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Some of you will call this camping, and some of you will call it glamping. Either way, I will preface this by saying that I enjoy sleeping in locations with a/c, power for my flat iron, and indoor toilets.
Dh and I have started a discussion on purchasing a "hotel on wheels" to tow behind our minivan during portions of the summer and other school breaks. Since we will not be investing in a large towing vehicle, we need something light. (And since we are educators, we need something affordable.) I've narrowed it down to a-frame campers and pop-up campers. Pop-up campers appear to be the most economical and offer the most features with the least cost and tow weight, but the canvas has me wondering about security.
Does anyone here have a pop-up camper, or have you had one in the past? I realize anyone can break into anything, but would want them to have to make sufficient noise to do it when we're sleeping. Any advice would be appreciated.

Consider a used "Casita" trailer.

Have a look at their website.

I'm not a fan of pop ups as they require too much work to set up, they're noisy, if it rains you have to let me dry out at home, they don't cool very well even with A.C.

Plus, I wouldn't want to be in one in a storm.

Abraham wrote:I'm not a fan of pop ups as they require too much work to set up, they're noisy, if it rains you have to let me dry out at home, they don't cool very well even with A.C.

Yes, all of this. You can save a fair bit of money if you buy an older model used trailer over a new one.

I don't know how useful this will be but maybe it will be a starting point.

http://www.johnweeks.com/tour/campers/

I've never own or even been in a Casita but I see a fair number of them around and they seem to be nice, if not small.

No question, there's a trade off, but Casitas don't require a big pulling vehicle, while actually providing decent construction and a liveable interior.

Lots of fiberglass ultra lights out there. Pop ups are not a great option.
You dont really say what type of minivan or how many people you need to sleep.
A small trailer and a tent for the kids if they are old enugh maybe an option too.

When my wife and I started dating my In-laws had a travel trailer and I thought it was not really camping as I had always done tents as a scout. That was until the time at 2 o'clock in the morning when the storm had blown through the campground and all of the tent campers were packing up blown-down wet tents and gear, and I was laying in the bunk nice and dry. I decided 'Hey, maybe this really IS camping!!' LOL

The lightweight fiberglass small trailers may be a good option. There are also some good fiberglass top pop-ups that are pretty solid. Just make sure your minivan tow rating is not exceeded.

And, I will tell you it starts with a pop-up and ends up with a motorhome. We went from a 19' trailer, to a 26' trailer, to a 29' trailer, then on to a motorhome with slide-outs and all the bells and whistles. We just sold that one and are travel-homeless, but will bet once I retire we will be back into it again.

http://www.cheaprvliving.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Venus Pax wrote:... I've narrowed it down to a-frame campers and pop-up campers. Pop-up campers appear to be the most economical and offer the most features with the least cost and tow weight, but the canvas has me wondering about security.
Does anyone here have a pop-up camper, or have you had one in the past? I realize anyone can break into anything, but would want them to have to make sufficient noise to do it when we're sleeping. Any advice would be appreciated.

I've got a 22 foot pop-up that boasts queen-sized pullout beds an both front-and-back. We've slept as many as four adults and three kids in it at one time with not a lot of overcrowding (the kids slept on the dinette mini-beds and a pull-out bench. We used it for several seasons in all weather, including a tropical storm down on Matagorda Island State Park. It 's true, the A/C wont refrigerate the tent, but it adequetly cools things down enough to sleep comfortably. And the heater had no problem heating up the cabin. Lots of storage for all the linens and cups, plates, pots and pans, etc. We would pull it (even into the Rockies several times) with Dodge vans without problems.

Security wise, anyone wanting in while it's unoccupied would probably not have too much trouble getting in... It's a canvas and plastic top, after all. But, at night, there's going to be enough noise and rocking of the trailer as the BG steps up onto the step to get in, that it will surely let you know unless you can sleep through pretty much anything.

We haven't used it in a while - the cranking up of the top really did a number on my back before we managed to get most of the pain under control, and now, since my wife died last year, it's still sitting in the driveway. And if I was to start camping out again, I think I'd go with a hard top (now that I can afford a bigger/better/more expensive trailer and doesn't require a crank, due to the back problems). But, for a couple with one or two kids (we only had one, a middle then high schooler while we were actively camping out) it would make a very good, cost effective, way to get started camping!

