Safari Condo Alto
Avg. Rating

We were looking for a light weight, smaller, bumper pull. We found the Safari Condo Alto on line. We like units that don't look the same as all others. This unit is made in Quebec, Canada. I called and was excited to find that there were two units for rent at RV Rentals, Durango, CO. We could try this out before ordering a unit, waiting 6-9 months, and driving to Quebec to pick it up. Excellent idea. We made the arrangements and picked up our unit at the appointed time. As we were schooled in the unit, several times the phrase, 'known issue' was mentioned. Let me see if I can outline some 'known issues'. The unit has a great window in the front eating area. The window is plastic, not glass. It opens outward, has a pull down mesquitoe screen or pull up darkening screen. I asked that we keep the darking screen up, while traveling so keep the unit a bit cooler, nope not recommended, as the darking screen creates a green house effect and warps the plastic window. First red flag. Next I was shown how to turn the dining area into a queen size bed, and that there was a CO2 monitor underneath the bed/dining area. As we did this, the monitor alarmed, 'known issue', I was told to 'just keep the window open and it should be fine'. Second red flag. A couple more quirky things, if you want to use the microwave, everything else must be off, there is a toggle switch on the control panel near the door. So if you are cooking at night, better bring a lantern, which I had not. The water pump switch is located near the door as well, and must be turned on each time the bathroom is used to flush the toilet. Bed pads are 4" thick and very firm. Would suggest a air mattress on top. So, this is the story of the night. We settled in and were just getting to sleep and the alarm went off. I opened the door for a minute and went back to bed. A bit later, the alarm went off again. This continued. We then turned the vent fan on and kept it running all night. This trailer has a heater/air conditioner unit, and it was 42 degrees outside, so it cycled on and off all night long. The grandkids were hot in the front, we were cold in the back. The window in the back was open, set in the 'first track', which we were not aware of and thought it was broken, but in looking back it was probably set that way to keep the alarm from going off. There was little sleep that night. Alarms go off for a reason, and we were not feeling comfortable. The heater is under the back bed and is noisy and vibrates, the water pump has no housing and is under the other side of the back bed, again noisy. We had rented this unit for three nights, but returned it the next morning. While the rental agency didn't give refunds, our health is more important and they should not be renting units with 'known safety issues'.

I love my lightweight trailer. It is made mostly out of aluminum so no wood to rot. It's 17ft, has a separate dining and sleeping areas. The bed can be used as twins or, with cushions between as a king. We keep it as twins and use it as seating during the day. If we want, we can move the table between the beds so we can seat more than 2. To travel, the roof is down so it's more aerodynamic. When camping it's up so the ceiling is over 6ft high. Only caveat is that the washroom has to be used with the door to its cubicle open, so not for the shy. We've camped in a hurricane with it and not one leak! I really am happy with it!

We loved the ease of setup with the Chalet RV. It was consistently wonderful to drive into a site and be set up in less than 10 minutes! We found the folding camper to be more weatherproof and warmer than a tent trailer, although not completely airtight. The fold up shower is functional and the indoor toilet is the main reason we bought this model. We are very impressed with the Chalet company and their customer support, as well as their commitment to building a quality product.

Unfortunately we never got to use it, other than in our backyard. These Travel Trailers are super light to tow, completely build out of aluminium, which means no rust what so ever. There is a 18 month waiting list at the company if you want to buy one new. Our trailer has every possible option, with the exception of the television.