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550 / 560 Feeling Guilty That I Might Choose 560 Over 550

Rick,

Welcome to the forum and to our CI family. I agree with what everyone has said about trying out the 560. That's something we did not do before we got our 550 Ultra. We love ours and it's just a heck of a lot of fun to camp with. Since getting our 550, though, we've adopted two dogs. There really isn't much room in a 550 for two dogs...especially those that like to pretend they are human, and sleep where the humans sleep. If we'd had the dogs when we'd placed our order, we might've chosen the 560 for the bunk space. We hope you'll come to the Camp Inn-Camp Outt. The people are wonderful and as Betsey said, you'll see all kinds of teardrops.

See you in September!
 
Sue - I will seriously consider renting a 560 and attending the rally in September.

If you are there, be sure to bring a bag of money so that I can buy TWO CIs! :)

jsl said:
Rick, rent the 560. You can always lazy about in someone's 550 at the CICO. Best of both worlds....

...and I still think you should buy both.

Sue

PS:

We camp with our 9 year old granddaughter and it's getting pretty tight quarters. As much as we all love the look of the 550, if you have kids, the 560 is the way to go.
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Deb -

You and others pretty much have me convinced that I need to try out the 560, and that the September gathering sure seems like a wonderful way to accomplish that. And - Oh! Two dogs + the two of you?! That sounds like an awful lot of togetherness!

Thank you for your welcoming remarks. it really IS a CI family, isn't it? I'm getting that sense more and more as I observe the warm connections many of you seem to have with each other.

I look forward to worming my way into the big extended family myself over time.

Deb said:
Rick,

Welcome to the forum and to our CI family. I agree with what everyone has said about trying out the 560. That's something we did not do before we got our 550 Ultra. We love ours and it's just a heck of a lot of fun to camp with. Since getting our 550, though, we've adopted two dogs. There really isn't much room in a 550 for two dogs...especially those that like to pretend they are human, and sleep where the humans sleep. If we'd had the dogs when we'd placed our order, we might've chosen the 560 for the bunk space. We hope you'll come to the Camp Inn-Camp Outt. The people are wonderful and as Betsey said, you'll see all kinds of teardrops.

See you in September!
Click to expand...
 
Jenn said:
Hi Rick. Welcome!! Im a 550 person with no regrets. But my space needs are different. I cannot advise you, but will look forward to seeing what you decide. Hope to see you at the CICO!
Click to expand...

Hi Jenn! It's fun hearing from you - I've been reading your thread/blog about your FT adventures. You have just got through Thanksgiving thus far - so I have much more reading to do.

I am going to try to rent a 560 and attend the CICO event in September. I look forward to meeting you and hearing more about FTing.
 
OKAY!!! I have officially reserved a 560 trailer from Cary and am planning on attending the CICO! Thank you for your gracious welcoming comments, everyone. I look forward to meeting many of you "next month!"
 
Rick said:
OKAY!!! I have officially reserved a 560 trailer from Cary and am planning on attending the CICO! Thank you for your gracious welcoming comments, everyone. I look forward to meeting many of you "next month!"
Click to expand...

Rick,

Welcome to the family. We were in the same spot you are a year ago. Rented a 550 for last year's CI-CO, by the end of the year ours was ready for delivery. You won't regret joining us and getting a firsthand look at what CI is all about.
 
The first CICO I attended was in a rented unit. I rented both models before deciding which suited me the best.

7 weeks and counting!
 
AJ & Michelle: So it looks like there is good precedent for renting first! Thanks.

Jean: You rented both and then ultimately chose the 550. Can I ask what factors swayed you to go with the 550?
 
We rented the 550 this June. We loved our weekend camping with it and knew that it fit our camping style to a tee. We knew if we could camp in the 550 that the 560 would also work out well. Then in July we found our 2008 Ultra 560 for sale and made the purchase. We couldn't be happier! The added space is wonderful and we have not noticed a difference in towing the larger model. We look forward to meeting you and the other Camp-Inn owners in September!!
 
