All of this lead us to looking at the Leisure Travel Van Serenity. We were planning on renting a 2015 version through Outdoorsy.com, but the price per night (and the deposit) was cost prohibitive. Plus, the thought of driving to the East Bay to pick up and drop off wasn't appealing. By the way, why would an owner charge a $3,000 deposit? There is insurance!!
At any rate, we decided to start looking for our own Serenity. The problem we found with the 2017, is the table. It is not removable. Granted, it moves in many directions and can be moved out of the way to get from the front to the back, but it is always there. We only use the table one (or maybe two) times per day. Having it always there was an issue. They solved this in the 2018 model. A removable table!!
We found that getting one is harder to come by than we thought. There were only a handful of 2018 models throughout the country. We found that they don't make a ton of them (which is a good thing). Also - we found that the re-sale value holds very well. Go to RV Trader or RVT websites and look at the pricing for used models. We found a new 2017 in Davis CA for the same price as a new 2018. I think the reason is the low supply and the fact that some do not want to wait 9 to 10 months to order one.
We know that we want new. If we are seeing $140k for a used one and can get a new one (customized to us) for about the same price (or even $5k more) we are doing the latter.
We have one dealer near us. La Mesa RV in Davis, CA. Not impressed with our interactions. In fact, on one occasion I stopped by to look at the Serenity referenced above. Nobody greeted me. I walked into the showroom, walked around, sat down and played with my phone. Still nobody noticed or paid any attention to me.
So - we looked at other dealers. The closest are near Portland OR, or Las Vegas (plus some in So Cal). I found a 2018 on the Wagon Trail RV site in Las Vegas. It was perfect. But - apparently they have multiple dealerships across the US and this unit was in St. Louis. We started looking at the logistics of flying there and driving the nearly 2,000 miles home. But, alas, it was sold.
But - they had 2 on order that would be coming to Las Vegas (a much more manageable drive). And - we can customize it how ever we wanted as it wasn't built yet. We get the advantage of a custom order without the longer wait. We chose one that is due in late March.
We customized it and put a $2,500 deposit to make it ours.
Now - we wait. Well, actually we finalize the payment/financing/etc.
More to come in March. Here are some stock photos that represent what we are getting.
