The Advantages of Owning a Toy Hauler

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Wade Thiel

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Wade divides his time among various outdoor activities in both urban and rural environments. An adventurer by nature, he is always up for a challenging hike, fun hunt, or day out on the water with friends and family. When he isn’t enjoying the outdoors, he’s writing, reading, or tinkering with motorcycles and cars.

When searching for an RV, identifying the right one can be difficult. First, you must decide between motorhomes and towables. Then you need to identify what type of motorhome or towable is right for you. Before you decide, it’s wise to note just how versatile (and plain awesome) toy haulers are.

Toy haulers regularly come in travel trailer and fifth-wheel forms. A toy hauler is an RV with an added space in the rear, a garage, to store and transport your ATV, motorcycle, dirtbike, golf cart, or any other motorized toys you have that you want to bring along while you travel.

While not everyone needs a toy hauler, everyone should consider this type of RV as an option (especially if you’re an active camper). Regardless of your lifestyle and the places you’re visiting when you hit the road, toy haulers check nearly every box on that long list of must-haves and nice-to-haves. Here are three advantages of the RV type to help you decide before your next RV trip.

Toy Haulers Come With a Large Garage Space

Toy Hauler RV with ATV
Toy Hauler RV with ATV. Image: Shutterstock

Have a dirtbike, motorcycle, ATV, or golf cart you want to take camping with you? Then a toy hauler is the only way to go. The large garage spaces are perfect for these types of items. In fact, they’re designed specifically for them! They often have tie-down points on the floor and walls for maximum convenience and security during transport.

A fifth-wheel toy hauler, for example, is one most RV enthusiasts gravitate towards and with good reason. The active RVer will have plenty of space to store their favorite toys, you know, the ones that make every destination feel like Christmas morning. Travel worry-free knowing your expensive bikes or ATVs are safe and secure while in transit eagerly awaiting the next campsite stop. After you’re done, storage is simple as you can simply drive them back into their hiding spot.

Even if you don’t have a toy you want to bring with you, the garage space is perfect for the cargo you don’t use very much or items such as bicycles, skateboards, snowboards, and paddleboards. You’ll be surprised how nice it is to keep dirty equipment away from your living space in a separate room. Toyhaulers have limitless uses and accommodate whatever gear you want to bring along.

Toy Haulers Have Another Bedroom or Dining Area

table and seating inside a toy hauler garage
Toyhauler garages can also transform, doubling as extra entertaining or sleeping space.

The garage area in a toy hauler is perfect for dirtbikes, motorcycles, golf carts, etc., but many are surprised to learn that it also doubles as a living and sleeping area in most models. Most have foldaway tables and seating as well as queen beds that raise out of the way and can be lowered at night. It’s the best of both worlds, entertaining and family time. A two for one!

Toy haulers are the ideal RV choice for families traveling together or when meeting up with friends that have families of their own in tow. The division of space allows for kids to have their own hangout area while the adults have theirs. If you’re meeting up with another family at a campsite, the dual space is an additional area to corral groups of people. Being apart but still together is one of the best things about RVing and the toy hauler is amazing in that aspect.

This provides you with an entire extra room for entertaining or just hanging out. Many toy haulers have a wall or curtain between the garage and the rest of the RV. This is nice when traveling as a family because, as we discussed, you can let your kids have the garage space to play while you’re chilling out in the living or bedroom area of the RV. With the addition of the wall or curtain, the spaces feel more defined and separate.

Many Toy Haulers Come With a Party Deck

toyhauler bedroom modification
The Lanes’ toyhauler garage was transformed into a spare bedroom and roaming classroom.

The coveted ramp for the garage area on a toy hauler can pull double duty. That’s right. It might be the one, single feature that makes every other RV pale in comparison. It can extend straight out and give you a nice large deck space, which ultimately feels like an additional indoor/outdoor room. The “party deck,” as it’s known among RVers, has the option to come with sidewalls (depending upon the floorplan and model). The sidewalls are designed to help keep people from falling off and is a great way to enjoy the outdoors or for tailgating at that next big game.

