FOR TWO AND A HALF DAYS, we toured hundreds of RVs at the 2026 Hershey RV Show, spoke with manufacturers and dealers, and took notes on everything from floor plans to storage to design trends, all to bring you what we think is noteworthy heading into the new model year. This is what we’re watching in the 2027 model year and why.
There was a general consensus that this year was about getting the important stuff right. Less flash and more substance. High-end luxury fifth wheels doubled down on improving structural design and adding storage, even if it meant increasing overall weight. Meanwhile, several manufacturers focused on offering lightweight, affordable options given this season’s increased fuel prices. With that in mind, here were our general takeaways.
Small RVs Still Win
Looking at the lightweight options over the last two years, it feels like we’re seeing a category improve and expand in almost every direction. Not only have floor plans become more versatile (re: Keystone Coleman’s 13 series), but we’re also seeing improvements in quality and floor plan variety, as well as some surprise brands we haven’t seen in this category.
The units that got our attention at Hershey—and will this year—are those doing more with less: improved construction quality, increased solar and lithium capabilities, and more usable storage. Fuel prices are pushing shoppers toward smaller rigs, and the response from manufacturers has been mostly impressive.
Rockwood pushed its aluminum-framed build into two more sub-17-foot floor plans, Grand Design’s longtime Transcend line spun off an easier-to-tow version with the Transcend Lite, and even Airstream introduced a lightweight, more attainable option with the World Traveler, several models of which were present at Hershey.
Rockwood Geo Pro
At the size and price where trailers are usually stick-and-tin, Rockwood Geo Pro is running composite walls over a six-sided full-aluminum frame, with aluminum floor joists and a fully laminated fiberglass roof. For 2027, they pushed that build into two more small floor plans. The old G13LE split into the G13BLE, with bunk beds and a front bedroom, and the G13DLE, with a rear-corner booth dinette and a full-size 54″ x 80″ front bed. Same 16-foot box, two very different buyers. The G13DLE runs 2,434 pounds dry and roughly 3,775 loaded, keeping it in midsize-SUV range.
Coleman + Coleman Light
The Coleman 13-series continues to offer new campers an excellent entry point into RVing—easy to tow and with great floorplan variety. In 2027, Coleman Light introduced two new, less-conventional floor plans that may be taking a cue from the 13 series. The 23TX is an inventive front toy hauler with a garage that opens to the side, plus it has a rear slide-out that expands the bedroom. Sleeps six total. The 24RX is a slideless option (more on this later) that offers a straightforward setup with a unique split king bed in back.
Airstream World Traveler
How do we classify the World Traveler from Airstream? Depends on which side of the spectrum you start from. It’s a streamlined Airstream by the brand’s own standards, but it’s a big step up from what most other small campers offer. At 17’4″ and 7’6″ wide on a single torsion axle, the 17RB carries a 3,150-pound base weight and a 3,500-pound GVWR — aluminum shell construction in a footprint a lot of midsize SUVs can handle. Inside: white aluminum walls and ceiling, and handcrafted cabinetry. You also get a Truma Combi® furnace and water heater, a heat-pump A/C, heated tanks, a wet bath, and that distinct Airstream allure, recognizable right away.
As someone who has recently spent time researching at the RV Hall of Fame in Elkhart, I find that these smaller, simpler Airstream campers carry real mid-60s vibes in size, layout, simplicity, and aesthetics.
Grand Design Transcend Lite
Introduced in June, the Transcend Lite is the brand’s addition to the mix, and the 121RBL punches above its size on capacity. It’s 15’10” long and a full 8 feet wide on a single axle, with a 4,420-pound GVWR and a 54″ x 80″ bed. The tanks are big, too — 37 gallons fresh, 39 gray, and 37 black, which is a lot for a trailer this short and the reason the “ditch the tent” pitch holds up past a weekend. It’s a two-person unit with a 20,000-BTU furnace, two 20-pound propane tanks, and a 3.3-cubic-foot fridge, and the MSRP is $22,570.
Slideless Has Serious Appeal
Earlier this year, we took a look at several of our favorite slideless floor plans, arguing for their simplicity and the lower risk of spending any of your camping season waiting on a slide-out repair. Maybe that had us paying more attention to slideless this year at Hershey? Or maybe manufacturers also realized there’s real appeal there. We saw more slideless floor plans doing more interesting things. Our two cents: look for wide-body models that earn you a little more elbow room without needing a slide room.
Forest River is the clearest example, with options from Rockwood, Airelume, and Wildwood. The Rockwood Ultra Lite 301FKT is marketed outright as a slide-free, wide-body travel trailer, with a front kitchen, central living area, private bedroom, and a well-appointed bath behind it. Here, the wide body is doing the work of a slide-out.
The Mini Lite 2524FBT is another: a true queen with flip-up storage and side wardrobes, a pull-out dining table with chairs, theater seating facing the TV and fireplace, and a kitchen with a 12V refrigerator, oven, three-burner cooktop, and pantry.
The Airelume 260 is the family play, with a double-over-double bunk layout — and 2,000 pounds of cargo capacity — plus a 60K on-demand water heater. And the Wildwood FSX 190GT is a slideless toy hauler with a stand-up cargo garage that converts to living space at camp, and a ramp door that drops into a railed patio.
