Most people will probably find that retro RVs look cool. And indeed, these days, anything from a couple of decades back is going to be an eye-catcher.
However, in our opinion, there is more to retro RVs than mere looks. For us, they are a reminder of the long, long path that RVs have passed in order to become what they are today.
Even a 10 years old RV is going to lag behind modern units in terms of comfort and efficiency, let alone RVs that are 20, 30, or even half a century old. But without them, without their downsides which needed a solution, we wouldn’t have what we have today.
To allow us to get acquainted with the old era (and for some to actually relive it), many RV manufacturers offer classic lines that pay homage to their predecessors. Looking vintage from outside, these RVs provide you with everything a modern RV has on the inside. Such RVs are the topic of today’s material – meet 12 retro campers that are actually new!
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12 Vintage RVs That Are Actually New
Riverside Retro Travel Trailer
Riverside’s Retro travel trailers may not seem particularly retro by their design. There are many modern travel trailers that have the same body shape, and it doesn’t look the most vintage in the world. However, the body shape of this RV has actually been quite common in the 60s and 70s.
The body shape may not appear to be retro, but this RV’s color scheme and wheels do attach a strong retro vibe to it. This retro feel has been preserved inside as well thanks to the checkered flooring paired with the wood paneling and furniture.
Aside from functionality and the retro vibe, what is remarkable about the Retro line is that there are many floorplans to choose from in it. They range from 13 feet 8 inches to 31 feet in length, so people can get either lightweight and compactness or comfort from the Retro line. And, in spite of giving a classical vibe, all the Retro floorplans are no less equipped than any other comparable modern travel trailer.
The smaller floorplans obviously only have the most basic amenities like some sleeping and kitchen space, while the larger models start to gradually add up things like sofas, dinettes, bathrooms, entertainment centers, or whatnot.
Of course, there is more room in the larger floorplans as well, albeit at the cost of increased weight and price. But Retro travel trailers don’t get that heavy – up to 5,675 pounds on average in the longest model, which is a surprisingly low number for a 31 feet travel trailer.
Riverside Retro Toy Hauler
In their Retro toy hauler line, Riverside has followed the same logic as with the Retro travel trailer line. Although, to be fair, the black and orange color scheme featured on the Riverside website doesn’t look as retro as the color scheme of the Retro travel trailer. But with other color combos, the Retro toy hauler may look no less retro than the travel trailer.
Unlike the travel trailer line, the Retro toy hauler line has just 2 floorplans, so we can overview them more in depth.
First, there is the smaller 820R floorplan. Measuring 20 feet 6 inches in length, it isn’t too small, but it’s much smaller than the other floorplan.
This floorplan weighs 3,760 pounds when empty and has 3,720 pounds of carrying capacity, nearly double its weight. You could thus expect that this toy hauler will be able to carry whatever fits in it.
The larger 827 floorplan measures 27 feet 4 inches in length, so it definitely has the edge in terms of comfort and free room. It has plenty of room in the cargo compartment which can be converted to a dining and sleeping area when no toys are inside. Plus, the bathroom in this floorplan is much bigger and convenient.
On the other hand, the smaller floorplan is arguably better as a toy hauler since the 827 floorplan has a carrying capacity of 2,780 pounds, nearly 1,000 pounds less than the smaller 820R floorplan.
However, when fully loaded, the 827 floorplan weighs less than its smaller counterpart – 7,000 vs 7,480. The 480-pound difference is big enough to be important for some people out there.
So yeah, there are certain balancing factors in these toy haulers – one has less comfort but more cargo capacity, while the other has more comfort but less cargo capacity.
Winnebago 2015 Brave Class A Motorhome
The Brave class A motorhome by Winnebago is, unlike most of other RVs on our list, an older model from 2015. And, unfortunately, it is no longer in production, which is a shame since this motorhome looks beautiful. But if you are lucky, you could get your hands on a used unit for a good price even today.
On the outside, the Winnebago Brave class A motorhome screams retro with its angles and color scheme. At first glance, one might be unable to realize that this actually is a rather modern recreational vehicle.
