SolAire vs Catalina

[junkdrawer5]

We are contemplating our first TT purchase (previously used parents Class C) and are town between a SolAire 267BHSE and a Catalina 287DDS.

Both being Forest River products... any pros or cons to one or the other? They're very similar bunk house floor plans which we need with two kids under 2.5y old. We like the Catalina more which has a barely lighter tongue and lighter GVWR weight but the SolAire is 4' shorter (a plus with a 1/2 ton, from my understanding) and has a lighter dry weight. We don't foresee packing to capacity since most trips will be local weekend getaways with just a long haul once or twice a year for vacation.

[purduepete97]

We bought a new 2013 Solaire 269bhdsk about 15 months ago and love it. Have 8 and 5 yr old girls and it works well for us.
One trip back to the dealer after a couple of trips last fall, and otherwise no issues.
If I recall correctly from when we were looking, the Catalina was the aluminum rubbed siding. That wasn't something we wanted, so we eliminated that line from our searches. Otherwise they looked like a good entry level unit similar to the Solaire.

[FrankMor]

We looked at a Solaire when we bought our Coachman. The Solaire had no electric outlets in the bedroom, a must for us (I us a cpap), or we would hav bought the Solaire.

[purduepete97]

Interesting Frank - our bedroom has three outlets! Always interesting to see how many differences there are between models.

[FrankMor]

We looked at a 251RBSS. We wanted the outdoor kitchen and a sofa. Almost bought it till we looked for bedroom outlets, even thought about adding one off the entertainment center.