For Keystone, the Coleman Light 24RX is the first in that line over 22 feet to go without a slide. Twin beds with a king conversion between them, pass through storage, and a split bath with the toilet on one side and a separate shower on the other, plus a wardrobe and washer/dryer prep. A few years ago, no-slide meant small and spare. In 2027, it increasingly means a manufacturer decided the width was enough and spent the savings elsewhere.
From RV to AV
Winnebago Arka 20Z
We heard one manufacturer mention the shift from recreational vehicles to adventure vehicles, noting the many brands and new models that toe the line between conventional motorhomes and towables, and those definitively in the overland camp. We’ve certainly seen evidence of this over the years — off-road tires, the push for more solar and off-grid capability, and entire lineups focused on more active RVers — so it’s worth noting when we see these crossover vehicles and exploring what they really have to offer. Traditionally, we’ve seen this more in the travel trailer and Class B lineups. Recently, we’ve seen it expand into the C segment, too.
Super Cs Go Off Road
The off-road Class C and Super C category isn’t new, but Winnebago’s ARKA™ called attention to all the options available this year, designed for those who want far more grit in their motorhome game. Grand Design’s Lineage Series F Super C with the exclusive 43 Package makes a similar argument from the luxury end — a limited-edition build available only on the Series F 31ZW with the F-600 chassis.
The spec sheet reads like an expedition outfitter’s invoice. It rides on 43” Goodyear® tires — nearly four feet tall — with a suspension system that levels the coach automatically and an eight-piston brake kit to haul all that weight back down. There’s a winch on the front bumper, steel rock sliders protecting the underside, and oversized fender flares to cover the tires. The tires are so big that Grand Design includes a module to keep the speedometer honest.
Meanwhile, the ARKA is what happens when you take a Ram® 5500 4×4 crew cab with a BuckStop™ conversion and add 41” tires. It includes a four-point articulating mount that lets the coach body flex with the frame rather than fight it, a big win for overlanders. There’s no propane furnace at all — instead, it relies on a large lithium battery bank, up to 1,200 watts of solar, and hydronic heating with heated floors, rated to run from -10°F to 120°F. It’s rated to stay off-grid for up to two weeks. Inside, there’s a full-height gear garage with mounting tracks for bikes and gear, and a dinette that converts into a bed.
Hybrid Towables
Motorhomes aren’t having all the fun. Last year’s debut of the Keystone Walkabout was a gamble that hunters and campers wanted a more off-grid-capable RV with features that fit their lifestyle. And it paid off — so much so that this year they are back with the 221FROST, a more accessible prototype that may garner even more popularity. It trades away the flagship’s glass-atrium slide-out and auto-leveling to land at a friendlier price, while retaining the independent touring suspension, automotive-grade aluminum body, enclosed underbelly, and standard solar.
With Jayco’s Baja package and Keystone Coleman’s 18OG, we’re seeing more off-grid and off-road options that may not get you overlanding but could allow for a bit more exploration.
Ember is another name worth watching, and the brand has been overland-positioned since day one. They debuted three new 2027 floorplans this week, one of which is the Overland Series 220MSL — a larger, double axle answer to the no-slide 190MSL that customers have been asking for since 2022. Two Touring Edition plans round out the debut: the compact 2100RKL and the 2850DBL, a bunkhouse Ember crowdsourced through its own owner groups, so the back of the trailer can flip between kids, guests, gear, or a workspace.
These Luxury Fifth Wheel Upgrades Are Worth It
Weight is usually the enemy in this industry. But recently, the top luxury fifth wheel manufacturers have focused on structural longevity and livability, leaning into sturdier chassis, more storage, and more residential features, which can mean a heavier RV, but with a lot of payoff.
The redesigned Keystone Montana is the clearest case in point. Both Montana and High Country now run on a ground-up chassis redesign, built with Lippert® so that every frame is specific to the floor plan it supports — one-piece I-beams with no welds along the length, full-width outriggers, stamped-steel crossmembers, and a reinforced axle box. Underneath that sits CURT®’s Touring Coil Suspension, rated to cut road shock to the frame by half, with a Helux™ pin box taking out another 30 percent. The body went to 101 inches wide. But not everything is heavier: the HyperCore™ sidewalls use an inorganic composite in place of lauan and are actually lighter than what they replaced. Keystone spent the pounds on the frame and the width, then backed it with a five-year structural warranty.
Brinkley’s new Model R makes the same argument from a different direction. The 3710 is a front living, full-profile 5th wheel. The thought behind it? Full-profile coaches have always asked owners to give something up, whether that’s storage, kitchen space, or a travel day that means setting up before you can use anything. The Model R goes after all three. It comes in at 18,750 pounds empty against a 23,500-pound GVWR, leaving 4,750 pounds of cargo capacity — and Brinkley did it with just two axles. The most interesting decision is where the climate system lives. Instead of air conditioners on the roof, the B-Chill system is built into the chassis, which buys nine extra inches of headroom in the front living area.
Attending the Hershey show is a unique experience. It gives you a wide — if somewhat overwhelming — lay of the land, with the chance to compare hundreds of RVs across dozens of brands in a single weekend. If you ever have the opportunity to go, we highly recommend it. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but these are a few of the bigger themes that got us excited on the floor this week, and what we think is worth watching in the year ahead.
Want a run-down of ALL of our favorites? Check out the Hottest New 2027 RVs at Hershey.
Shop All New 2027 RVs at Camping World
Did you attend the Hershey RV Show? What are some of the trends you’re seeing across the 2027 model year? Let us know in the comments below.
