A recreational vehicle, often abbreviated as RV, is a motor vehicle or trailer that includes living quarters designed for accommodation.[1] Types of RVs include motorhomes, campervans, coaches, caravans (also known as travel trailers and campers), fifth-wheel trailers, popup campers, and truck campers.
Typical amenities of an RV include a kitchen, a bathroom, and one or more beds.[2] RVs can range from utilitarian – containing only sleeping quarters and basic cooking facilities – to luxurious, with features like air conditioning (AC), water heaters, televisions and satellite receivers, and quartz countertops, for example.
RVs can either be trailers (which are towed behind motor vehicles) or self-propelled vehicles. Most RVs are single-deck; however, double-deck RVs also exist. To allow a more compact size while in transit, larger RVs often have expandable sides (called slide-outs) or canopies that are deployed when stationary. Self-powered RVs can further be divided into pushers (where the motor is as the back) or pullers (front mount), where the pushers tend to be diesel powered versus gasoline powered.
Name | Image | Type | Length | Description |
---|---|---|---|---|
Camper or Travel trailer | Trailer | 13 to 35 ft (4.0 to 10.7 m) | Uses tow hitch attached to rear frame of towing vehicle | |
Fifth wheel | Trailer | 17 to 40 ft (5.2 to 12.2 m) | Uses fifth-wheel coupling centered above rear axle of towing vehicle | |
Folding / Pop-up | Trailer | 8 to 16 ft (2.4 to 4.9 m) | With collapsable sides that are stowed during towing | |
Class A (Integrated) | Motorhome | 26 to 45 ft (7.9 to 13.7 m) | Typically built on heavy-duty truck or bus chassis | |
Class B (Semi-integrated) | Motorhome | 17 to 23 ft (5.2 to 7.0 m) | Typically vans with elevated rooflines | |
Class C (Alcove) | Motorhome | 20 to 30 ft (6.1 to 9.1 m) | Typically built on cutaway pickup or van chassis with bunk over cab area | |
Truck camper | Insert | 8 ft (2.4 m) or more | Carried in bed area of pickup truck |