But on the inside, the Brave class A motorhome is no different than other class A motorhomes from a couple of years back. In fact, it probably doesn’t differ significantly from newer class A motorhomes as well, though you’d obviously have older equipment in it.
As you’d expect from a class A motorhome, the Brave motorhome offers levels of comfort rarely seen in other RV classes. In it, you are getting anything you could have expected a modern motorhome to have.
The Brave class A motorhome line has 3 floorplans to choose from. They differ by length and by some minor things like seat number, but they offer the same set of amenities.
The smaller 27 feet 8 inch 26A floorplan has 3 seats, a dinette, and a sofa bed in the front. As a tradeoff, it has a cramped rear end with a 60 x 75-inch bed and a small bathroom next to it. The kitchen, albeit well-equipped, also doesn’t have much free space in it.
The 29 feet 4-inch 27B floorplan has 2 seats in the front and a bigger dinette in a slide out. Plus, it has noticeably more convenient kitchen and bedroom areas, though the bathroom is still quite small.
And the 32 feet 11-inch 31C floorplan combines the good features from the smaller floorplans – it has a roomy bedroom and plenty of dining and kitchen area. It also has separate shower and toilet compartments that are more convenient than the cramped units in the smaller floorplans. Lastly, it has an outdoor kitchen with a refrigerator and pantry.
In the end, if you’d like a retro motorhome, give it a go and try to find a used Winnebago Brave RV.
Happier Camper HC-1 Travel Trailer
The Happier Camper HC-1 travel trailer really doesn’t look that remarkable from outside. It just looks like a generic travel trailer somewhere from the 1960s. But when you look inside, you realize that this is the most unique RV on our list.
The HC-1 offers “ultimate flexibility”, as Happier Camper writes, to its owners. The interior of this travel trailer has a modular design, which allows you to adapt it to your current needs. Need a dining area? The corresponding Happier Camper Adaptiv blocks would allow you to have it. Need just a large sleeping area? Again, it is easy to achieve with the Adaptiv blocks.
As a small downside, you need to purchase some of the Adaptiv blocks yourself, which can add up to your costs quite significantly. Plus, you will have to assemble and disassemble the interior every time you need a change. On the other hand, you are basically getting multiple small travel trailers in a hull of one!
The HC-1 camper also is a very lightweight travel trailer, which is going to interest those people whose vehicles don’t have a high towing capacity. This travel trailer weighs just 1,100 pounds when empty. With add-ons and packages, it weighs 1,200 to 1,800 pounds on average, which is lighter than the vast majority of other RVs on this list.
With a length of only 13 feet, this travel trailer is also very compact. It can’t boast the freedom of movement of larger RVs, but what larger RVs can’t boast, on the other hand, is the modularity of the HC-1 camper. And for some people, the flexibility of the HC-1 camper is going to be worth more than the comfort of a longer travel trailer.
Airstream Sport Travel Trailer
Airstream doesn’t produce the cheapest RVs out there. Their high-end travel trailers, for example, cost as much as cheap class A motorhomes, so Airstream RVs definitely aren’t for those who are on a tight budget. Check our article on why Airstreams are so expensive for more information.
However, in terms of luxury, no cheaper RVs can compare with what Airstream has to offer.
When it comes to the design of the Sport travel trailer line, it is quite confusing. On one hand, you have the shape that definitely looks retro. Furthermore, the design of Airstream RVs is actually indeed retro since it has been used by Airstream since at least the 60s.
On the other hand, the Sport travel trailer’s material and color choice make it appear sleek, and sleek with retro is quite a weird combination. The metallic color gives a little bit of a raw appearance to this travel trailer as well.
So at first glance, you are getting a wide gamut of emotions and contradicting associations. This doesn’t make the Sport travel trailer look bad – on the contrary, we think that it is quite an eye-catcher.
Airstream travel trailers traditionally have a luxury vibe in them embodied in material choice. This vibe can be sensed in this travel trailer as well. Some people may argue that it doesn’t make the price tag of Airstream RVs worth it, but there will be people out there who will adore what they have to offer.
