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Couch, or No Couch

bsmith993
Explorer
Explorer
Hi folks. New member here with some questions. (But I've decided to hit you one at a time with them. 😉 )

I'm looking into venturing into the travel trailer world sometime over the next year. Family of four with a 10 year old boy and 13 year old girl. Naturally, the bunkhouse models is where I'm focused. In particular, where I'm "stuck" is between the common ~24 foot models, and the ~26/27 foot models. The 24's have an advantage in that they are lighter for my truck (as shown in signature line) and have a big, U shaped dinette... but NO couch. Now when you go "UP" a size, you get a couch added into the floorplan and a regular dinette. For reference I really like the Keystone Bullet 272BHS and 243BHS models.

So my question for you seasoned experts is... how much would you miss the couch? Families that don't have one... do you regret it?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and comments.
2019 F250 Lariat SuperDuty with all the 5th prep
2019 Starcraft Telluride 296BHS 5th Wheel
21 REPLIES 21

RichieW13
Explorer
Explorer
bobndot wrote:
There are different comfort levels of rv sofas, just because it has a sofa doesn't mean it's a comfy sofa. I would prefer a sofa that worked.
I have had u-dinettes that also worked , however, it's suppose to be camping in the outdoors, those indoor family times might not be as often or as long as you might expect.

It will also depend on how well you do your homework regarding the specs of your TV (tow veh) in relation to your expected payload and 'real' hitch weight.
Your TV might be the limiting factor and keep you from towing the larger TT without exceeding your trucks specs.


Yeah, our first trailer had a couch. But it wasn't very comfortable to sit on for more than 15-20 minutes. My wife wanted something that she could really lounge on to read a book.

So we bought a new trailer.

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
Our first TT had no sofa. Our first TT lasted exactly one season... 😞

We moved up to a longer TT to get a sofa and also to get a slide for more space. It was a very good move... 🙂

A sofa is one of the most important things in our TT and gets constant use (two adults).

Note that the typical "jacknife" sofas in TTs are NOT very comfortable and aren't very well built. We replaced ours with a double recliner with power recline.

Also note, that unless you kids are different, most of them prefer using a tent next to an RV. A sofa might only get used by the parents.

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
ur first TT had no sofa. Our first TT lasted exactly one season... 😞

We moved up to a longer TT to get a sofa and also to get a slide for more space. It was a very good move... 🙂

A sofa is one of the most important things in our TT and gets constant use (two adults).

Note that the typical "jacknife" sofas in TTs are NOT very comfortable and aren't very well built. We replaced ours with a double recliner with power recline.

Also note, that unless you kids are different, most of them prefer using a tent next to an RV. A sofa might only get used by the parents.

HuckleberryHunt
Explorer
Explorer
We recently purchased a new TT to replace our old (owned for 11 years). Family of 4, with 9 and 12 year old girls. The previous layout was a total 26' in length, no slide out, had a queen bed in front, a dinette on one side, and a jackknife couch on the other with the kitchen near the rear and the bathroom in the far back. It was a perfect layout till date. Space inside was tight, but the couch was a great space for enjoying coffee in the morning or just a place to sit (and quite comfortable). When looking for a new trailer, we wanted a bunkhouse in the same length, with a slide out, and a couch. We just couldn't find one (a quality one) with the specs we wanted. Anything with the layout we wanted was a couple feet longer, and anything in the length we wanted didn't have the couch. The closest we came was a Jayco (I think Jayflight) that was about 27' and had a Murphy bed that converted to a couch in the front. The downside to that trailer was that there was very little storage inside and out. I nixed it based on outside storage, and my DW felt the same inside. We didn't have weight restrictions due to a bigger TV.
Being in a bit of time crunch on purchasing, we opted to go with an Outdoors RV 21DBS. It's slightly less than 26' with a HUGE dinette. No couch. The kids love the bunks, we love the space and size of the dinette, but do wish we still had a couch. That was the one thing we sacrificed, but are still happy with the purchase. The first trip out a few weeks ago was a rainy start and we spent some time in the trailer during the day. the kids stayed in their bunks (very spacious on this model) and the DW and I either sat at the dinette near the window or laid in bed reading.
Will be testing the layout on a Yellowstone trip with friends later in the summer, so will see how we feel about traveling with friends and not having a couch to sit and visit on. Previous trips, occasionally people would come in and sit down, but not often, so not a justifier for having to absolutely have a couch.
For what that story is worth. Good luck on your decision!
2019 Outdoors RV 21DBS
2016 Silverado 2500 Duramax
Equalizer 4-point WDH

out_for_a_rip
Explorer
Explorer
We chose the 24ft BH variety with the U shaped dinette due to vehicle constraints and it works for us with a 3 yr old and 1 yr old. But our next will definitely have the couch. So in short, yes couch.

