Scamp vs Casita vs Escape: Quality, Price, Weight, Reviews
When you want a spacious trailer but do not want the largest sizes, you can always look at those RV trailer manufacturers who build spacious models yet keep the length down to a minimum. Which one is better? That will be up to you to decide.
The quality seems to be there in all three brands. Owners who have owned two of the three brands say that there is little difference between them except maybe length and features. But then these brands like to custom build for their customers so you can get what you want no matter which one you pick.
To learn more about these trailer brands, just continue to read our article. It explores the issue and provides you with enough information to make your own comparison. Take a few minutes to see which option will be right for you and your RV needs.
Casita vs Escape Trailers
In any comparison, it will depend on who you talk to. Escape owners love their trailers, and they do seem to have legitimate reasons why they do. One was that Escape would build according to your specs or location for particular items. They want their customers happy, so they make sure the customer gets what they want.
A Casita owner could not get some customization done to their trailer and complained that the insulation seemed non-existent. That was a plus for Escape as their insulation is supposed to be thicker than their competition's.
The people who have made comparisons in their RV parks have also stated that the quality of material in the Escape was better than the ones in a Casita. The workmanship on the former brand was also superior to the workmanship on the Casita.
One example was the hidden seam on the fiberglass around the doorway. It can't be seen on the inside or the outside of the trailer. Another example of the type of work Escape puts into its trailers is the headroom. It is full size, and most people will not have to worry about bumping their heads against the ceiling.
Also, the bed size in the Escape is larger, depending on the trailer size, and it is kept separate from the other features inside the trailer, including the dinette table. There are too many differences to list here but check out both websites to see those differences.
Casita vs Scamp Quality
Scamp offers the 19-foot trailer, which Casita does not do. They seem to only offer a 16 and 17-foot option. Quality is subjective as many owners do not mind lower quality if the price is right.
Scamp's standard trailers are very basic, and usually, you don't get a bathroom included in the smaller 13 and 16-foot trailers. That is not good. Plus, the workmanship is not as good with Scamp as it can be with Casita.
Both are lightweight trailers that can be towed by just about any vehicle you may own (within reason, of course). According to one reviewer, the Scamp is made out of fiberglass shell, enabling the trailer to last for decades.
As for the Casita, their trailers are made with a heavy-duty frame which helps them be more durable. Another reviewer simply said that he had owned both brands, and it is 6 of one and a half dozen of another.
In other words, the two companies are fairly close to each other when it comes to quality. The difference may be in the features. Scamp is known for being frugal. By that, we mean that they only provide essential appliances, shorter beds, and so on.
You are not getting a lot of frills unless you upgrade to the deluxe model. Even then, it may be less than what Casita has to offer. What may tip the scales in Casita's favor is that it includes an emergency escape window, while Scamp doesn't add that feature.
Insulation of Casita vs Scamp Travel Trailers
It seems that Casita uses a foam-backed carpet as their insulating material. That may be a good thing or not, depending on where you camp and when. They do say it is good for 3 seasons, as does Scamp with its insulation option.
Scamp uses a marine-grade fabric over reflictix material to keep sound, cold, light, and heat away from the interior of your Scamp trailer. For both trailers, a simple 15400-watt heater should make sure you stay warm on those cold nights.
However, the real insulation problem will be the windows. These are not usually insulated very well, if at all, and according to some reports, both brands use only single-pane windows. That means your heat loss will be through the windows and not the walls or the ceiling.
In either case, to toughen the insulation up, you would have to use Reflectix or some other type of window insulation material to keep your trailer toasty warm. Then you may have to do some work around the Scamp's doorway.
There are reports that it does not seal very well, making the trailer a bit drafty during the night. Even though Scamp's insulation rating is R15, it may not seem like it due to those weaknesses. The Casita is said to have little to no insulation in it so while people prefer the Casita brand over the Scamp it is hard to accept the no insulation issue.
Scamp vs Casita Weight
According to one owner, Scamp seems to practice a little deceptive business when it comes to weight. The report is that the company weighs the trailer without any furniture or other interior features and then uses that weight as their dry weight claim.
The report said the company would advertise the dry weight at 900 pounds when in reality, it is closer to 1500. That is about the same weight that Casita reports for its trailer-- 1500, not the 900.
