Tedda: A peek inside our Travato
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I have a list of blog post ideas to come, but I figured now might be a good time to show folks the inside of Tedda, our Travato. And what better timing, as this week marks the birthdays of both my Aunt Tedda (after whom our Travato is named) and my grandmother, her sister. As I write this (2021) Aunt Tedda, born Nov. 23, would be 112 if she were still alive and Nonnie 110. What I would’t give to hear their take on the world we live in today—I can only imagine what they’d both say! Of this I’m sure: Aunt Tedda would have totally rocked quarantine cooking, and Nonnie, a homebody already, would have been content with staying at home and watching her soap operas, following her “numbers,” playing solitaire, and eating ice cream. So in honor of them both, and Aunt Tedda in particular, here’s a peek inside Tedda our Travato!
Back when we were first dreaming about upgrading our 2002 VW Eurovan Weekender, we entertained a few different options. I wrote about our thought processes here and here. When we decided we wanted the Travato, we knew we wanted the K floorplan for its open feel and, more importantly, separate twin beds (which can be combined into a large, king-ish bed). We purchased a 2021 Travato 59KL. Winnebago just released the 2022 models, and there are some differences—including beds in the K that are 2” narrower! So keep in mind that all of the information in this post applies only to our model, the 2021 Travato KL with the following floorplan:
So, let’s take a look inside, shall we?
Here’s the view from just inside the slider door. Behind those silver doors at the back is the wet bath. We LOVE all the windows and how much sunlight we get inside! When we want privacy or we’re ready to close up for the night (or in “stealth mode”), we just raise the built-in window shades. Pulling the curtains in the Eurovan was easy, but these window shades are even easier and faster!!
Similar view, but with the doors to the wetbath open. And yes, the rear doors open from our bathroom to great outdoors!
The bed on the left on the photo above is behind the passenger seat and is the longer of the two beds at 80”. The bed behind the driver’s seat (mine) measures 74”. Underneath the longer of the two beds is all storage (aargh, I forgot to take a photo!!)—a ton of storage space!!
If you take a look at the aisle in between the beds in the photo above, you’ll see two round silver plates. And if you look just to the left, you’ll notice two more silver plates that look like dog bowls fastened to a counter. Well, that “counter” is a table that’s stored against the side of the bed and serves two purposes: 1) a base for putting the beds together (ugh, I didn’t take a photo of that!) and 2) a table for dining, working, or just hanging out! Here’s the view of the cabin with the table up. Also, notice I’ve already attached the magnetic window coverings in the bathroom for privacy.
So far, we’ve been using the table for our game-playing. Although the table is long (54”), it’s still pretty narrow (16”) for a lot of game boards. So we’re using a hardboard platform on top of the table to make room for the Ticket to Ride board.
Instead of sitting on the beds and using the long (and heavy) table for dining, we’ve been using the driver’s and passenger side seats, which conveniently swivel and the pull-out tables featured on each side. The table on the driver’s side pulls out from under the galley counter, and the table can double as an extra cutting board or prep area. Based on suggestions (and instructions) from the Travato Owners and Wannabees Group on Facebook, G also added an attachment that allows the table to extend even further and swivel to provide a more natural desktop when he’s sitting. The table by the passenger-side seat pulls up and out from a wooden base.
G prefers that above set-up for lounging. I, on the other hand, am a big fan of lounging and reading on the bed. Then again, we’re like that at home, too—I love nothing more than lying on the couch or in bed and reading—if we had a TV in the bedroom, I’d probably never leave—while G prefers to sit upright in his chair to read, relax, and watch TV. When we’re both in our living room, we’re each in our own areas. In the Travato, too, with G preferring to sit up front on the seats and me preferring to lounge on the bed, we’re in our own “spaces” and haven’t ever felt cramped or in each other’s way. I imagine that if we ever end up doing work from inside the van, our set-up will look a lot like this one. G will use the front seats and tables, and I’ll sit on my bed and use a lap desk and husband pillow to prop myself up (more on those items in a future post!). I’ve always been comfortable writing with my laptop on my lap with my legs outstretched; G prefers to work at a desk. Luckily, the Travato accommodates both of our working and relaxing styles!
