Best Family Campers Under 4500 Pounds

Many families want to camp without buying a huge trailer and heavy-duty truck to tow it. Lightweight campers are among the most affordable RVs for first-time buyers, and they have more benefits beyond their price. Let’s highlight those benefits and give you some of our favorite family campers under 4500 pounds.

Benefits of a Lightweight Camper Under 4500 Pounds

There are important advantages to choosing a smaller travel trailer under 4500 pounds. You can enjoy these while still ensuring your family has enough space to be comfortable. Those advantages include:  

• Price. The best small travel trailers tend to be more affordable, saving you money you can use for RV essentials and other travel-related expenses.
• Simpler Systems. Most 4500-lb travel trailers make it easy to learn how to set up at a campsite and operate basic systems like awnings, slide-outs, and water systems.
• Ease of Towing. You can likely tow a smaller camper with an existing tow vehicle, and the learning curve is easier than starting out with a larger fifth wheel, for example.

Use Camping World’s Towing Guide to calculate how much your vehicle can tow safely before buying a new or used travel trailer.

Our Favorite Family Travel Trailers Under 4500 Pounds

These lightweight travel trailers are perfect for first-time RVers, and we’ve picked bunkhouse floorplans or others with second sleeping areas that are ideal for families. Let’s take a look at some of the best family travel trailers under 4500 pounds.

Keystone Coleman 17B

Specs

• Model Year: 2025
• Length: 20’5”
• Dry Weight: 3,088 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 398 pounds
• GVWR: 3,990 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 5

Keystone’s upgraded 2025 Coleman 17B campers offer some major improvements over previous model years: taller ceilings, complete pass through storage, a gas furnace for more comfortable extended-season camping, and improved interior storage. 

These lightweight campers are the latest floorplans in Coleman’s lineup of top-selling campers in the US. Keystone’s influence can be seen with the new, smart design and improved RV systems that make new campers much more comfortable. The kids will love the rear bunks, but parents still enjoy a comfortable RV queen bed. 

Keystone also made a major improvement to the bathroom in the 2025 Coleman campers by increasing the ceiling height throughout. Campers up to just over 6’ tall can now take a comfortable shower without craning their necks. 

Looking for something for taller campers? Check out these RVs for tall people.

Forest River Wolf Pup 16BHSW

Specs

• Length: 21’9″
• Dry Weight: 3,594 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 475 pounds
• GVWR: 5,575 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 5

The Wolf Pup 16BHSW is a bunkhouse travel trailer under 4500 pounds. The kids have single rear bunks in this family-friendly floorplan, and you’ll enjoy a queen-sized bed at the front with overhead storage and a TV mount at the foot. 

There’s a second TV mounting location on the RV’s exterior, so you don’t miss a second of the action as you lounge underneath the 12-foot power awning. As a bonus, you’ll have a mini fridge in an exterior compartment and an LP quick connect for a grill or griddle, so you don’t have to go inside to restock beverages or prepare meals.

Back inside, the main kitchen boasts an uncommonly large double-door refrigerator for a lightweight camper like this. For navigating dirt roads and camping off-grid, this Wolf Pup features upgraded 14” premium wheels and prep for a solar panel installation. 

East to West Silver Lake 1600RBLE

Specs

• Length: 21’3″
• Dry Weight: 3,818 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 480 pounds
• GVWR: 4,880 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 6

The Silver Lake 1600RBLE is the smallest and lightest travel trailer in this East to West RV lineup. It’s also another thoughtfully designed small travel trailer with a bathroom in the rear and a Murphy bed, allowing you to optimize the interior living space for lounging or sleeping. 

The Murphy bed does require more daily effort to setup or fold away, but the added versatility is worth it. Few campers under 4500 pounds have this much floor space for indoor games or an impromptu dance party. Plus, you get the booth dinette and a comfortable sofa (with storage underneath) for indoor seating areas. 

While those benefits are great in the evenings or on rainy days, there’s plenty to love about the Silver Lake’s exterior features. The rear outdoor shower makes cleaning gear, feet, or clothing a cinch, the powered awning creates extra shade on hot days, and the finished pass through storage compartment can house all of your camping essentials.

Jayco Jay Flight SLX 175BH

Specs

• Length: 21’8″
• Dry Weight: 3,215 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 305 pounds
• GVWR: 4,500 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 5

The Jay Flight SLX 175BH is another family camper with a privacy curtain to separate the main sleeping area from the rest of the floor plan. That gives you more privacy than in many other small campers, and you’ll still enjoy a spacious rear bathroom next to the stacked single bunks. 

