Camper Length

[RivetNV]

My wife and I are about to begin looking for our next airstream, and are looking to go as long as 30'. Our previous size was a 20' front bed. We enjoyed the flexibility of always being able to get into campgrounds and sites that we wanted.
We are wondering what the experiences are of the folks that have the longer campers when it comes to getting sites in national parks and state parks.

And also getting back to more remote forest service campgrounds.

Thanks,
John

[deauxrite]

Just spent ten days in a BLM campground where the roads were rough and the sites spread out. Last summer in Forest service land north of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon..the 27 Safari that we pull has always been a breeze to squeeze into the sites. Today we are north of Yuma and have a site that two motorhomes and a 5th wheel gave up on...again the 27 slipped around a tree and between two boulders. I am guessing that a 30 would have done just as well. The combination of maneuverability and lack of height seem to be the biggest advantages.

[kscherzi]

I got my 27FB last year and have camped at state parks and a few remote forest service parks. So far okay. I do make reservations in advance so I know I can fit. Navigating around big trees in the campgrounds can be tricky. There are limits so planning ahead is smart.

[Valacidor]

RivetNV,
I have gotten into pretty much any NFS or NPS campground with a 33' fifth wheel, but they are built quite a bit higher, length was hardly ever a factor. The problem I see having this summer is the low ground clearance on Airstreams. Maybe someone can come back with experience here.
Tom J

[sandlapper]

John, you will enjoy the 10 extra feet and probably have no issues fitting into a site. We find most sites themselves plenty long enough, just sometimes the trees are in the wrong place to make the necessary manuevers. In the rare case you can't fit, just pick another one.

Another John

[dkottum]

Turning radius has more to do with tow vehicle wheelbase length than trailer length.

[HiHoAgRV]

We have drug our 34' all over the place. Yup, there are a bunch of sites in any specific camp that we don't fit into but so far there has always been one I can fit into.

IMHO, get the camper that you like, you will be able to find a site in the area.

[rodsterinfl]

I do not have the vast experience that many posters here have but I have concluded by reading on this and other RV forums that up to 27'-28' (under 30') seems to be able to go about anywhere. Past that and you start finding more limitations, fewer spots in state parks, etc. I know that my foray into looking through Florida parks via the website pretending to be various sized rigs just to identify spaces and get an idea of lengths, it is obvious that the majority of spots in the parks here fit up to 27' or so. Then the percentage of spots decreases rapidly with greater lengths. Other places may be different. Last year I drove into a private park and the front desk woman looked out and said, "oh what a little one that is, don't see many that small anymore," referring to my 25'. That local park seemingly caters mostly to motor homes as evidenced by my regular pass-by.

In other words, you can get what you want but the larger you go, the more you have to plan ahead to get a spot.

[mefly2]

We went from a 20FC to the 25 Eddie because around here that is really the longest that is not restricted length wise in some of our favorite places to camp.

[m.hony]

We have never had a problem fitting our 30 or the 28 before that into any campsite except at Hugh White State Park in Grenada. That park is old and built when most trailers were 20'.

[Skater]

We haven't done a lot of national parks with ours, but no problem at Big Meadows in Shenandoah NP.

However, I know some of the Maryland state parks can have some tight roads. We really struggled to get our trailer into one. Now, we had quite a few things working against us: It was dark and raining, and my wife and I haven't quite gotten to the level where she can guide me back, so I was backing up blindly and waiting for a "You're about to hit a tree!" warning. I suspect if we'd been in daylight we wouldn't have had nearly as much trouble.

[n2916s]

We half-time in our 31' and have never had a problem. Challenges, yes, but never an outright defeat. I do use Google Earth whenever I can to reconnoiter.

