Last week we got the opportunity to talk about the 2016 Reader’s Choice Awards and this year’s RVDA winners among Class A and Class C motorhomes. This week, we’re going to continue the fun by taking a look at the Class B (campervan) winners, and also the best of the best towables.
Motorhomes: Best of 2016—Class Bs
If you’re a couple or small family looking for the best fuel economy, the most relaxing driving experience and the ability to get into some of those out of the way campgrounds that the typical motorhome can’t reach, a Class B motorhome—often called a campervan—is your best bet. They also do double (or triple) duty as awesome around town and tailgating vehicles, so they can fill the need for a second car in your day-to-day life. Our favorites of the 2016 winners in this category are Winnebago and Roadtrek.
What can we say? Winnebago just builds excellent motorhomes that win awards year after year, decade after decade! As with their Class As and Cs, they give their Class Bs an unbeaten level of quality, safety and innovation, so you know you’re getting a product that will serve you for a long time to come. They’ve also put a lot of years into thinking about how to achieve the best livability in these small motorhomes. They offer a number of award-winning Class B options for you to explore; the Travato is a great entry level option, but also take a look at the Fuse and the Era for added style and power.
Roadtrek has been a longtime favorite among Guaranty RV customers. This manufacturer has been combining the comforts of a larger motorhome with a smaller, easy-to-drive campervan since 1974. They now offer a full line of Class Bs that range in size and style, and are built on Mercedes, Chevrolet or Ram ProMaster chassis for unbelievable comfort and durability. Whether you’re looking for an excellent quality, entry level campervan that will haul the T-ball team and provide you with a comfortable way to camp and road trip, or you’re wanting a more luxurious Class B with all the bells and whistles (like the Roadtrek Adventurous), Roadtrek has built a Class B motorhome with you in mind.
Towables: Best of 2016
The RVDA’s DSI Survey winners for 2016 in the towables category include several manufacturers that are near and dear to our hearts here at Guaranty. If you’re looking for a high quality travel trailer, fifth wheel or toy hauler, these award winners are the place to begin your search.
The Best Travel Trailers of 2016
Travel trailers have been part of camping for nearly as long as there have been automobiles, and RV manufacturers have been improving the quality and livability of these American favorites ever since. This year’s RVDA winners came as no surprise to us: Coachmen, Heartland and Lance are longtime favorites among our customers because they know they can count on these manufacturers to build RVs that will last.
The Apex and Freedom Express travel trailers were the big winners for Coachmen in 2016. With a motto of “Dedicated to the enrichment of your life,” this RV manufacturer believes in providing long term value in their travel trailers. Their lightweight Apex models are ideal for towing with an SUV or half-ton pickup—making them perfect for suburban and urban families. But you won’t have to sacrifice quality in order to lose the extra weight required to tow with a smaller vehicle. Coachmen has long been committed to a perfect blend of quality and innovation in their design, giving RVers the amenities they want without the bulk, so they are truly both lightweight and supremely livable for family camping. For a step up in luxury in the ultralight travel trailer category, look to the Freedom Express line. It’s still an affordable, value-packed travel trailer, designed to be towed by today’s midsize vehicles, but you can get amenities such as residential style furnishings, heated and enclosed underbellies, larger master bedrooms in a slide-out, and more.
Heartland’s 2016 winner—the North Trail—is another travel trailer that provides big value without a lot of extra weight. In 2003 Heartland set out to build a better RV than they’d ever seen, and they’ve gone a long way toward meeting their goal in the North Trail travel trailer. The open design floor plans make them especially suited for family travel, with lots of room for both living and sleeping. These are floor plans created with children in mind, and it’s hard to beat their rear bunkhouse models that provide separate space for the kids to get away from the adults without being out of earshot. In a North Trail, everyone can have the best camping experience.
The other 2016 travel trailer winner that we love is Lance. They’ve been building award-winning truck campers since 1965, with the philosophy that “Quality Comes First.” And now they’ve brought that same commitment to their lightweight travel trailers, creating high value models that make adventuring even more accessible for couples and small families. Our customers love the combination of a quality product at an affordable price point.
The Best Fifth Wheels of 2016
Fifth wheels offer all the benefits of a travel trailer, with even more long term livability options because of the extra space “upstairs”. This is why, for RVers with a ¾-ton or larger tow vehicle, fifth wheels are often the RV of choice for full time living. That added space also makes them great family RVs for summer camping. Our favorites of the 2016 award winners in this category are Coachmen and DRV Suites.
Coachmen’s award-winning Chaparral line of fifth wheels offer RVers a variety of options in RV living and adventuring. The mid-profile Chaparral has been the flagship fifth wheel for this manufacturer for more than a decade, and is much loved by RV lifestylers for the innovative floor plans that have big master bedroom suites, extra storage, residential style furnishings and homey interiors. The Chaparral Lite offers many of the same amenities and roomy livability, but is built with Alumicage construction and Turn Tec Engineering to create a lightweight fifth wheel that can be pulled by a half-ton pickup. Chaparral fifth wheels are notorious for their great aerodynamics, so whether you’re looking for a full time living mid-profile model or a Chaparral Lite, you can expect the towing experience to be outstanding.
For a step up in luxurious RV living, DRV Suites is definitely a manufacturer to explore. Constructed for full time living, their Mobile Suites line is truly a luxury-home-on-wheels. Since their founding in 2003, DRV’s fifth wheels have become synonymous with full-time, four-season luxury RV living. The four-season part of that winning combination means that these fifth wheels are built to last, with a custom-engineered 15″ triple box tube frame, some of the thickest insulation in the industry for cozy winters, and maximum stability from the DRV six-jack levelup system.
The Best Toy Haulers of 2016
A toy hauler can be so much more than a garage-on-wheels. Yes, most people utilize the toy hauler garage for hauling their ATVs, motorcycles, snowmobiles, UTVs, jet skis, even classic cars and kayaks. But more and more, we’re seeing RVers get creative with that garage space and utilize it as an office, workshop or studio on the road. Whether you need a space to haul your favorite toys, or you need workspace in your RV, a toy hauler can be a perfect solution. We’re pleased to say that Lance is our toy hauler manufacturer of choice from the RVDA 2016 award winners.
Lance toy haulers give RVers good garage space and they do an excellent job of also providing a very livable RV, with options that allow you to easily convert the garage into additional living space with big windows for natural light, and easily stowed sleeping options that mean you can bring the whole crew on your next adventure without giving up the privacy of your own master bedroom.
We couldn’t be more excited about this year’s award winning RVs! If you’d like to learn more about the best 2016 motorhomes and towables, come visit us in Junction City, or give us a call.
