Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Airstream camper

The wife and I are thinking about a new camper and wondering if airstreams are worth the cost? Looking at something in the 19-20 ft. Range. Airstreams are about 3x times what cheap campers run, are they worth it? Thanks Darrell

Resale on them is super high but if you are worried about that better get a 24+ footer 19-20 is crowded for 2.

I agree with the above. Definitely get bigger than you think you need. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did. We have a 26 and it’s perfect for my wife and I. They cost more but you get what you pay for.

Airstreams, Casita’s, and Scamp’s hold value.

If you don’t care about that, buy something else.

I’ve had a 26’ International since 2007. Great rig. I’d say that the other brands of RV’s have many more ‘features’ but almost always at the expense of quality. I’ve criss-crossed the country 4-5 times and wandered around the East & West hunting & fishing for up to 50 days at a time. In my opinion, after 14 years and probably close to 100,000 miles, the trailer is aging well. All I have to do is routine maintenance and properly winterize. My other friends are already on their second or third trailers as the Silver Twinkie, as my daughter calls it, keeps on cruising.

I think anything much longer than 26’ could get dicey on backwoods muddy & rutty roads where mine seems to wind up often but your use might be different than mine. For sleeping, it’s great for 2 but my floor plan uses the space for a third bed as a mobile office. I’m not a fan of using the kitchen table as a bed on a regular basis. Seems to disrupt the already tight quarters more than I enjoy.

I think they are worth every penny as an asset that depreciates slower than most comparable trailers and will always have an easy re-sale should I need to bail out.

Good luck!

Solid advice.

High price but high resale value. Quality construction with the same lousy pumps, furnace, water heater, reefer, etc. that every other manufacturerer uses. No storage room. Heavy. No clearance - tough to even pull into driveways. Rear bumber cannot even support a bike rack except for a Famirra that needs multible reinforcement modifications.

OTOH, you could probably buy/sell 3 NEW “cheaper” campers for the same price. Yes, resale is more on an Airstream, and if you get a used one, that’s great when you sell it. If you get a NEW one, though, you’ll probably lose $15k plus driving it off the lot.

They’re “neat”, but no slideouts make them seem cramped, to me...

I worked in RV Parks in different states for 7 yrs. seen almost every camper made.I like Airstream but would not buy one due to not having any slideouts.First camper i bought was a 28' Sandpiper TT no slides was nice at first but didn't last long.2nd camper was a Cardinal 33' TT with 2 slideouts kept it 2.5 years traded for lack of storage.My 3rd was a Cardinal 35' FW with 3 slideouts and was happy with that one.Lots of room and storage.

if you buy just for weekend camping,vacations the Airstream should be ok.If you plan to full time or for extended stays it will most likely get old soon.

Precisely why we bought a Lance.

We have a '52 Airstream 22' I rebuilt, tows great, wind doesn't affect it much and it's just cool. How many other rigs are that old and still usable?

I'll sell you a 52 Ford coupe to tow it with, perfect match.

We have a 27T artic Fox with one slide, it is a 4 season trailer. That I tow behind my 2008 Toyota Tundra. Highly recommend both.

I agree with others I would not go to any larger trailer. Only changes I made to the trailer were installing Golf cart 6V batteries and

Installing a waterproof master switch next to the batteries. That model trailer has a small current draw all the time with out the master switch.

I did install load range E tires from load range D tires. Mine were 15" the next year they came with 16" tires. Stating to think about a new one.

A little shorter.

Used to be great quality.....not certain now, as they were recently bought out by one of the two huge rv conglomerates.....which are well known for “lack of” quality control and reducing material quality!

Not the greatest in cold weather, from my limited knowledge of them! Though, most people rarely camp in cool weather! memtb

They look cool, always wanted one.

Thanks to everyone for your input. We would not be taking any trips longer than 2 weeks, and usually shorter. We’ll check into the Scamps and Casitas. We appreciate all the information that has been shared.

We just bought a Winnebago 2529RG
It`s 28` 7", a little longer than you`re interested in.
But they have several models in the 19`-20` range.

https://www.winnebago.com/models/product/towables/travel-trailer/micro-minnie-1?floorplans=true

OP, you need to give Lance a serious look. They are a cut above most of the contenders. They will cost about half what an Airstream costs, and are every bit as well built. The Lance 2285 has a great layout. In a smaller units the bed is right in the middle of things. On the Lance 2285, it is semi private. Pretty good storage on that unit too. The small slide-out opens it up pretty well.

https://www.lancecamper.com/travel-trailers/2285/

These are in the Airstream price range. Might be better built too. https://www.blackseriescamper.com/travel-trailers/hq21.html

Tempting!