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Old 09-27-2024, 10:35 AM   #1
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2004 25' Safari
Citra FL , Florida
Join Date: Aug 2024
Posts: 10
Our first Airstream

We just took delivery of a 2004 Safari 25 LS in beautiful shape. We are full timers living in our 5er. We have been heavy recreational RVers for a long time before going full time over a year ago.

The one unanticipated consequence of going full time was our sudden inability to pick up and hit the road for a week or long weekend trip. We home base at a campground in north central FL, and lease a full time site. Now that we have most everything we own in our 5th wheel, taking off for a camping trip takes some prep. We went on a 3 month rv adventure this summer, and it was wonderful. But it took work to secure and prepare everything. Plus, a smaller camper would be easier to tow, and get better mileage.

A lot of our campground neighbors in FL have a second camper, which we initially thought was crazy. But we soon realized how advantageous that would be and started the research and shopping. It became quite clear that an Airstream was the way to go. Always loved them, but didn't find them practical in the past. And we didn't want to spend $100k plus on a recreational camper. So the used market was our focus.

While visiting our old home state of NJ, we stopped at Colonial and found this 2004 Safari 25 LS that was traded in. We loved the layout! And really dig the fully lined interior. They went over the whole camper. Sealed it up. New tires. Brakes and bearings were serviced. Everything was looking good. The price was acceptable for us. We did the deal.

Except we were in our 5er! So we continued our journey southward to our home in FL. And I had a couple of work gigs to complete. So it's a month later, and we drove our truck back up to NJ to take delivery. Our dealer Patrick was extremely happy with the timing as well, because that got him past the Hershey show, which is a crazy busy time for them. Win win for everyone.

Now we are in the process of camping our way back home from Jersey to Florida. We obviously will have some bugs to work out. Despite the great condition of the Safari, it is still a 20 year old camper. We need to figure out where to put everything. And feel out how the Airstream works. But so far so good. We did pick up a nail or something in one of our tires yesterday. So we have to deal with that. But so far, the Safari tows like a dream, and is really comfy. And the wife seems to love it!
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Old 09-27-2024, 10:48 AM   #2
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2023 25' International
Long Island , New York
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Hi Brad. Welcome to the forum. Looks great! Wishing you lots of happy memories to be had with it!
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Old 09-27-2024, 01:06 PM   #3
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Very nice. Welcome & Congrats!

You’re well set-up with that tow vehicle. Will you be able to store the Airstream at your leased spot in Florida?
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Old 09-27-2024, 04:39 PM   #4
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2004 25' Safari
Citra FL , Florida
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Originally Posted by BikeCamper View Post
Very nice. Welcome & Congrats!

You’re well set-up with that tow vehicle. Will you be able to store the Airstream at your leased spot in Florida?
Not for more than a night or two. But we have inexpensive storage nearby.
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Old 09-28-2024, 10:37 AM   #5
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2021 16' Bambi
Forest Lake , Minnesota
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Congratulations! It looks very cool. Do you have any pictures of the interior? It doesn't seem like 2004 was all that long ago, but I guess it is. I thought the panoramic front window came sooner.
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Old 10-02-2024, 07:17 PM   #6
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Redlands , California
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Congratulations and Safe Travels

That's awesome. Nice looking trailer. Enjoy your travels. Have fun building memories....
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Old 10-03-2024, 08:58 AM   #7
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2019 22' Sport
High River , Alberta
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Originally Posted by JeffKim View Post
Congratulations! It looks very cool. Do you have any pictures of the interior? It doesn't seem like 2004 was all that long ago, but I guess it is. I thought the panoramic front window came sooner.
It did, but that is a 25’ Safari, now known as the Flying Cloud. It still had the smaller front window in those years.

Still a nice trailer.
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Old 10-04-2024, 07:46 AM   #8
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2004 25' Safari
Citra FL , Florida
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Congratulations! It looks very cool. Do you have any pictures of the interior? It doesn't seem like 2004 was all that long ago, but I guess it is. I thought the panoramic front window came sooner.
I will post a couple pics of the interior below. As you can see, it is in decent shape for a 20 year old camper.

The way I understand the whole panoramic vs smaller windows ... The smaller rectangular front window was brought back for the 25 Safari to cut down on weight and make it towable by smaller vehicles. The weight of the glass and the framework for the panoramic wrap around windows far outweigh the weight of the aluminum skin that is in its place. For example the current Flying Cloud 25 weighs a full 1000 pounds more (7300 lbs) than my Safari 25 (6300 lbs). And that is with a full interior skin versus the FC's aluminum interior. Plus, my floorplan has three windows on each end... the larger one on the front/back, and two side windows. This makes it feel open enough for me. And with the skylights, I get a ton of light in the camper during the day without using any ceiling lights.

Regardless, I was trying to hit a price point with this camper, and it fell well within my target. Some compromises were made. But overall we are extremely happy with it. We just completed a 1000 mile journey back home, and outside of a couple of small manageable issues, the Safari did really well.

Here are a couple of interior pics:
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Old 10-06-2024, 12:13 PM   #9
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2023 27' International
Chester Springs , Pennsylvania
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Congratulations!! We are 2 time Colonial customers and you couldn’t have picked a better Airstream dealership or salesman (Patrick Botticelli) to work with! You will LOVE being part of the amazing Airstream community. Happy Trails!
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Old 10-14-2024, 10:55 AM   #10
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Forest Lake , Minnesota
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BradWorld View Post

Here are a couple of interior pics:
Thanks! It looks awesome. I didn't think about the weight the front panoramic windows add, interesting.
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