Casita trailers are made with a heavy-duty steel frame, but they make up for that extra weight by making their furniture out of fiberglass. Casita does say that just about any size vehicle can tow one of their trailers because they are so light.
Obviously, the larger the trailer, the heavier it will be. The 16-foot Scamp trailers do reach 2000 pounds while the 19 footer reaches 2400 pounds. Still light enough for a Toyota Sienna or Honda Odyssey to tow.
The weight will also change depending on if you are buying the standard or the deluxe Scamp model. the standard will be a lot lighter due to the fact the company strips the trailer to bare-bones features.
In some comparisons, the Scamp is seen as the lighter of the two brands and it is the easier one to tow. But you will have to check each brand out for yourself and see if the weight will be under your towing capacity when you factor in passenger, supplies, and gear weight.
Casita vs Scamp Price
The bottom line is always an important decision-making factor. However, both brands are fairly affordable, and if you do not need Class A luxury, you could do worse than buying one of these two brand's trailers. They are reasonably priced for their size and quality.
The Casita trailers can range between $17,000 and $20,000 depending on the size and the number of features you include in your package. For the Scamp trailers, you are looking at a little bit more as this company offers a 19-foot trailer while the Casitas usually stop at 17 feet in length.
Scamp does not publish their prices online but will e-mail you a price list when you contact them. With that said, you can expect to pay between $11,000 to $24,000 approx. We cannot provide an exact cost as it will change when you add different features to the same model length.
Used prices will vary, and depending on whom you talk to, Scamp used trailers seem to hold their value better than the Casita options. Some Scamp trailers are still in good shape even 50 years after their initial construction.
Casitas has only been around since the early 80s, so their trailers have not reached that milestone yet.
Casita vs Scamp Reviews
When you check the reviews, you are going to get a mixed variety of positive and negative opinions. To get close to the truth, you need to throw out the very unabashed high praise reviews as well as the very low-handed negative ones.
There are different reasons for doing this, as many people lie about their experiences with both trailers. Or they have an ax to grind and so on. But when you get into the middle-of-the-road reviews, you will see that both Scamp and Casitas trailers are like any other product.
There are good ones, and there are bad ones. The insulation factor was one reason both trailer companies got some bad reviews, as did the window sizes and conditions, although almost everyone praised Casitas for that escape hatch.
Scamp's negative reviews mentioned that the company doesn't custom-build its trailers to meet the customer's desires. However, the company does offer a price list for features that you can have added if you want. The floor plans remain the same, though.
One reviewer did not like the basic features of a few drawers and cabinets in the standard Scamp package, nor did they like the escalating delivery fees if you live far from their manufacturing plant.
Then for both companies, the lack of a bathroom in the standard packages was a deal-breaker and not well thought of. Overall, some reviewers said that the two companies are fairly close to each other in terms of quality, and you get what you pay for.
These trailers may be reasonably priced, but you can always do better and still stay fairly light and small.
A Few Words About the Escape Option
This is another company that specializes in building trailers that meet the smaller needs of some RV owners. Their longest reaches only 21 feet in length, but the company does separate the bed from the dinette table.
Then the word is that this company will build their trailers according to their customer's wishes and requirements. That makes them all fairly unique in some way. While one reviewer reported that the starting pride for the Escape trailers was $29,000 approx., we checked the Escape website and found one for $23,000 and another for $25,000.
That keeps them competitive with the other two brands in this comparison. In looking at the floor plans for the different trailers, it looks fairly cramped inside, but you are getting more features than the lower-priced Scamps and Casitas.
You are not going to get a lot of walking around the room, and that is not good if there are more than two of you occupying the trailer. While the quality of workmanship and features are highly praised by owners and reviewers, one must wonder a little bit as living space is at a minimum. Is the higher quality worth sacrificing space?
The company will build for those couples who live in Canada. Plus, they will deliver the completed trailer to your home in that country.
Some Final Words
In the end, the final choice will be up to you and what you want out of a trailer. All the companies are reasonably good, but you will need to look at the quality of craftsmanship, the features, insulation, and weight before making up your minds.
Price is always a good indicator of what type of quality you will get, although it is not without its exceptions.
