Towing pop up camper compared to travel trailer

[disisme]

I have a 2022 f-150 with 3.5 and tow package .
I realize unless someone has switched from pop up camper to travel trailer I won’t get many responses.
I have a Palomino Pony and it says 1393 lbs dry weight and hitch weight of 133lbs, I realize it’s nothing for the truck to pull but we are considering moving up to a smallish travel trailer for just my wife and I ( we’re in our mid 60’s ) , we want to travel a couple weeks or month at a time. Only a few reasons we want to upgrade,
1 as we’re both light sleepers and road noise keeps us up
2 convenience of travel trailer not needing to be put up at each nights stop
3 pop up has no washroom .
4 we added 3” memory foam toppers in our pop up that makes mine and her beds extremely comfortable but unfortunately the added 3” means they need to be removed when trailer is folded down, obviously in a travel trailer they could stay in the trailer.

I’m retired on reduced pension, so want to know what would I be expectIng pulling a taller trailer that would be catching the wind , added weight to pulling , difference in gas mileage , etc ?
Could sure use some input , Thanks

I added two photos , one with tent trailer hooked up to my truck and second is of a pic I took I thought might be an ideal size travel trailer.

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[Captain Dirty Beard]

There is a 3rd option, which is one of the travel trailers that are the ROK (Rear Outdoor Kitchen)

These campers aren't as tall as your traditional travel trailer, so they don't have as much drag, but the downside is, most men won't be able to completely stand up inside it.

Fairly light weight, has onboard water, but no grey or black water tanks.

A/C, heater, and a cassette toilet. Better than most pop ups, but not as nice as a travel trailer that has the shower/bathroom inside, and the kitchen inside (personally, I don't like cooking inside anyway, but it is nice to be able to make coffee or a can of soup in bad weather)

https://www.rvtrader.com/listing/20...+12000+SERIES+12000+ROK-5036611768#sid=128409

 

[Chappy133]

I get @ 10 mpg when towing my 5500 lbs camper. Our cabin is 21 feet long. Having your own bathroom is a plus. Get a good foam mattress for great sleep. If you are going to spend time in it recommend not going too small. We camp in Florida for two months each winter and had to go from a 16 ft to 21 ft camper to make the longer trips more livable.

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

I get @ 10 mpg when towing my 5500 lbs camper. Our cabin is 21 feet long. Having your own bathroom is a plus. Get a good foam mattress for great sleep. If you are going to spend time in it recommend not going too small. We camp in Florida for two months each winter and had to go from a 16 ft to 21 ft camper to make the longer trips more livable.

you only get 10?
How fast do you tow the damn thing 75?

 

[BILDOZER]

We went from the tent trailer to a hardside then to the colapsable A Frame which we like the best! Milage is @ 18 to 20 mpg with the max trailer weight of 3,500lbs. and fits in the garage yet is a hardside when set up. YMMV. Have fun!

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/rockwood-hardside-pop-up-campers

 

[Kodiak]

10 or 11 is all I have ever seen anyone get towing a trailer like that. I do not personally know, but that is what most here have posted. Good luck, that is a nice looking trailer and will probably be significantly more comfortable when you travel.

 

[Chappy133]

you only get 10?
How fast do you tow the damn thing 75?

Never over 65 MPH. Pretty consistent to what others get towing a travel trailer.

 

[Elevatorman]

So I personally recommend upgrading. Life's to short man. Enjoy it. My wife and I have had so much fun since we've started camping. We love our smaller camper(compared to the massive CDL required campers you see at the campgrounds). It is very nice having a shower, bathroom, comfortable queen bed, kitchen etc.

I have a 23 150 xlt 4x4 tow package with 3.55 gears and the 3.5 ecoboost. My camper is your typical flat front travel trailer that weighs 5,000 pounds. I would not hesitate to go closer to 8 or 9k or even 10k with the proper tounge weight not putting me over on payload. The truck would handle it fine.

Real world numbers you can expect to get. My truck will get 22-23 average mpg mixed driving on 87 empty for reference. I get 11 to 11.5 mpg highway towing the camper maybe a tad more without stops (55-60 mph plus stops at stoplights). I get 10 mpg on the interstate (67-68 mph). If I want to drive like an *** hole on the interstate (72+) ill get 8 or a tad less mpg. The wind resistance is exponential as your speed goes up. And we have it the worst, dont have a full sized areodynamic cab like semis do. These have been on normal mostly windless days. On 87 octane. These are good representation trips in my mind, some big hills and rolling hills, also lots of mostly flat stretches. Hills of Virginia.

The other thing to keep in mind is you are much more susceptible to the wind than a pop up or utility trailer! Today coming home on the same stretch of road I've towed a few times already she was downshifting an extra gear and I was thinking holy crap my mileage is lower than normal, there's gotta be a strong headwind today. Sure enough passed a flag blown horizontal towards oncoming traffic. Another trip was getting over 13 mpg going 68 on the interstate, pretty sure I had a slight tailwind.

If you really want better mileage maybe a larger popup or Aliner would be a good middle ground. No sense in going smaller on the camper its not the weight that kills my mileage its the huge frontal flat area and wind. But man is it nice once I get to the campground.

 

[Elevatorman]

Here's a pic of my setup. Couple side notes. The 5k btu wall mounted ac is NOT enough for a 19 ft camper. Definitely get one with a 13k btu roof mount if you do any summer camping. We had to add a second 8k btu ac.

