Читать книгу RVs & Campers For Dummies - Christopher Hodapp - Страница 65

When it comes to space, there isn’t a more important issue at the decision-making stage than whether you’re traveling with kids.

There’s a big difference between a pair of retirees with wanderlust and a family of five living on the road, even for a short time or on a seasonal trip. You may think that someone trying to live long-term in a travel trailer with three kids and a dog not only is attempting the impossible but may be in need of psychiatric help.

But it can be done, like most things in life, with planning and effort. Good parenting on the road is something we’ve watched with awe and admiration. We’ve seen homeschooling going on around the picnic table, and history and science lessons being taught in the national parks and at national historic sites. In fact, we’re beginning to think kids on the road have it better, because they’re learning so many life lessons while they’re seeing the country — and learning to be flexible to boot.

RVs have always been a family affair, and the industry has historically been skewed toward this market. In the last few years, even rock-star motorhomes are commonly offered in a model with bunks for the kids. But for the family of five, there’s no doubt that the ride of choice is a fifth wheel. The upside of a fifth wheel is that it’s the best bang for your buck on space. The downside is that you’ll need a very specific tow vehicle, with the tow power and the proper coupling hitch. A Class A motorhome is loaded with space, but it has a loaded price tag to match.

Kids are happier on the road when they have a space, no matter how small, that they can call their own. In fact, kids love having a small space — they’ll set up their personal camp in the upper bunk or on the platform bed above the driver’s seat without complaint. It’s like building a snow fort in the backyard!

This is a major question: To bunk or not to bunk? You’ll see models that claim to be able to sleep eight or even ten people. Check them out and think it through. Quite often, this added sleeping space is achieved by making the dinette and sofa into a bed. There’s nothing wrong with that, and many weekend camping families have been doing it happily for years. It’s also a great solution for grandparents who host the grandkids on occasion. But if you’re going to be on the road for a long time, it can get dreary and tedious, dismantling the dining room table and reconfiguring the couch cushions to make that bed every night, and remaking it all in the morning, folding and stowing pillows and blankets, all before anyone can sit down to breakfast. Bunks that are built in, or that close up and flip open like in a Pullman railroad car, are more convenient.

Top of the convenience ladder is the bunkhouse model, with a little room just for the kids. And you don’t have to go with a giant fifth wheel to get family space. Many toy haulers have a bunkhouse room, and trailers do as well. For example, take a look at the Grand Design Reflection, the bunkhouse model, with a generous bunkhouse room for the kids at the opposite side of the kitchen and living room to the parents’ bedroom, very much an echo of a fifth wheel. You’ll see there are trailers out there with a very doable floor plan for a family.

However, safety can be an issue in bunkhouse style, especially for the kid who wants the upper berth. If your little ones are quite little, or if they have any problems with night terrors, sleepwalking, or seizures, you’re going to want to install some sort of cargo netting for safety. Again, turn to YouTube, which has tons of great videos on bunkhouse safety.

Speaking of safety, another thing you’re going to want to look for is a step well cover. In our trailer, two little steps get us to the ground, but a Class A has a lot of basement storage, which means that at living level, you’re pretty high off the ground. Depending on the rig’s design, when the door is shut, you may be looking at a stairwell — an open space with several steps — and kids can easily take a fall into them. Even pets can take a tumble, especially older ones not made of rubber anymore. Websites like DoItYourselfRV (www.doityourselfrv.com) have instructions for making one yourself, but nowadays many rigs come with some sort of covering for the well, including an easy push-button type.