Essential RV Features for Snowbirds

Manufacturer design features, storage, and personal preferences are just some of the all-important aspects to consider for your trailer or motorhome.

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Words and photos by Perry Mack

Choosing an RV is usually a question of what class, model and size you need to meet all your ‘living needs’ at a destination. The transition to being a snowbird, however, means longer-term stays often at the same location and you should not only consider the size and type of unit but what features you want to make those longer stays more comfortable.

Over the years, we have owned a tent trailer, 5 m (16 ft) travel trailer, and 10 m (34 ft) Class A. We currently own a 9 m (28 ft) travel trailer and just recently purchased an 11 m (36 ft) fifth wheel to potentially go south for the winter. All of our previous RVs were chosen to accommodate the size of our family for weekends and multi-week trips.

Now, our fiver’s sole purpose is to accommodate two people comfortably for months, which means we added features to our shopping list we hadn’t required or even considered before. Some you can always add on as aftermarket accessories, but others are design features you must select at the purchasing stage. Listed below are a number of added features that we not only wanted but required given the amount of time we would be away.

Covering the Slides

Slide toppers were on our list of necessities. While they are a great feature to have on any RV, they are more important when you leave your slides out for long periods. Exposing the slide seals to months of continuous sun, wind and sand means you risk prematurely wearing them out, resulting in leaks and/or a great deal of maintenance than you are used to doing.

Naturally-Sourced On-Demand Power

Solar panels will keep your batteries in prime-charged condition while boondocking in the inexpensive parks without having to run a generator. The low fees in these parks can save you money allowing you to affordably extend your snowbird season.

Washer/Dryer Units and Kitchen Space

A washer/dryer package is convenient and will save you money by not having to drop coins in a machine at the laundromat – if there is one in the park. They are, however, tiny, and won’t properly wash much more than the equivalent of a single bedsheet at one time. Although we did get one in our RV, we wouldn’t consider it an essential appliance. For most RVers, the space these units consume is better used for the storage of other items.

Kitchen storage is essential to accommodate those extra, small appliances like a Ninja Foodie – the all-in-one air-fryer, slow cooker and pressure cooker. However, it’s important to think about the amount of counter space you want and need. Ours is limited but it did come with an aftermarket flip-up counter extender, which comes in handy.

Size Matters at a Destination

When choosing the RV, first decide what you must bring and then what you want to bring. Taking both cold and warm weather clothing requires more room. Look for more closet space as well as a dedicated area for tools and other supplies.

What about bikes, electric bikes, kayaks, paddleboards or motorcycles? Not only will you need the proper racks to carry them, but your RV must also have sufficient carrying capacity, a number that seldom comes up in a sales conversation. Our 2017 36’ Montana High Country 305RL is one of the smallest in the line but it has one of the largest carrying capacities.

Determine the Important Extras

A ladder to access the roof is not a feature to overlook. You just might be surprised at how many branches, leaves, and other interesting debris are up there, and how often you may have to climb up to clean it or do occasional maintenance.  Our short-term travel trailers could wait for roof maintenance at home where I had ladders and tools to get the jobs done.

Is the fridge/freezer large enough? We’ve always gotten by with a single-door fridge/freezer and used a cooler when necessary. For our fifth wheel, we chose a double-door fridge in the kitchen but the unit also has room and power in the pass-through storage for a portable fridge/freezer. Even better, you can find RV’s with residential size fridge/freezers, although these came in RV’s that we felt were too large for us.

Ensure a Residential Feel

This may seem a little extravagant to some but we knew our RV needed to feel like home with amenities like a larger TV, satellite, fireplace, and recliners. We are not Spartans. At this time of our lives, we need to relax and want to be comfortable.

After compiling your list and making a purchase, there may be some things that you may have missed. Some features you’ll be able to add later and some you won’t. We were looking to save money and purchased a used RV so we searched for a unit according to our list of features we wanted.

After spending some time in the RV, we realized that having the fridge in the slide next to the ‘front’ of the unit means we hear it turn on and off. As this was never the fridge location in our previous RVs, we didn’t realize to consider this design.

We also felt that an 11 m (36 ft) RV was large. After a few weeks of living in it, we can certainly appreciate why many enthusiasts look for RV’s 12 m (39 ft) and up. The bottom line is to do the research and be happy with what you can’t change. It’s unlikely you’ll ever find the perfect RV every time, but RVing will still be a great experience.

These are some of the features that were key for us. What features are most important to you?