We find the 18.5' camper just enough for me, wife and two small dogs. This one has a 12' slide that gives some good walking space in the middle.

 

[Ed21]

22’ Rockwood Mini Lite. 5800 lbs. loaded as per cat scale. Towed 12,000 miles, 65 mph tops. Average 9.6 mpg. 36 gallon tank is your friend.

 

[tsigwing]

 

[Davexxxx]

I have a 2022 f-150 with 3.5 and tow package .
I realize unless someone has switched from pop up camper to travel trailer I won’t get many responses.
I have a Palomino Pony and it says 1393 lbs dry weight and hitch weight of 133lbs, I realize it’s nothing for the truck to pull but we are considering moving up to a smallish travel trailer for just my wife and I ( we’re in our mid 60’s ) , we want to travel a couple weeks or month at a time. Only a few reasons we want to upgrade,
1 as we’re both light sleepers and road noise keeps us up
2 convenience of travel trailer not needing to be put up at each nights stop
3 pop up has no washroom .
4 we added 3” memory foam toppers in our pop up that makes mine and her beds extremely comfortable but unfortunately the added 3” means they need to be removed when trailer is folded down, obviously in a travel trailer they could stay in the trailer.

I’m retired on reduced pension, so want to know what would I be expectIng pulling a taller trailer that would be catching the wind , added weight to pulling , difference in gas mileage , etc ?
Could sure use some input , Thanks

I added two photos , one with tent trailer hooked up to my truck and second is of a pic I took I thought might be an ideal size travel trailer.

We've had tons of fun in a couple different popups and a Class B camper van but for month + trips, the travel trailer is the way to go.

It will be much more quiet (no wind flapping the tent ends and not much overhearing other's conversations, like in a tent or popup) but not silent. There have been a couple times when white noise from the vent fan was helpful.

Set up and tear down are obviously less but you'll be adding the management of fresh and waste water tanks.

A real bathroom and twice the fridge space, (or more) are significant niceties.

Towing wise, they are very different though.

You'll feel the wind and so will the truck. You'll have plenty of engine and braking power (inside of your weight class) but per Ford, if over 5K lbs. gross trailer weight, will need a weight distribution hitch. That is another part of set up and tear down, you don't have now.

Our camper is a 2024, Surveyor 252RBLE. At just shy of 30' long, 11'4" tall and 8' wide, maxing out in the 7500lb.range, it isn't uncomfortable to tow at all but its toward the upper limits of what I'd want for our truck. Fortunately, its plenty. We've taken 2 major trips out west, 36 nights and 47 nights and neither time, were we anxious to end them.

Mileage heavily depends on the wind and the terrain.

In heavy wind, I've had a couple legs sub 7 mpg. In the mountains, I've gotten another couple >14. I use 8 mpg to plan fuel stops.

Have fun!

 

[Buyer2021]

^ That Casita rig ^

I owned and loved a Casita Travel Trailer for 16 years (bought new in 2005, upsized to the molded fiberglass Escape 5.0 in 2021).

• 100% leak-free molded fiberglass shell, heck for stout / robust over the long-term, I will never own other than a molded fiberglass trailer again.
• Stand-up headroom, full kitchen (cooktop, sink, microwave, fridge/freezer), toilet, shower, full-size/full-time bed with separate dinette for two, gas furnace, air conditioning, awning - IOW, all the amenities of larger trailers
• Easiest towing and best mileage with its relatively narrow width, relatively light weight, and 'slick' shape
• I towed without the complication of a weight distributing hitch, just airbags on my 2005 F150 XLT, the rig towed like a dream all across the USA in every conceivable terrain and weather / wind condition, never any hint of sway
• Retained amazingly high resale value, they invariably 'sell quick'

Arrive at your destination, drop the jacks, walk-in, and it's ready for use without the complication of a slide-out which IME is an often troublesome 'feature' on lightweight economy 'square-corner' trailers (prone to develop leaks and binding / mechanism issues with long-term use). The Casita offers absolutely minimal effort to set-up at the campsite and hitch-and-go when ready to move on.

Not for everyone but for a solo traveler or couple with no kids looking for the easiest, most trouble-free, and most enjoyable camping experience I highly recommend that this trailer be given very serious consideration.

If looking for somewhat 'roomier' accommodations, I suggest the equally robust and trouble-free molded fiberglass Escape 17 or Escape 19.

 

[Kodiak]

That Escape 19 looks great. If only you could get it with a 30 inch wide, dual bed that would be great for me. Dreaming.

 

[Rdjarre]

Hey there!

My family recently made the leap from a small pop-up to a travel trailer and haven't looked back. We had our pop-up for 3 years and I got tired of all of the set-up and the lack of a bathroom. My new travel trailer weighs 4,200 pounds dry and is 25 ft long.

I have a 2.7 without the max tow package and with 3.55 gears. However my truck has no problem at all. I have pulled the trailer almost 600 miles this summer and am averaging around 11 mpg using 93 octane.

My suggestions would be to look into getting a weight distribution hitch that has anti-sway included. I found an equalizer brand hitch off Facebook and absolutely love it. I know there is some debate on whether you need a WD hitch for a trailer under 5,000 pounds but I can tell a big difference. Also I would recommend looking for a trailer with double-axles like what you have pictured as there are numerous benefits to having an extra set of wheels.

Also invest in a set of K Source Snap & Zap clip on tow mirrors (mine are on in the picture below) they are awesome and look totally stock.

Best of luck in your adventure!

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