Bath or no bath

[Chillywilly]

Since I will only consider a 13' egg, could I live without a bathroom? Out here in Nevada, a lot of places have those pit latrines 'cuz we are usually in the middle of nowhere. So, I see a lot of pics in here of 13' eggs without bathrooms, only portapottys. For the most part, we'd only use it for one or two nights. Bottom line...have any of you regretted buying one without a bathroom?

[Nancy]

No regrets. If the time comes that I want a private room I would have to move to a 16 foot trailer. For us the 13 with bath feels too small.

All depends on personal requirements.

For us the porta potty in the 13 works. We have been out on month long trips, empty every few days.

Nancy

[Byron Kinnaman]

You'll get a lot of "gotta have toilet" comments. I'll give you opposite. We've had our Scamp for 7.5 years. Spend 90+ days a year the last 3 years living the Scamp in the southwest during the winter. Then up a month in the summer. We've probably spent 500+ nights in our Scamp. No toilet or portapotty.
Only one place one time did this cause any issue, that at dome rock in AZ near Quartzsite for the annual Quartzsite Rally. We stayed in town where there was a toilet close by.

No regrets. In fact every time somebody has toilet problems, with seems to be quite often, I'm really glad for our decision to not have a toilet.

[Robin G]

That's only a decision you can make. But that being said I wouldn't own a rv without a bathroom! That's just me!

I have rv'ed basically all my life, and only one rv (our last Class A)
did we ever have blank tank issues! And I fixed that by going to the Geo method of keeping the tank fresh and clear. And though we had issues with that one rv black tank, out of 3 my Dh and I have owned. And 6 or 7 I grew up with, I still wouldn't own a rv without a bathroom. You just have to decide if you can live without one. I personally don't do Johnny Gumps and don't care for public restrooms much either. If you can live without, then look for a 13fter without. (easier to find to start with.) Good luck on your search!

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Nancy

For us the 13 with bath feels too small.

I have to agree with Nancy on this one. The 13' Scamps and Casitas without bathroom feel HUGE in comparison to those with bathroom.
A 16' is a better size to have a bathroom inside.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Chillywilly

Since I will only consider a 13' egg, could I live without a bathroom? Out here in Nevada, a lot of places have those pit latrines 'cuz we are usually in the middle of nowhere. So, I see a lot of pics in here of 13' eggs without bathrooms, only portapottys. For the most part, we'd only use it for one or two nights. Bottom line...have any of you regretted buying one without a bathroom?

We like having the shower and toilet on our 13. Some treat the idea with distain but still want the rest of the conveniences, like a sink or a stove or a bed, or heat or A/C.
I guess none of these is necessary, some folks like to camp without even having shelter.
We see our Scamp as a travel trailer. Wherever we stop, we have all the comforts of home with us. It's nice to have a meal, watch a movie,take a shower,and sleep in the comfort of our trailer.It is also nice not to have to go out to find a "facility" when we overnight at Walmart or a rest area.
Also when we visit someone, we like to stay in our trailer and not disturb the house at inconvenient times.
We had a LoveBug before our Scamp and loved it, but we bought the Scamp to add the shower and larger bed.
If I didn't want a complete travel trailer I would have stayed with van camping.

[Joy A]

I opted for no bath because the 13 does feel much bigger. Think about it, a couch with a window compared to a wall with a door and bathroom behind it. Obviously, standing in the middle of the floor, the trailer with the couch and window will feel much more open, elbow room and light coming in.

I do carry a PP with me and can be camped next to a bathroom and not use it, other than for a shower. I generally opt for a site with full hooks if the price the same, which is the case in Oregon SP's. That way when the PP gets full I just dump it in the sewer at my site. In addition I have a grey water tank so I like to use the dump at my site.

If there is a significant price difference for having a sewer site then I opt for the water and electric and take my PP to either the Restroom or to the campground dump, which I also use for the grey water tank.

[CindyL]

We had a portapotty in our 13' Burro. It was necessary for nighttime visits, but it sure was a pain to trip over it at night when we pulled it out. We also rigged up a shower, but that too was such a hassle that we did not use it. We chose to camp where bathrooms were clean.

That being said, after buying our 16' Uhaul, it is wonderful having a bathroom right there. Of course, it is a portapotty too, but it has its own room. And when shower facilities are not the best, there is a shower faucet too. I used the shower last week when we were camping during our week volunteering on Pine Ridge Lakota Reservation. The showers in the bunkhouse were too far away and had lines to use them all the time.

CindyL

[stairman]

I have a 17' Casita with the bathroom, but if a 13' was what I wanted or somehow ended up with, I wouldnt want it. A portapotty would have to do as it always has while tent camping. We always set it up inside one of those shower tents since you may need a potable shower as well. We started out using a camo pop up hunting blind for the portapotty, no floor needed, and it worked like a champ.

[jen b]

We have a 13' Burro (no bathroom option) and when we've got two people camping in it I do the thought experiment - what if we jammed a bathroom in here too? And I think "no way" - space is at enough of a premium with the small trailer as it is.