Enjoy the journey,

Mike

[VT Wanderer]

We traveled to National Parks throughout the U.S.A. and Canada with our 25 ft. AS and Dodge Diesel Ram. As people mentioned, there are some size restrictions in limited areas. Length of trailer PLUS truck turning radius is all important. We just moved up to a 27' AS and do not anticipate any problems. You may want to put your tow vehicle in front of a trailer that you are looking at, and look at the entire length from front bumper to rear trailer bumper. With our new AS 27' (actually measures 28' - don't know why), plus our truck measuring in at 21' feet gives us a 49' overall. That's quite a length. We contemplated a 30' AS (actually measures 31'), but when we hooked up and looked down the length, now totaling 52', we knew from all our National Park experiences that we could encounter difficulties with the 30 footer (Yellowstone Fishing Bridge campground and Red Woods National Park in CA come quickly to mind). It boils down to whatever makes you comfortable. Good luck.

[Jack46]

We moved from a 28' International to a 30' Flying Cloud primarily due to the uncomfortable casual seating in the International. Last summer and fall we spent about sixteen weeks visiting over a dozen western NP's and found that we had no difficulty with parking in admittedly, sometimes tight parking spots. The only campground we moved from due to space and movement limitations was a KOA at Yellowstone.

[KenSanLan]

I would consider how you intend to use it- if you spend long periods of time camping, I would go for more length and more comfort. You deal with living space every day, campsite length only is occasionally an issue. We have a 31'. One time we gave up on a site because it was difficult to get into, but there was another one right around the corner.

[Bbelk]

I towed a 29 foot AS with a long bed crew cab through a few Western states and only missed a couple NF sites. One due to ground clearance and one due to tight turns. In both cases, if the site had been a destination I could have made it work. Coming and going from the house I have both issues and I deal with them using blocks at one point and a front hitch for the final stab.

[aftermath]

To answer your question honestly, yes you will have more difficulty finding spots for a larger trailer. The degree of difficulty will be the issue here. From my experiences it really does depend on where you are going to camp. All state and national parks are not created equal. Perhaps it is unique to the west but we have many parks that are quite old. It is not an easy thing to show up at a park and "just pick another one" when looking for a place to camp.

Originally Posted by sandlapper

John, you will enjoy the 10 extra feet and probably have no issues fitting into a site. We find most sites themselves plenty long enough, just sometimes the trees are in the wrong place to make the necessary manuevers. In the rare case you can't fit, just pick another one.
Another John

If you are really interested in "remote" forest service campgrounds you will most likely be further limited. I love these kinds of camping spots but usually know where I am going and what sites they have.

Many have mentioned some great ideas to help. Reserve ahead and take advantage of the information about trailer lengths and all. We do this when ever possible. I do believe that getting a 27 footer is not going to slow you down very much. I have a 25 and am not concerned too much when heading out. I don't, on the other hand, think that I will be able to park ANYWHERE I want in a state or federal campground. I have been there and done that as they say. Mt. Rainier has some absolutely beautiful campgrounds. You cannot put a 30 footer in all of their spots.

All that said, I have also noticed that many state and federal campgrounds in the NW are improving their sites to include more full hookups and bigger parking pads. It is a nice improvement and will make the experience better for many families.

[paiceman]

We had a 25' AS traded for a 30' AS, best move we could have made. The extra five feet make a world of difference, especially on a rainy day. Plus we now have a nice space for the dogs crate - she is still a puppy and really can't be left alone uncrated, but loves her crate. Best of luck and enjoy.

[Pick]

Gone everywhere we have wanted to in our 31. Worse site was boon docking on some friends property along the Suwanee river in Florida. There was a swale we had to drive across head on and the rear bumper dragged in the dirt for a few feet. Probably would not have happened on a shorter unit.

[Jack46]

I should clarify what I posted earlier. While on our trip, we stayed primarily in commercial campgrounds but on several occasions we visited NP campgrounds. In my opinion, while we did see sites that obviously could accommodate longer rigs most sites were limited in their capacity. As posted by others, I guess it comes down to where you want to camp when versus how important is the comfort of a longer trailer to you. Among the several national park campgrounds we stayed in, the only one I remember where longer rigs seem to have parking challenges was at the North Rim campground at the Grand Canyon.