The Sport travel trailer line has two floorplans, which allows us to again pinpoint the key differences between them. Let’s begin with the larger 22FB floorplan.
Measuring 21 feet 8 inches in length, the 22FB floorplan offers better comfort for an extra $10k on top of the cheaper floorplan’s price tag. The most remarkable feature in this floorplan is the roomy bathroom that occupies the entire width of the RV’s rear. This bathroom definitely isn’t the biggest on the market, but it sure does have plenty of wiggle room to offer.
In the living area, there is likewise plenty of room for movement. The kitchen area also boasts 2 sinks, a larger 4.2 cubic feet refrigerator, a 2-burner cooktop, and a convection microwave oven.
The 16 feet 4 inch long 16RB floorplan offers basically the same amenities as its larger counterpart, but in a more compact package. The kitchen area has only one sink and a smaller refrigerator, and the bathroom isn’t the same roomy one as in the 22FB. However, the 16RB floorplan still has the 4 sleeping spots that the 22FB had.
And not to extend our overview too much, we’ll say in conclusion that the Airstream Sport travel trailer line seems to be made for those who are looking for luxury in a smaller package.
Airstream International Signature Travel Trailer
Airstream has applied its traditional design approach to the International Signature travel trailer line. It’s got the exact same appearance as the Sport series, but in a bigger size.
And, needless to say, bigger size means more comfort indoors. The shortest floorplan in this series – the 23CB – is 23 feet long, so even the most minimalist package is going to have a lot of comfort to offer. And the 30 feet 11-inch models are the peak of comfort in this line.
There are 12 floorplans in the International Signature series. However, since the set of amenities offered by them is generally the same, it’s pretty easy to draw parallels and pinpoint differences between them.
Long story short, the main thing that differs between the floorplans in the International Signature line is the amount of free room and comfort you are getting inside. The price and storage requirements of the floorplans obviously go up the higher up the size you go, but those can be considered mere side effects of the increased comfort.
What stays unchanged in all the floorplans though is the number of sleeping spots. The models in this entire line have 6 sleeping spots. This definitely isn’t the most on the market, but that’s the most you are going to get from the RVs on this list.
You could again say that the International Signature line is overpriced and that you can get a comparable amount of comfort from a travel trailer that costs half the price. And you’d be right. However, we again assert that the classical Airstream design and luxury are key in these travel trailers.
Most people won’t even need what the International Signature offers, but since Airstream is making these models, there definitely are people out there who are ready to pay the money.
Airstream Classic Travel Trailer
The Classic series is the priciest among the Airstream travel trailer models. It perhaps is the most expensive travel trailer line on the market, costing $150-160k.
The pricing of the Classic trailers may be completely unreasonable, and only a few people may actually go and get themselves an Airstream Classic RV. However, we nonetheless decided to include it into our list due to the wow effect it produces. The Classic travel trailer line really awakened the RV geeks in us.
From outside, the Classic travel trailers are no different than their smaller Airstream counterparts. They still have that metallic body shape that gives a strong retro vibe. On the inside though, things are way different.
There are 4 floorplans in the Classic line – two 31 feet 3-inch floorplans and two 33 feet floorplans. There are many similarities between these floorplans, but the longer ones really have something to drop your jaw.
The 33 feet Classic floorplans have a truly enormous bathroom in the rear. It probably wouldn’t be a stretch to say that this is one of the biggest, if not the biggest bathroom in any RV. Heck, it is even bigger than bathrooms in smaller residences! Aside from that, it even has a heated floor.
The 31 feet 3-inch floorplans have a more traditional RV bathroom. Instead, they have a roomier seating area in the front end of the RV.
Aside from the bathrooms, what also differs between the long and short floorplans is their entertainment area. The entertainment areas in the 33 feet RVs are equipped with 60-inch TVs, while the smaller floorplans can’t boast such a thing.
One crucial thing we didn’t mention is how luxurious the interior in the Classic travel trailers is. To put it short, the Classic travel trailer is a Maybach of travel trailers. Aside from that, the plentitude of wooden elements in it adds a little bit of a retro vibe to the inside.