With or without the sidewalls, you can set up folding chairs or other kinds of furniture pieces, plop down next to a friend, and relax the day away. The space quickly becomes a favorite among both kids and adults, as it should. It’s an awesome perk to owning a toy hauler and really adds to the home away from home vibe we’re all chasing! The garage may be the best part about owning a toy hauler, but a party deck is a close second, at least for me. Not all toy haulers have the ability to do this though, so if it’s a feature you want make sure the model has it.

 

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Toy haulers for Families

Again, these are just a few of the many reasons a toy hauler, both a travel trailer or a fifth-wheeler, is an excellent choice when choosing the next best RV for your family. Whether you’re working from the road, taking long weekends off-grid at every opportunity, or simply checking off destinations on the old bucket list, a toy hauler is sure to suit your needs. Don’t just take my word for it though, visit your local Camping World to check them out for yourself. Also, don’t forget to scroll through the numerous posts on Instagram that showcase toy haulers. Warning: images could take your breath away.

 

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Any other advantages that I missed? Tell me! Leave a comment below.

Advantages of owning a toy hauler
  • Comment (9)
  • Carmen Green says:

    We purchased a Keystone Impact toyhauler because of the ability to haul a motorcycle or golf cart but mostly because of the second living area. We love parking oceanfront and sitting on the patio while listing to the waves. We added the upper bed which then makes it a double queen area and we added the second a/c for the hauling area. We love how wide and high the ceiling is. I don’t believe I will ever be any other type of RV because I enjoy the space.
    The Green’s from Florida

  • Jim says:

    The disadvantage of most toy haulers is that they can be quite heavy. Many of them are outside the towing range of a 1/2 ton truck. My toy hauler has a GVWR of 11k lbs and I use a 1 ton truck (F-350) to pull it. I tried pulling it with a 1/2 ton truck, even when completely empty around town, and it was a very uncomfortable towing experience.

    The tongue weight of toy haulers can change significantly when the garage is occupied or empty. My tongue weight goes up by 500 lbs when the garage doesn’t have my side-by-side parked in it.

    A disadvantage of a toy hauler without a dedicated garage is that to sit down and eat or to sleep the garage has to be empty.

    Will my next trailer be a toy hauler? I’m leaning towards a plain fifth wheel instead and I’ll pull the ATV on a trailer behind the fifth wheel.

  • Howard Klein says:

    I would like to see the trailer companies build trailers that easily handle the new wider UTV’s that are on the market now. I have a New toyhauler and I can just bearly fit my Polaris General in it because of the wide wheel width.

  • Anonymous says:

    can’t build it over 8’6″ wide.. that would require a special oversize permit issued from every state you go into.; with that comes extra insurance and bonds.

  • Jim says:

    I put my 2013 Polaris Ranger 900XP in my toy hauler. There is plenty of room at the wheels. I can walk on all four sides of the Ranger when it’s parked in the garage. However, the clearance at the roll bar is a different matter. I have about 2″ to 3″ of clearance between the roll bar and the cabinets. I’ve already busted one of the cabinet handles off. I now use chains with a chain binder to put just enough tension on the suspension to keep the body from rolling.

    My trailer is a 2006 Fleetwood Gearbox 220FB. I looked long and hard for a trailer that fit my budget and fit my ATV. There are a lot of toy haulers out there with insufficient height at the cargo door to fit my Ranger in.

  • Wade Thiel says:

    Hey Howard, definitely something manufacturers will have to learn to accommodate in the future. Thanks for pointing that out.

  • JIm says:

    Interesting. I thought the General was narrower than the Ranger but it looks like it is 2″ wider.

  • Howard Klein says:

    Mine is a 2017 Polaris General and my trailer is 2017 toyhauler and it bearly fits because of the wide wheel base for the newer UTV’s

  • Wade Thiel says:

    Excellent points, Jim. You’re totally right. Definitely, have to pay attention to tongue weight both when the trailer is loaded up and empty. They are generally heavy trailers and a typical full-size pickup like an F-150 or Silverado 1500 probably won’t cut it. In some cases it may, depending on size, but yeah. That F-350 has to get the job done pretty well, though, right?

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