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Travel Trailer

A towable RV that hitches to a standard ball receiver on a tow vehicle. The largest category of RV by unit count in the US.

Also called: travel trailer, TT, bumper-pull trailer, conventional trailer

A travel trailer is a towable RV that hitches to a standard ball receiver mounted to the rear of a tow vehicle (truck, SUV, or in some cases a passenger car). Lengths typically run 16–35 feet, sleep capacity 2–8, and rental rates run $89–$175 per night as of 2026. Travel trailers are the largest RV category in the United States — more than 600,000 units shipped in 2024, more than all motorhome classes combined.

How travel trailers differ from fifth wheels

  • A travel trailer uses a bumper-pull hitch. The hitch goes on the receiver bar of your tow vehicle.
  • A fifth wheel uses a king-pin hitch mounted in the bed of a pickup truck.

Fifth wheels tow more stably and carry more weight at the cost of requiring a pickup truck. Travel trailers tow off any properly-rated vehicle.

What you need to tow a travel trailer

Three things:

  1. A tow vehicle with sufficient towing capacity. Look up your vehicle’s published tow rating. Subtract the trailer’s dry weight plus 20% for cargo. The result must be under your rating.
  2. A receiver hitch. Class III (5,000 lb) or Class IV (10,000 lb) depending on trailer weight.
  3. A weight distribution hitch for any trailer over about 5,000 lb. Optional on smaller trailers but increasingly required by tow-vehicle manufacturers for any meaningful trailer.

For trailers under 3,500 lb you can usually tow with a midsize SUV or a half-ton pickup. For trailers over 5,000 lb, you need a full-size truck.

Travel trailer rental dynamics

Travel trailers are dominant on the peer-to-peer platforms (RVshare, Outdoorsy) because they’re the most-owned RV category. They’re rare in corporate fleets — Cruise America is motorhome-only, El Monte is mostly motorhomes.

Two common rental patterns:

  1. Renter brings a tow vehicle. You confirm your vehicle can handle the trailer’s weight. You pick up the trailer, hitch up, drive away.
  2. Delivery-and-setup. The owner delivers the trailer to your campsite, sets it up, and picks it up at the end of the trip. You never tow it yourself. Most peer-to-peer owners offer this for an extra $200–$500.

For first-time RV renters, delivery-and-setup is almost always the right choice on a travel trailer. Towing a 25-foot trailer is non-trivial and you don’t want to learn on vacation.

Typical rental terms

  • Minimum age: 25 on most platforms; some peer-to-peer owners accept 21
  • Security deposit: $500–$1,500
  • Insurance/damage waiver: $20–$35/day
  • Mileage policy: usually unlimited (you’re providing the tow vehicle)
  • Hitching responsibility: yours unless delivery-and-setup is included