In the end, no matter how ridiculous the Classic travel trailers may be, they are really a spectacle on the RV market.
Egg Camper Travel Trailer
If you’ve been into RVing for some time, then you’ve probably heard a word or two about the Egg Camper. While this travel trailer is no longer in production, it still remains a relevant model, and you may even be able to get one for yourself.
The Egg Camper arguably doesn’t look as retro as some other RVs on our list. We’d say that it is somewhere from the 70s or 80s, while there have been models on our list with a 60s vibe. Not everyone will like the latter, so the looks of the Egg Camper are perfectly alright.
To justify its name, this travel trailer has an egg yoke yellow canopy, which also makes this travel trailer look cute.
Inside, this travel trailer is similar to other travel trailers of comparable size. However, the Egg Camper’s interior looks very plain and simple. To soften the frankly quite boring white color scheme, the Egg Camper has a couple of wooden elements in it. Doors, hatches, tabletops, and the likes are made from wood to add a little more variety to the interior.
At a glance, the set of amenities in the Egg Camper is very similar to that of any travel trailer regardless of size. You have a bathroom, a kitchen, a dining area, and some sleeping space, just like in monsters like the Airstream Classic. Of course, the scale of things is much smaller in this travel trailer.
Lastly, measuring 17 feet in length, this is quite a compact travel trailer, so it won’t be providing its occupants with too much free room. On the other hand, with a weight 2,000 pounds, it’s a more suitable choice for owners of less powerful towing vehicles.
Oliver Legacy Elite II Camper Trailer
Yet another retro-looking travel trailer on our list that is marketed as luxurious! The Legacy Elite II camper trailer by Oliver doesn’t cost nearly as much as Airstream RVs of comparable size, but it still isn’t exactly a cheap RV.
On the outside, the Oliver Legacy Elite II camper trailer catches the eye with the already familiar retro design. What differs in this RV from most other RVs is the fiberglass hull. A rather pricey material, fiberglass is lighter and stronger than many metals used in RV construction.
On the inside, Oliver boasts a “luxurious interior with plenty of space” for its occupants. The Legacy Elite II camper trailer seems to be not as posh as Airstream RVs, but it definitely is far ahead of regular travel trailers.
Oliver offers 2 floorplans for the Legacy Elite II camper trailer. They are identical except for sleeping space arrangement – one floorplan has a full-size rear bed, while the other has a twin bed.
Both floorplans feature a roomy bathroom that occupies the entire width of the camper’s front, just like it was in the longer floorplan of the Airstream Sport travel trailer. The bathroom in the Legacy Elite II RV is a full bathroom with a sink, shower, toilet, and even a linen closet. What’s even better is that it has plenty of wiggle room inside.
Not only the bathroom is well-equipped in the Oliver Legacy Elite II camper trailer – it has got a wide gamut of appliances in the kitchen, an entertainment area with a 24-inch flat-screen TV and 4 speakers by default, and many other things to make your ride more fun and, more importantly, safer.
A thing that Oliver also boast is that they sell their RVs directly to the buyer without any dealers in between. Those who’d like to work directly with manufacturers will most likely appreciate this approach.
Timberleaf Pika Travel Trailer
The Pika travel trailer by Timberleaf features a classic teardrop design, which has been and still is quite popular in smaller RVs. But in spite of its compact size, the Pika has a couple of features to boast nonetheless. In particular, the most remarkable thing in this travel trailer is its kitchen.
Timberleaf has decided to place the kitchen outdoors under the RV’s trunk. On one hand, this allows for more room inside, and on the other, you essentially get an outdoor kitchen in this travel trailer.
The kitchen in the Pika travel trailer has ample countertop room in, which is quite impressive for its size. As Timberleaf writes, this travel trailer has a 21 x 54-inch main countertop and a 10-inch deep upper countertop. The countertop room is arguably overkill for the RV’s size, though it, on the other hand, will allow for more convenience while cooking.
In terms of appliances, the kitchen isn’t that equipped by default – it just comes with a Dometic 35-liter refrigerator. So unless you will be bringing a portable cooktop with you, the stock Pika travel trailer probably won’t be good for longer trips.