tomman58
Explorer
Explorer
Say...rainy day and you are couped up in 150 sq ft of floor space or less. Now say couch!
2015 GMC D/A, CC 4x4/ Z71 ,3.73,IBC SLT+
2018 Jayco 338RETS
2 Trek bikes
Honda EU2000i
It must be time to go, the suns out and I've got a full tank of diesel!
We have a granite fireplace hearth! Love to be a little different.

bsmith993
Explorer
Explorer
rbpru wrote:
You hit upon a key issue, will your tow vehicle and finances handle the loaded tongue weight and cost of the model you want?


Exactly! And therein lies the next question. But I'll save that for another topic on another day. 🙂
2019 F250 Lariat SuperDuty with all the 5th prep
2019 Starcraft Telluride 296BHS 5th Wheel

rbpru
Explorer
Explorer
Kind of like which beer is best.

You hit upon a key issue, will your tow vehicle and finances handle the loaded tongue weight and cost of the model you want?

In our case the couch is a key part of our interior, so much so that we replaced the original model with a more comfortable sofa/bed.
Twenty six foot 2010 Dutchmen Lite pulled with a 2011 EcoBoost F-150 4x4.

Just right for Grandpa, Grandma and the dog.

Juzaxadar
Explorer
Explorer
I have three kids and when I take a trip without one of them, the fact that we don't have to prepare the dinette at night is great. The couch is just easier to deal with in general.
2000 Minnie 31C V10

bsmith993
Explorer
Explorer
Thanks everyone for the great feedback. Seems the concensus is that having the right, comfy lounging space is critical. Kind of what we also thought, but exploring those shorter, non-couch models really seemed interesting due to the weight reduction... but probably not worth the trade off. This will really help me in focusing my searching on the right model types.

Thanks!
2019 F250 Lariat SuperDuty with all the 5th prep
2019 Starcraft Telluride 296BHS 5th Wheel

bobndot
Explorer II
Explorer II
Another thing to consider is buying the shorter TT to be able to have a more diversified selection of campsites . I would look into swapping out the dinette for a sofa with an optional table. This can be done as long as you pick a floorplan without a furnace under the dinette but expect to lose maybe a drawer space.

Another idea is to look at the 26BH floorplan from various mfg.'s.
26BH

It offers you an island queen, sofa facing a rear wall so you don't feel closed in without a slide, dinette, and a bunk setup.
Lack of a slideout means less weight to be towed by a 1500/150 and you can get one in aluminum opposed to filon to save weight as well.

TurnThePage
Explorer
Explorer
Lately, I've noticed that our dinette is where all the stuff gets stored, aside from those 5 - 10 minute meal breaks. The couch gets used for people.

On a side note, depending on your camping style, both your kids are reaching an age where they may be happier in a tent outside the door or something similar. I know my kids did. I was avidly shopping bunkhouses too. Glad I didn't get one. Oh, we also have a bunk above our bed. We store stuff there too. It got used maybe 5 times for sleeping.
2015 Ram 1500
2022 Grand Design Imagine XLS 22RBE

time2roll
Explorer II
Explorer II
jfkmk wrote:
Our old trailer had no couch and it was the main reason for buying a new one.
+1

amxpress
Explorer
Explorer
Our first TT did not have a couch. Found it uncomfortable to sit at the table for a few hours watching a movie or just relaxing when indoors, especially in inclement weather,which by the way happens. Get a couch.
2021 Toyota Tundra TRD Off Road double cab
2022 Airstream International 27FB
Blue Ox Sway Pro hitch
M.I.L is self quatanting in Jacksonville Zoo