First I love the look of the 560 and at times desire one. While renting both models realized that I like having a "night stand".

The couch of the 560 became a gathering place and looked messy to me, plus the front storage cabinets require moving the couch back rest, the doors open down.

The 550 front cabinet space have side doors that are hinged right and left, easily assessible day and night, thus I put stuff away. Nothing is blocking access to the storage cabinets.

So to sumarize, usability of the front storage compartment is the basis for the decision! Works well for me, a single person.

Since you have young children, I suggest the 560 because of the added bunks.

Jean
 
Just a little note about the sofa in the 560. You can set it up as a bench, by stacking the cushions and folding the back under the bottom. It's kinda nice because it gives you a squarish pillow and allows easy access to the cabinets. Not really ideal for sitting on, but works well for lounging and sleeping. If I remember right, I believe camp inn says to put it in this position before traveling....honestly it's usually in the sofa position because those cabinets are full of blankets for winter camping and chilly nights. Jean is right about the sofa sorta serving as a "catch all" and small stuff will fall under it and you gotta lift it up to retrieve your phone or glasses. Has anyone installed "nightstands" yet in a 560? Maybe folding? That sounds like a neat addition!
 
Jean and Matt:

Now we are getting down to the nitty gritty of functionality - its probably good that I am renting a 560 next month for the Camp Inn Camp Out gathering.

Jean: I definitely would not want to have a cluttered looking (and feeling) interior. If I can't access those all important front storage cabinets easily, I'm going to have to figure out some other solution for things having their place. I wonder what other 560 owners have done to fight clutter?

Matt and Jean: More important to me than access to cabinets, however, is going to be my ability to "sit up" and read immediately before I fall asleep. It's just what I have to do (and love to do) as a part of my night time routine. When I tent camp, it is a painful process for me to prop myself up on alternating elbows for more than a few minutes. We have a pop-up camper which also has no hard walls to lean against - no fun either. The 560 would certainly have the couch when it isn't being used as bunk beds, but I'm trying to think of how I would have to slide down into the bed when ready to go to sleep; not exactly as simple as just turning out the light and rolling over. Again - I'm hoping to figure these things out at CICO in a few weeks.
 
Rick, I am an "everything in it's place" kind of gal, and I haven't had any trouble with clutter I didn't feel I could handle. I use the top bunk as storage at night (Laddy likes the bottom bunk for now), and then move a lot of it onto the bed when we travel. The cabinets up front, I haven't had any trouble getting into them either. Just lean the couch back forward and open the door, grab what I need, and close everything up. I keep stuff that isn't accesed too much there anyway (tool box, tent hammer, rags, all of the porta-John bags and such). when you get your trailer, you will sort everything out and figure out how you live best in it. Everyone has it set up differently.

Matt, I thought you just were not supposed to drive with the bunk in place, but the couch back could be up. Am I off there? I probably had the shortest pick up overview. We did it at a wayside and I think Craig was trying to get us off quickly so we didn't have to stand in the driving rain and howling wind (it was a big storm coming through). I remember him having that up when he opened things up.
 
Sarah,
We do the same thing - Kate sleeps in the bottom (these days), and the top bunk is storage. Works great.


General Note:
You shouldn't drive with the bunk in place. I did it once, and it fell and scratched the wood trim on its way down.
 
I never leave the bunks up, but I do leave the couch set up completely.

Rick, also, when I want to read sitting up, and the couch isn't available, I will lean up against the wall, next to the door. It works well for me.
 
We have a 560 and love it. I didn't feel claustrophobic like I did in the smaller one since it was roomier and had more windows. We also like to sit and read on rainy days and the couch is nice for that. We traveled to Alaska last summer for 2 mos and loved it. If you want to see one, we live in Grand Rapids, MI and would be happy to have you over. Caroline Blake
 
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