Speaking of cooktops, Timberleaf has equipped the kitchen area with a couple of outlets to allow for appliance connection. There also are 4 USB ports in the kitchen’s electric panel, so you could, for example, listen to your favorite music from a laptop while preparing food.
Inside, the Pika travel trailer is essentially a bedroom. It has a 54 x 75-inch mattress with two sleeping spots, most importantly. Right above the head end of the mattress is a skylight – a nice addition that makes this RV feel more open, as well as allows the occupants to enjoy the night sky.
In terms of storage, the Pika RV is pretty nice as well. It has several mesh pockets scattered around, as well as a full-width cabinet above the bed’s foot end.
The Pika teardrop RV is also very lightweight when empty – it weighs just 970 pounds, which makes it the lightest RV on our list. Aside from that, it is just 11 feet 10 inches long, which makes it the most compact RV on the list as well. So those who have very limited towing and storage capacities will probably appreciate the lightness of the Pika.
Timberleaf Classic Teardrop Travel Trailer
The Timberleaf Classic Teardrop travel trailer is essentially a bigger Pika. This RV improves drastically on the main feature of the Pika trailer – the kitchen.
The kitchen area in the Classic Teardrop travel trailer is, first of all, noticeably roomier than in the Pika. It still has 2 countertops, but they are deeper and wider, allowing for more convenience while cooking.
Furthermore, the lower countertop is equipped with a sink and faucet, things that were absent in the Pika RV. Plus, Timberleaf offers an optional portable stove and a custom-made cooler to those who want to be able to make food without having to buy additional equipment.
Since the Classic Teardrop is larger than the Pika, it has more space inside. This allowed Timberleaf to equip it with a larger 57 x 80-inch bed, which is a little bigger than what the Pika has.
Otherwise, we’d say that the interiors in the two Timberleaf campers are very similar. The Classic Teardrop doesn’t have mesh pockets, but it does have the same window layout that the Pika has, as well as a storage cabin in the rear.
The Classic Teardrop travel trailer isn’t that big, but it definitely isn’t as compact and lightweight as the Pika. The Classic Teardrop measures 15 feet in length and weighs 1,400 pounds when empty, so it still is a very compact and lightweight RV.
All in all, the Timberleaf Classic Teardrop retains the character of Pika. Not only that, it makes it better and more comfortable for travel.
Serro Scotty Travel Trailer
The Serro Scotty travel trailer is the iconic Scotty model from the 60s and 70s, but with a modern filling. This travel trailer, like the Riverside Retro RVs, doesn’t look particularly retro, but, as we’ve said earlier, its design has been indeed quite popular back in the days.
The Scotty travel trailer looks pretty much identical to the Riverside Retro RVs, so there isn’t much to add about its design. Arguably, the Retro travel trailers look more vintage due to their wheel design, but the Scotty is nonetheless reminiscent of the 60s of the past century.
Serro offers 5 floorplans for the Scotty travel trailer, all vastly different from each other. The floorplans range from 17 feet 2 inches to 22 feet 7 inches in length, so there are many big differences that you can see in them.
Needless to say, this mainly concerns the amount of free room in the RV. The largest S218MBR floorplan offers plenty of interior space. And one thing that particularly catches the eye in this floorplan is its big and fully-equipped bathroom in the rear.
Conversely, the smallest floorplan – the S14RB that is sized at 17 feet 2 inches in length – is a bit cramped and lacks the benefits of its larger counterpart. On the other hand, it is around 1,500 pounds lighter, as well as occupies less storage space.
In terms of layout and amenities, the Scotty RVs don’t differ that much from other similarly sized RVs. So when it comes to making a choice, the design in this RV is probably going to play the biggest role.
Serro also has another retro RV – the Serro Scotty Sportsman, a cute small RV that is again very reminiscent of the 60s. We badly wanted to include it into our list, but it seems to be in production, unfortunately. The regular Serro Scotty is a good enough to end our material we guess.
If you enjoyed this article you might be interested in our other travel trailer or teardrop camper articles.
