to consider that is a bit new - Pulling a large trailer is tiring compared to tents in the back or a small popup. You probably will not be doing a 12 hour drive several days in a row. That impacts your ability to get to the Grand Canyon or the Florida Keys on a two week trip.

The kids are old enough that this should be a lot of fun for them. They soon will have friends that want to come along (like the day after you show them the trailer ....) . I'd plan on a "bunk tent" as part of the mix for some trips. I'd also say you are a a good point to do this, if you can afford it.

Have fun !!!

Bob

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by sangeetaka

yeah - seems we may need at least a 28/30 ft just for our sheer size - my kids are young now (10 and 8) but we plan on using the airstream long after hte kids have left us! and also agree, don't want to keep changing sizes. not scared away yet from owning one of these things we have camped a lot in the past couple years in tents, and rented a class a motorhome this summer travelling across the upper peninsula of michigan. it is the combined experience of everything that makes us want our own trailer - we looked at airstream b/c of its reputation in the industry and the ability to last a long time. maybe we're going through a midlife crisis - but being out on the road gave us such a feel of freedom and adventure i want to capture it for many years to come! we met

those years are so priceless ! live life to the max with your kids now, you'll have amazing memories. We used a pop-up for years and went all over Cali, Joshua Tree is a bucket list. I only bought my AS later on in their teen years and it was a little too late as they're living their own lives now and not so much into camping anymore

[Troutboy]

I disagree with Bob. For us, we comfortable fit and sleep five people and a 70 pound dog. Three adults a 13 year old and a 7 year old in a 23D bunk. Bunk is good to 150 pounds.

Setting up and breaking down the dining table and lounge beds is quick and easy, takes no more than 5 minutes max. Dog loves to sleep under dinette.

We have had two trips so far where we had to spend 3-4 days inside the trailer due to hail, rain etc, and it was comfortable to hang out in and eat.

There is enough room for alone time as well on the back bed or bunk. I'm really the only one that can't fit in the bunk.

Also, we fit all our gear which includes backpacking, boots, multiple shoes and tons of fly fishing gear (rods, reels, waders, nets, etc).

These things are pretty spacious coming from a life of tent camping. Plenty of storage and well thought out.

Couple this with a good canopy tent to cover the picnic table or self rough table and with the outside space, there is plenty of room.

So I think much depends on your style and preferences.

I wouldn't go any smaller than the 23D bunk, but other might.

We add a tent for the older kids (teens) if they bring friends etc.

[HiHoAgRV]

Originally Posted by nickclifford

Has anyone owned a 30' & a shorter trailer, say 26 or 28' ? Is there much of difference when towing ? or backing up ? Clearly it makes a difference for some state parks with limited access ... but curious if there is that much of a difference when towing ?

We have a pair of 26' trailers and a 35'. I've towed a 22' and can say the longer it is, the easier it backs up. The only difference towing is the difference in mass. We have drug both sizes all over the USA and enjoyed every place we have gone. Get one that is comfortable to camp in!

[drairstream]

No connection to them but Nature and me RV near traverse city were very nice last fall when my wife and I stopped in. Had 10 units only but were very patient with us as we looked at their stock. Late Sept had very good pricing. We kept our Safari 27.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Troutboy

I disagree with Bob. For us, we comfortable fit and sleep five people and a 70 pound dog. Three adults a 13 year old and a 7 year old in a 23D bunk. Bunk is good to 150 pounds.

Setting up and breaking down the dining table and lounge beds is quick and easy, takes no more than 5 minutes max. Dog loves to sleep under dinette.

We have had two trips so far where we had to spend 3-4 days inside the trailer due to hail, rain etc, and it was comfortable to hang out in and eat.

There is enough room for alone time as well on the back bed or bunk. I'm really the only one that can't fit in the bunk.

Also, we fit all our gear which includes backpacking, boots, multiple shoes and tons of fly fishing gear (rods, reels, waders, nets, etc).

These things are pretty spacious coming from a life of tent camping. Plenty of storage and well thought out.

Couple this with a good canopy tent to cover the picnic table or self rough table and with the outside space, there is plenty of room.

So I think much depends on your style and preferences.

I wouldn't go any smaller than the 23D bunk, but other might.

We add a tent for the older kids (teens) if they bring friends etc.

Hi

Also under the "truth in lending" heading - you can find YouTube videos of families of 5 or more that spend a lot of time in RV's smaller than a 23D. It *can* be done. For my family and our "needs" .... we went bigger.

Bob

[sangeetaka]

For everyone who responded - I wanted to just say thank you! We went and saw some airstreams sat in a few different styles - such an exciting day! You guys were right about getting a feel for what the insides are like and replicating planned use. I had researched all this stuff about flying cloud 30fb bunk but i will say in the end - we have decided to go with an International Serenity 30 twin!! while i loved the idea of "2 rooms" in the flying cloud bunk- the serenity just had great feeling of openness and I love the windows. We figure in the end, if people come and join us at different campsites, we can use a tent as someone had suggested!
I'm just so excited to join this airstream family - just working on getting an order together for the airstream - but given how late it is in the season - we are trying to time it so we receive the airstream sometime in late winter/early spring...

also - as an update, we decided to go with the Ford F150 with 3.5 ecoboost and max trailer tow package as our tow vehicle - i have to use the truck as my regular car(as my current one is about to die) - and so went with this version -

looking forward to seeing you on the roads ! thank you again for all the advice - will keep you posted when my airstream actually arrives!!

[Troutboy]

Congrats!! How exciting and welcome to the club!!!

[DewTheDew]

Originally Posted by sangeetaka

For everyone who responded - I wanted to just say thank you! We went and saw some airstreams sat in a few different styles - such an exciting day! You guys were right about getting a feel for what the insides are like and replicating planned use. I had researched all this stuff about flying cloud 30fb bunk but i will say in the end - we have decided to go with an International Serenity 30 twin!! while i loved the idea of "2 rooms" in the flying cloud bunk- the serenity just had great feeling of openness and I love the windows. We figure in the end, if people come and join us at different campsites, we can use a tent as someone had suggested!
I'm just so excited to join this airstream family - just working on getting an order together for the airstream - but given how late it is in the season - we are trying to time it so we receive the airstream sometime in late winter/early spring...

also - as an update, we decided to go with the Ford F150 with 3.5 ecoboost and max trailer tow package as our tow vehicle - i have to use the truck as my regular car(as my current one is about to die) - and so went with this version -

looking forward to seeing you on the roads ! thank you again for all the advice - will keep you posted when my airstream actually arrives!!

Nice choice on the trailer and the TV. We just bought the same Ford to pull our 27 FC. The serenity is sweet!