t’s late November as I write this, and the party season is underway. Football parties. Holiday parties. All kinds of parties. The big party for the RV industry is held the week after Thanksgiving each year in Louisville, where manufacturers and dealers gather for their largest trade show. That three-day shebang will be over by the time you read this, so the prediction I’m about to make will be proved or disproved before this issue of Holidays hits your mailbox.

My prediction is this: The new Alumascape 34RKT fifth wheel will be one of the big hits of the show. The 34RKT is an example of the innovative uses of space that bright people can engineer into a rig with triple slide-outs. The downstairs section of the coach houses a kitchen with more counter and storage space than you’ve probably ever seen in a fifth wheel, a roomy computer station, a long breakfast bar with two barstools, a dinette, a living room with sofa and easy chair, and a big, beautiful entertainment center—all arranged so that you have plenty of room to move around, even when you have company.

I like parties. I’ve been to too many of them in my 15 years of going to the Louisville show, but won’t be there this year. Also, I was a little sad to be alone when I tested the new 34RKT. It’s such an inviting environment for socializing. So I found myself thinking of Mr. Flood’s Party, which is both a poem by E.A. Robinson about an old guy who enjoys partying by himself and the name of a now-defunct saloon in Ann Arbor, a town in which I misspent a big chunk of my youth. If Holidays publishes any of the photos I took, you’ll see where this train of thought led me.

Anyhow, a version of the 34RKT floorplan is also available in Holiday Rambler’s Presidential line, and is really a novel variation on the traditional rear kitchen concept. By running a long counter down the middle of the coach, though, it breaks up the space into a multi-use area and adds a great deal of utility.

The door-side slideout houses the entertainment center, fridge, roll-out pantry some counter space and the range, with microwave above. All the built-ins in this unit protrude from the side wall a few inches, giving you additional cabinet depth. There’s more counter space at the rear, with two large white sinks at right angles where you turn the corner from the rear to the center counter. Each sink has a cutting-board cover. The center counter or breakfast bar is long enough to lie down on (not that I tried to), giving this unit an unverified world record for counter space in an RV.

On the other side of this counter, on the back wall, is a computer station with liberal desktop space and a roll-out keyboard tray. A hole in the desktop allows you to run wires to the power recep and phone jack below. There’s a 12-volt power outlet on the wall for your laptop or cell phone charger, and an additional 120-volt power outlet at your right near the floor. The passage to this desk is wide enough to allow people to sit at the breakfast bar without crowding anyone seated at the dinette table.

Storage? I counted 21 cabinet doors in the kitchen and computer area alone, plus four drawers. This does include the doors on both sides of the pass-through overhead cabinets above the bar, but that’s still an exceptional amount of storage. No space is wasted. There are cabinets above the microwave and below the range, the latter carpeted and perfect for your cast-iron cookware. The plumbing is behind the sinks, so that the area under them is open. Under the counter next to the sink is a wastebasket.

Elsewhere, you’ll find a four-door cabinet over the sofa, two more over the chair, with galley rail on top. Next to the entrance door is a pantry-depth cabinet unit with three shelves below and two more above. Not to mention the entertainment center, which features seven cabinets (two with beautiful frosted mirror glass) and two pigeon holes flanking the stereo.

In short, the only storage-related problem you’ll ever have with this rig is remembering where you put stuff.

The flush-floor slideout on the road side contains the dinette and sofa. The dinette is free-standing—well, actually, it’s secured to the floor, but it looks great, and I liked the rich, honey-colored Colony Oak finish on all the coach’s woodwork. Four comfortable chairs are included, and you’ll use one of them to sit at the computer station. There’s a very large picture window here, so you can enjoy the view while dining or close the blind if the view includes your overweight neighbor sunning himself. (Better yet, my rig had the optional day-night shades that give you the option of admitting a good deal of light while maintaining your privacy.)

There’s another big window over the sofa. All the windows have screen inserts, so the coach has excellent cross ventilation. Also, the lighting is exceptional throughout the coach.

