Today’s RV review is of the Heartland North Trail 25RBP travel trailer. This is a couple’s camper and one with a layout that’s both familiar and different. Heartland has done a good job taking a relatively common floor plan and giving it some touches that set it apart. But, and this is a big but, there are also some things I saw that reinforce my opinion of this brand—and they are not positive.
Starting from the ground up
Before we even step inside this trailer, let’s look where the rubber meets the road. Heartland has chosen off-brand import tires. Bleh. The tires do ride on a wide-stance suspension which purportedly helps keep these trailers more steady while towing, but this is a very basic leaf spring suspension.
The underbelly of this is enclosed and heated, which is a plus.
Something people will find useful is a very large front pass-through storage compartment. This trailer has an extraordinary cargo-carrying capacity that’s more like a toy hauler than a travel trailer at more than 3,500 pounds. Wow!
The wall build on this trailer features a man-made composite substrate, which means it’s less susceptible to water damage. We’ve talked about Azdel in the past. Now, some manufacturers are using a different brand since Azdel no longer is the only producer of this type of material.
What’s inside the Heartland North Trail 25RBP
One of the first things that sets this apart, in a good way, is the truly unusual dining space right at the entrance. Essentially, you have a seat like one side of a booth dinette. Then there’s a table and two free-standing chairs. This is pretty flexible and useful. Across from this is an “L”-shaped lounge that can become a bed, naturally. This would be a great place to just come in and crash out. I like this.
The kitchen, too, is well thought out and also sports what amounts to an “L” shape. There’s a main counter into which the sink is cut, and there is a three-burner propane stove with a 120vac convection oven. So, the only way this works is with household power. But I suspect this trailer is going to spend a lot of time in campgrounds rather than off the grid. That convection oven is a decent piece that’s new for this year.
There’s also a traditional microwave.
What’s surprising about the kitchen is the sheer number of drawers in there. There are some against the slightly higher counter between the kitchen and that dinette, and two more under the pantry on the road side in the slide room. Some RVs barely have one or two drawers. I counted five here as well as a number of other spaces, including a pantry.
Oddly enough, the model Josh featured in the video here sported a propane-electric gas absorption fridge. The model in Josh’s video was built on and for the West Coast. There is also production in Indiana intended for the East Coast that would have a 12-volt fridge. The assumption is that West Coasters would be more inclined to boondock, which is probably true.
Big spaces on either end of the Heartland North Trail 25RBP
If you’re looking for a travel trailer with a king-sized bed, this is one that has that feature.
On the opposite end of the trailer, this also has what amounts to a king-sized bathroom with that room taking the entire rear of the trailer. You have a decent shower, plenty of space around the toilet, and a vanity with two sinks.
Now, the ridiculous thing about this is that, really, the only way to get to one of the sinks is by sitting on the toilet. So now you have more plumbing and more fittings that are potential points of failure for, really, no reason.
There are two medicine cabinets, which is useful.
What I would change
I like the dining situation here, but I would like it even more so if there were a free-standing table. You could move that over to the lounge seat or use it here. Or you could even take it outside and it would make getting into the trailer a bit easier when the slide room is in.
But what really stands out, to me, are some details of how this is built. As Josh pointed out in his video, the attention to detail on this rig is sorely lacking. That’s exactly the experience I had with Heartland when I worked at the RV dealership.
I have shared this before, but when you sign up as an RV dealership you get an initial shipment of five units. These five units we got were so badly executed that we never ordered more. It doesn’t seem like Heartland has made many significant changes since then.
Inspect everything before buying
If you like this rig, and it does have a nice floor plan, I would thoroughly inspect it from top to bottom before ever thinking of buying one. Unfortunately, many of the warranty/build challenges we found were below the surface. Wiring was a particular pain point.
So, quite frankly, the offerings from Keystone in their Cougar and Montana lines, or something from Rockwood/Flagstaff (though those are Forest River products), are so very much better executed, from my experience, that I don’t know if I could recommend this brand.
And that makes me ponder the fact that Thor owns Heartland, Keystone, Airstream, Jayco and others, and there are vast differences in quality and execution among them. At what point does it just make sense to close down some of these lines and focus on a few great lines instead?
Honestly, as RV sales slow down, perhaps it might be time to jettison brands like Heartland.
But that’s just my opinion as someone who looks at RVs both for work and for fun. I will say if there’s some big plug to be pulled at Heartland, I’d bid on doing the pulling if there’s a charity auction or something like that.
So that’s my take on this RV. A nifty floor plan with very poor execution in many ways. But there are some good things as well.
More about these RV reviews
These RV reviews are written based on information provided by the manufacturers along with our writer’s own research. They are based on information from a single unit and may not reflect your actual experience. Shop your RV and dealership carefully before making a buying decision. We receive no money or other financial benefits from these reviews. They are intended only as a brief overview of the vehicle, not a comprehensive critique, which would require a thorough inspection and/or test drive.
Tony comes to RVtravel.com having worked at an RV dealership and been a life long RV enthusiast. He also has written the syndicated Curbside column about cars. He also works closely with a number of RV manufacturers to get an inside look at how things are done and is a brand ambassador for Rockwood Mini Lite with his wife, Peggy.
You can also check out his RV podcast with his wife, Peggy.
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Good to see an absorption refer in a new unit as some of us out West do boondock often!
I was surprised to see this but, yeah, I’m big on boondocking and those gas absorption fridges are tough to beat.
I bought a 2024 Jayco that came with the 12v refrigerator. I thought oh boy, how can I boondock ? Well, 2 solar panels later along with a 200 ah lithium battery, and we are all set ! Solar easily handles the refrigerator and my wife’s CPAP.
Thank you, Tony! 🙂 Thank you, too, for the warning on build-quality. Seems a good brandname, but too bad that there is so little attention to quality. 🙁 Thanks again, have a great week, safe travels, and safe stays! 🙂
We live in Colorado and boondock frequently, but with a 12v fridge, solar, and Li batteries. We love our 12v fridge and will never go back to a 2-way! Our ice cream stays frozen, not a smoothie, like in our two old RVs. We no longer have to select a campsite with the fridge vent on the shady side or have the awning out to shade it. No problems with the propane staying lit when camped at 10,000′. No worries turning it off when fueling or food spoiling when driving in summer or riding a ferry for hours (or days when going to Alaska!). I know most RVers just leave the fridge on propane when driving, despite the danger, but no need when using free power from the alternator and solar panels.
Tony, I think you nailed this one 100%. There are some nice features. but Heartland, IMO, has built “junk” since their beginning.
I can still remember seeing one of their 5ers many years ago at an RV show that had a trampoline feel to the floor it was so unsupported and spongy. After looking it over thoroughly I commented to my wife that the thing woudn’t last a year before starting to fall apart.
Unfortunately, friends of ours bought one of their TTs and went through three years of constant and severe issues before dumping it at a big loss just to get away from it.
Also agree that a “thinning of the herd” is long overdue in the industry.
Great review!
Hahaha, yeth you can expect a Thor Ath when you deal with thor!
Very thorough review. TY. With only 45 gallons of fresh water the length of dry camping or boondocking is very limited.