If you're in Fort Worth, I'd be more than happy to show it off for ya.

Wayne

(Pam was also an educator -an elementary school principal who finally dragged me into teaching about 15 years ago when I retired myself off of the MICU ambulances back then - we would often meet other educators who were doing the camping out thing during the summer - must be something about the classroom that makes people wanna get out and away from civilization!)

Edited to amplify something that TAM mentioned: ours was purchased second hand from a camper outlet that had just taken it in on trade-in that very morning. The previous owners took very good care of it, and I think we got a steal when we purchased it for a little over $4K. Refrigerator, cabin heater and flash water heater were all propane operated. A/C had to be operated under shore line 115v ot by purchasing a 3Kva generator (which we did not do). The shower wasn't the most spacious, but since we usually didn't camp in unimproved spots, we didn't have to use the 40gal water tank for showering.

Definitely buy used if you can.

Don't let these guys turn you away from a pop-up. Have used ours a ton and have great times. The newer ones have electric roof lifts. Yeah it takes a bit to setup but I have all the amenities the big boys have. We even tote around my Dish Network Tailgater/ 32" flat screen. Never had an issue with security in any campground. Other campers won't bother your things. The A/C will freeze you out at night. Have slept as many as 10 when storms came in and blew away friends tents while we where nice and dry.

Venus Pax wrote:Some of you will call this camping, and some of you will call it glamping. Either way, I will preface this by saying that I enjoy sleeping in locations with a/c, power for my flat iron, and indoor toilets.
Dh and I have started a discussion on purchasing a "hotel on wheels" to tow behind our minivan during portions of the summer and other school breaks. Since we will not be investing in a large towing vehicle, we need something light. (And since we are educators, we need something affordable.) I've narrowed it down to a-frame campers and pop-up campers. Pop-up campers appear to be the most economical and offer the most features with the least cost and tow weight, but the canvas has me wondering about security.
Does anyone here have a pop-up camper, or have you had one in the past? I realize anyone can break into anything, but would want them to have to make sufficient noise to do it when we're sleeping. Any advice would be appreciated.

I owned a popup camper for several years in California. We bought ours used (the only way to do it, in my opinion) with brand new canvas on it for $1,300. That's right: $1,300. It served us well for my wife, son, and me. It had a queen sized bed at one end, and two twin beds on the other, plus stove, sink, fridge, etc., etc. It kept us dry and reasonably warm in a couple of rain storms, but it had no AC.

This is about the right time of year to start shopping for used popups. Toward the end of summer, people are starting to look to sell off their old ones. The best deals will be near the beginning of winter. The worst deals will be in the spring.

As far as security goes, it was never an issue for us. 99% of the time, we used it at a church camp, in a "glamping" facility. The once or twice I took it camping elsewhere, I was fishing in the Owens River valley, and we were camped at unimproved locations, without anyone else camped that close to us. I had a gun with me (it was BLM land), which I carried in my daypack; and we were usually fishing fairly close to camp so I never really worried about it.

I don't remember how long ours was. It wasn't the smallest, but it was a little bit smaller than chane's pictured above. I want to say it was 9', but I might be wrong about that.

AndyC wrote:If I could...

Couple of comments:
1. Casitas are not cheap. Plan on $20k new or $8k-$10k for an older model in decent shape. If you plan on more than 2 people camping forget the Casita. I've visited the manufacturing facility and showroom. Their biggest model wouldn't come close to accommodating my family of four.
2. Used travel trailers can be bought cheaply but are heavy and bulky. Wind resistance is also an issue when using a light tow vehicle.
3. Pop-ups don't have the weight and wind issues but set up takes longer and anyone with a utility knife can get in within seconds.

We had a pop-up when I was a teenager and in recent years we've had everything from TTs to 37' 5th wheelers to motorhomes. If I were buying tomorrow I'd look at a Hi-Lo travel trailer. Setup is fairly easy, it has hard sides, and travel height is similar to that of a popup.

jmra wrote:If I were buying tomorrow I'd look at a Hi-Lo travel trailer. Setup is fairly easy, it has hard sides, and travel height is similar to that of a popup.

I would not buy one because I like my 5th wheel, but if I was buying something to use a few times a year it would definitely be a Hi-Lo. I had my stomach full of a Pop-Up years ago.