Jayco considered off-grid campers with its optional Overlander 1 solar package, which includes a 200-watt solar panel and a 30-amp charge controller. This camper also comes pre-wired for an inverter, allowing more small appliances to run off battery power.

There’s also a powered 12’ exterior awning with LED lights, allowing you to create a comfortable outdoor lounge area to discourage your crew from tracking dirt in and out all day. This is another less-than-4500 lb. travel trailer, meaning you should be able to tow it with various vehicles.

Keystone Hideout 175BH

Specs

• Length: 20’6”
• Dry Weight: 3,020 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 360 pounds
• GVWR: 4,350 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 5

The Hideout 175BH is a bunkhouse travel trailer for families with rear single-stacked bunks next to the bathroom. The main sleeping area remains at the front with a queen bed, and the center part of the floorplan features the kitchen on the campside with the convertible booth dinette opposite it. 

New campers will love the ease and simplicity of this Keystone camper, making it one of the best travel trailers under 4500 pounds for first-time buyers. There are no slide-outs to worry about, no Murphy bed to set up and break down each day, and no complex control systems to program. 

What you do get is everything you need for a major upgrade from tent camping. That includes a full kitchen with a two-burner gas cooktop, a 3.3 cubic foot refrigerator, a microwave, and a single-basin stainless steel sink. 

Forest River Salem FSX 178BHSKX

Specs

• Length: 22’11”
• Dry Weight: 4,194 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 545 pounds
• GVWR: 5,645
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 7

The lightweight Salem FSX 178BHSK offers a unique layout that transforms daytime seating space into sleeping space at night by incorporating a fold-down, queen-size Murphy bed at the front.

When that bed is folded up, it offers plenty of living space with an open, carpet-free floorplan. At the back, two double-over-double bunk beds are perfect for the kids, but they can also be used for extra storage space in transit or when RVing as a couple.

The slide-out for the U-shape dinette features a panoramic window, so you’re never without a good view of your surroundings, whether you’re lounging or preparing meals in the functional kitchen with a two-burner gas range, a microwave, and a single-basin stainless steel sink. Or, you can ignore the indoor kitchen and cook all your meals in the outdoor kitchen instead. I’m sure no one will complain.

Coleman Lantern LT 17B

Specs

• Length: 21’5″
• Dry Weight: 2,985 pounds
• Hitch Weight: ~385 pounds
• GVWR: ~3,990 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 5

Featuring rear bunks for the kids and a queen bed for the parents, the Lantern LT 17B is one of the most affordable travel trailers available. This lightweight travel trailer is easy to tow and can be towed by various vehicles.

It features an electric fireplace, an air conditioner, a full-size dinette, and a fully equipped kitchen. There’s also a dry bathroom in the rear, abundant storage under the bottom bunk, and a high-rise faucet over the single-basin kitchen sink.

Crossroads Zinger-Lite 18BH

Specs

• Length: 21′
• Dry Weight: 3,362 pounds
• Hitch Weight: 426 pounds
• GVWR: 4,426 pounds
• Sleeping Capacity: Up to 8

Another less-than-4500 lb. travel trailer is the Zinger-Lite 18BH. This high-quality trailer has a campside kitchen, a dinette, bunk beds at the rear, and a queen bed at the front. It’s one of the more compact trailers on this list, making it one of the lightest.

It’s prepped for a backup camera, which makes it easier to back into a campsite. If you’re looking for a trailer that can handle extended boondocking stays, it’s also ready for a solar installation.

The Zinger RV‘s construction includes an aerodynamic front end and a rear bumper that’s perfect for securing one of the best bike racks for RVs. Plus, you’ll have the option of adding insulation if you want to extend your camping season.

Choose Your Best Family Travel Trailer

These small trailers are all about maximizing sleeping space for family RVing. You won’t get a king-size bed or theater seating like you might find in some of the best luxury fifth wheels. But you will get a comfortable camper at a much more affordable price, and some of the unique 2025 RVs offer more amenities than previous model years.

Here are a few more resources to guide you as you continue your search for the perfect family travel trailer:

• Rear Living Travel Trailer Floorplans
• Best Rear Dinette Travel Trailer
• Understanding RV Weight Ratings
• Everything You Need to Hitch & Tow Your RV
• How To Properly Load Your Travel Trailer

Do you have any lightweight travel trailers you’d add to this list? Leave a comment below!