One day we'll upgrade to a 16 or 17 and spring for a bathroom/shower model. For now, it works for us to use campground bathrooms and showers.

[Cathy P.]

It doesn't sound like in your case that you need one. I would, however, have a porti-potti along, "just in case" and there are many "just in case" situations. We have been camping since 1983. Also with the 13', they are so in demand either with or without a bathroom that you could easily sell it for a nice price and get one with a bath if you change your mind. With the 16' without a bath, it seems they sell a little slower.

[Ed Harris]

I have had campers both with and without a bath and have also had the room but no bath.

It is something no one can help you decide,well maybe no one but your partner?

I have a full bath now but have actually never used it so far except as storage.
I mostly camp alone and would rather use other facilities than clean the bathroom.
I also barely fit inside the bathroom and easily fit in most CG facilities so the choice is simple if there is a choice.

For me almost everything about using my trailer is easier without using water in it.

Others that I camp with use everything in the trailer all the time and would not consider doing anything else.
Neither is wrong or right,it is just a personal choice.

It is often said that resale will be hurt without a bath but I have no reason to think so and my experience selling these eggs also does not support that theory,they sell fast either way.

So yes,Bath or No Bath?

Either is fine.

[David B.]

Bill, we have had 2 13' Scamps over the last 25 years, and a couple of pop-up tent trailers prior to that. These fit our "off the grid" camping lift style fine without a shower. An outside shower tent has fit our needs for a shower. I did install a water pump and water heater in both, and a shower head or dish sprayer also, to be used as a shower. We are getting closer to being able to start taking 6 months traveling times, so my wife has requested a bathroom next time...perhaps Parkliner or Lil Snoozy.

[deryk]

Like my lil vardo I built, my ParkLiner is my 2nd home and I try to get away as many weekends as I can in it, even if Im just parked in my friends driveway/side yard. The porta potty is always a great thing to have since occasionally something bothers my stomach and have woken up in the middle of the night and dont want to have to get dressed and hike off to a toilet somewhere... and honestly it is so nice on sunday morning to pack up my awning and chairs and be all ready to head out jump in the shower, put on some clean clothes and go home clean especially if you have to be somewhere sunday afternoon! I think the bathroom is worth the space loss. And I do pack stuff in it while traveling.

[Casita Greg]

At the risk of sounding a tad snooty, (not my intent, so please don't take it as such,) but why would anyone ever succumb to buying a trailer without a toilet, or at the very least, a porta-potti? If I couldn't have my toilet, (and a good bed,) in my trailer, I'd sell it and buy myself another tent! My gas mileage would instantly double, but I prefer my creature comforts. Maybe it's because the older I get, the more I like being comfortable. Just remember, there will be those times such as middle of the night, not-so-nice camping place, crappy unkempt facilities, really gotta-go right now, heavy rain, etc. that really convinced me that having a toilet is the only way to go. JMHO.

[jen b]

Originally Posted by Casita Greg

At the risk of sounding a tad snooty, (not my intent, so please don't take it as such,) but why would anyone ever succumb to buying a trailer without a toilet, or at the very least, a porta-potti? If I couldn't have my toilet and a good bed in my trailer I'd sell it and buy myself another tent! My gas mileage would instantly double, but I prefer my creature comforts. Maybe it's because the older I get, the more I like being comfortable. JMHO.

Because both my feet and the campground bathrooms work just fine?

Really, everybody has different camping styles, mobilities, and preferences, so it's all good.

[Casita Greg]

Not meant as an antagonistic post, just my feelings on the subject. Also, not everybody shares your mobility and good health. After all, the OP did ask for opinions, pro & con. YMMV

[Briantb]

We went with the toilet/shower in our 13 foot Scamp. If we want to do without we could take our teardrop out

[Casita Greg]

I seriously doubt you'll regret having it. Enjoy your trailer.
Happy camping!

[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by Casita Greg

At the risk of sounding a tad snooty, (not my intent, so please don't take it as such,) but why would anyone ever succumb to buying a trailer without a toilet, or at the very least, a porta-potti? If I couldn't have my toilet, (and a good bed,) in my trailer, I'd sell it and buy myself another tent! My gas mileage would instantly double, but I prefer my creature comforts. Maybe it's because the older I get, the more I like being comfortable. Just remember, there will be those times such as middle of the night, not-so-nice camping place, crappy unkempt facilities, really gotta-go right now, heavy rain, etc. that really convinced me that having a toilet is the only way to go. JMHO.

On the other side why would anybody insist on carrying their body waste around with them? As pointed out my feet work just fine, the stars are bright in the middle of the night. A toilet is another failure point that will fail at some point in time.

We've been camping for over 60 years (acutlly closer to 70) and never needed to carry around a toilet or port-a-potty. In our earlier days a port-a-potty would have been a bit too much to put the backpack. Now a toilet in the trailer is a no no.

Absolutely no regrets.