Speaking of our different styles and spaces, the Travato features a total of six overhead cabinets. Four run the length of coach behind the driver’s side seat; two are above G’s bed on the passenger side of the van. We use the two cabinets above the galley kitchen for food/appliance storage. Then, we’ve each claimed the two cabinets above our respective beds for our own stuff. I’ve been pleasantly surprised just how much each cabinet holds! One of my cabinets stays filled, regardless of whether we’re in the van or not. In that cabinet, I have two tripods, a pair of hiking poles, two jackets, winter hats I knit, a packing organizer with winter accessories (gaiters, gloves), a baseball cap, my Rumpl blanket and Rumpl poncho, and a lap desk. I use the other cabinet to store the two bags I take when we travel: my camera bag and my REI Big Haul 40 duffel bag (which, sadly, is no longer available for purchase). When traveling, I also use these Eagle Creek organizer sacks and these REI sacks to organize everything. So far, we’ve only taken Tedda out for a weekend at at time, so I’ll be interested to see how organization/packing changes once we take off for longer trips. Right now, though, she holds plenty!
The Travato came with two handy-dandy storage trays called “Anything Keepers”—one above each bed. G has since installed four more—two more right above my bed, one more above his, and one above the galley area (you can see them in the first photo). The trays open from the top and feature a magnetic closure; they’re fantastic for holding small, light items—headphones, chargers and cables, sleep mask/ear plugs, Kindle, etc.
Our galley kitchen consists of a sink, fridge (with freezer compartment), microwave/convection combo, and dual-burner propane stovetop. In the summer, we plan to cook outside and over the fire most of the time, but we’ve loved having options to cook inside as we’ve been camping these past few weekends! While I haven’t yet used the stovetop, the microwave has been perfect for heating up meals I’ve made ahead of time, and I just used the convection oven for the first time this past weekend (and managed to set off the smoke detector during the pre-heating, so we know that works!). For its size, the fridge is remarkably deep and holds way more than it looks like it would. We’ve kept the side door stocked with seltzer, root beer, and our favorite non-alcoholic beers from Connecticut-based Athletic Brewing Co. (so, so good!!!). And if you look closely at the first photo below, you’ll see a locked storage compartment in the base of the floor. For now, that’s where we’re storing our games and a bag with all of the manuals for easy access.
And last but not least, our bathroom. In the 59K/KL floorplan, the bathroom is located at the rear of the coach. A lot of folks hate the location/set up and the fact that the rear doors open from the bathroom to the outside, but we actually like it (though, to be fair, we have nothing to compare this to). Since we purchased the Travato in late October (on a very cold/snowy weekend), we had the dealership winterize the coach before we drove it home. So, while we can’t comment on what it’s like to use the sink or shower, we have been using the toilet (“flushing” with RV antifreeze)—and my oh my, I totally underestimated how awesome it would be to be truly self-contained and have a bathroom, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The set-up is a wet bath, meaning that when we shower, everything will get wet. There’s a shower curtain to snap around the perimeter to protect the wardrobe cabinet, and a bunch of owners have installed a curtain track to use instead of the snaps. Once we hit spring and get to try out the space, we’ll figure out what will work best for us. The bathroom features a flip-down sink, a medicine cabinet, toilet, shower head and drain, another hose (to rinse the toilet or even use outside, I imagine), and the wardrobe cabinet. The wardrobe has one large cabinet opening and three doors. At this point, we’re not making great space of the open cabinet area, but we’ve packed a lot into the drawers—odds and ends, first-aid kit, tools, etc.
Note: I didn’t do a great job photographing this space—my apologies!
So, that’s Tedda. We’ve certainly not maximized all of the space, and we’re still figuring everything out, but we’re getting there! So far, we’ve had her for just under a month, and we’ve already taken her out every weekend for camping—for a total of seven nights so far…and counting! With the both of us working from home and not venturing out of the house all that much, having the Travato has been a bit of an “escape portal” for us. We’ve been able to get out on weekends, camp in state parks while they’re still open, and remain both isolated and self-contained. During these times, we honestly could not ask for more. Were it not for the pandemic (and G’s health concerns), we probably would have held off on the purchase. We ended up making the leap, and we’re so very glad we did!
Stay tuned for more to come!