I also enjoyed the optional swivel recliner chair—perfect for kicking back to watch the big game. (Yeah, like I kick back and relax when my alma mater is on the tube!)

All the cabinets feature hardwood doors with raised-panel inserts, as does the refrigerator. The entertainment center and the forward cabinets have galley rail shelves on top, perfect for knickknacks or small planters.

Upstairs, the 34RKT gets pretty much the standard Holiday Rambler treatment. The bedroom and bath are en suite, separated by an accordion divider. This gives a wide-open roomy feeling to an area that can seem quite cramped.

Alumascape is Holiday Rambler’s more price-conscious line, but this rig’s bath has a lot of nice features and doesn’t skimp on livability. The wash stand is large with a big sink and plenty of storage below. The mirrored medicine cabinet is also quite large.

The large, diagonal shower has a seat. There are two towel racks on the door.

There are four more towel bars on the inside of the water closet door. And in the one place in a trailer where you need more knee room, they thought to mount the magazine rack high on the wall and out of the way.

Just forward from the w.c. is a large enclosure that is either a closet or a cabinet for the optional washer/dryer. (My rig was already prepped, an option.) Below, a floor-level cabinet houses a laundry hamper and generous, vinyl-floored space for storing laundry products.

The storage story continues in the bedroom. I’ve looked under beds in the recent past and seen, worse than bogeymen, slideout mechanisms either exposed or crudely covered by rough, bare plywood. In the Alumascape, this area is nicely carpeted and affords mucho storage space. The whole under-bed area is available, about half of it full-depth.

The bed is a queen, and while the floor plan doesn’t allow for nightstands, the designers added corner shelves for your book and reading glasses.

At the foot of the bed is a six-drawer dresser with a long countertop. Above the window are two large cabinets and the TV shelf.

I especially like the way they’ve designed the rear closet this year. It’s full-width and lighted, with an upper shelf and the usual sliding mirror doors. But at the right end are two large shelves—just what you need for things like sweaters and outerwear or even blankets and bed linens. The shelves are flanged to help keep stuff from spilling out during travel.

Outside I found the usual Alumascape amenities. Lots of well-lighted storage in the basement. A lighted central water management system that’s a huge advantage when you’re hooking up at night—and also when you’re winterizing your rig. My unit had two optional lockable storage trunks in the skirting, ideal for frequently used tools and other gear.

The unit has aluminum sidewall skin standard, with jazzy new graphics, and molded fiberglass front and rear caps. The rear end has a distinctive motorhome look, with an integrated bumper. The underbelly is full enclosed, and the roof material is RV 2000, which doesn’t chalk like rubber and is several times more resistant to tears and punctures.

The construction, of course, is Holiday Rambler’s aircraft-like Alumaframe® system, which combines the benefits of light weight with strength, durability and high insulation values.
“We try to design as much livability as possible into manageable towing packages,” John Cunningham, Holiday Rambler’s national sales manager for towable products told me. “You can tow this 34-footer with a properly equipped three-quarter-ton pickup.”

He added, “The 34RKT is our new entry for people who really like rear kitchen models. Of course, it’s a new twist on that concept.”

John also pointed out several amenities that are standard this year, like the TV antenna, cable hookup, satellite TV prep and video prep. Just what I need to follow my Wolverines on TV from anywhere in the country. Other standards include a microwave oven, water-heater bypass, tinted windows, and radial tires with sport wheels.

I think this floorplan is going to be great for couples. Its multi-functionality means you can do your own thing—in the kitchen, at the bar, the desk, the sofa or chair— without tripping over your partner, which will facilitate marital bliss during long seasons on the road.

On the other hand, the coach will comfortably seat nine or ten people, and has exceptional capacity for provisions, so you’re always ready for a party. Although, having tried this on my own, my suggestion would be to invite six or eight guests.

Dave Bessmer is a freelance writer living in East Grand Rapids, Michigan. He has spent 25 years in or around the RV business. He has authored several features for Holidays magazine.