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Review of the 2023 nuCamp Barefoot travel trailer

Tony Barthel

Today’s RV review is of the nuCamp RV Barefoot travel trailer. This is a small, egg-shaped trailer that offers a unique style. In fact this trailer was announced a while ago and some people have been eagerly anticipating it since that announcement.

The design of this trailer is very curved and egg-shaped. That egg shape is highlighted by an egg-like color, sort of a robin’s egg blue. While it has been described as somewhat retro in feel, I like the stylish design and the Moonie-style wheel covers extend that sense of style.

So, too, does the pattern on the upper exterior section of this trailer. It’s only available in one color, sort of an aqua blue, and that color pattern extends to the interior where there are both retro styling accents as well as some quite modern almost Ikea-esque elements.

Whether you’re a big fan of the styling of this or not, the nuCamp Barefoot definitely stands out at any RV dealership where you’ll find one.

The original design of this trailer was created by Cathy Chamberlain and her company, in the United Kingdom, is Barefoot Caravans. It’s taken several years to sort out all the details but the design has been licensed to nuCamp who are making it here for we Yanks. Jolly good of them, isn’t it?

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nuCamp RV

If you haven’t heard of them, nuCamp RV makes some interesting products. Probably their signature RV is the T@B series which are shaped like teardrops but are, in actuality, travel trailers. In fact we did a review of the 2023 nuCamp T@B 400 Boondocking edition yesterday.

The company also makes proper teardrop trailers and pickup campers as well. Small, high-content RV products are where they’ve chosen to focus which makes the Barefoot fit right in.

Why I like it

First and foremost, I’ve written about the terrible state of RV aerodynamics in the past. This trailer seems to address that to a certain extent. For example, there is no roof-top air conditioner nor anything else protruding from the roof.

There is a vent up there but it’s a minor detail and not one to mess up an otherwise smooth shape. That smooth shape is a hallmark of the Barefoot which is a single monocoque fiberglass egg that truly looks like it had been sculpted in a wind tunnel.

This trailer weighs in at a scant 2,150 pounds (975 kilograms) but I suspect that it might tow much better than some other trailers that are in the same weight range. The smooth exterior shape, devoid of air conditioners and other roof-top plagues, is definitely going to cut down on the drag which will make this less of a deterrent to fuel economy.

Having few holes in the exterior, including not having seams where the walls meet the roof, means that maintenance and leaking issues should also be heavily minimized. If you don’t know this yet, most RV manufacturers recommend checking the exterior seals of their rigs ever 30-90 days and making sure all those holes in the exterior are properly sealed.

Usability

One of the hallmark features of the interior of this trailer is a huge u-shaped dinette at the front of the trailer. You could probably seat five actual adults around this table on a game night. Pretty slick.

The table is mounted on a single pole and that table and pole can be taken off and stored in a closet right at the entrance to this trailer. In fact there’s a provision to store that table there. That closet also is the lone place if you want to hang things but it’s right at the entrance so it makes sense if you’re bringing jackets with you.

When you remove the table and pole mount you can then slide out bases from either side of the dinette which then allow you to create a large 69” X 71” bed. This is absolutely a trailer that begs you to go buy an RV SuperBag.

I haven’t tested the beds in person, but it might be that you could use the individual beds on either side as single beds not needing to extend the platform at all. This likely depends on how you’re built and how good looking the individual is that you’re camping with. Or how much they snore.

The kitchen in this rig is interesting only in that it consists of a two-burner propane stove top and a round sink. Both of these are under flip-up glass covers. When you’re not using either the sink or the stove top, the glass covers let you have the entire space for prep.

On the opposite side of the trailer is another flat surface which is made of butcher block material, as are the counters on the kitchen side. This is likely where you’ll be doing much food prep and it’s not a bad combination of space for a trailer that is but 16 feet in length.

Storage is interesting, shall we say. There is a halo of cabinets overhead which have a pattern on them similar to that of bathroom windows. There is also lighting behind these panels so it’s a nice effect overall and not a bad amount of storage for a trailer of this size.

There is also an interesting cabinet on the camp side which has pocketed storage on the outside. This is a decent-sized space as well. There is but one drawer in the entire trailer and it’s pretty darned shallow. All the cabinets and that one drawer have mechanical latches which I think is the only way to go in a moving vehicle.

On the subject of glass the windows in this trailer, except the front windshield, are dual-pane polycarbonate windows which can open up to 90°. The window structure incorporates both a blackout shade and a screen and it’s nice that you can move these to either have the window shaded part way, all the way, and covered by a screen or not. These windows ain’t cheap but they’re pretty nifty.

The window in the bathroom is the same design but has frosted glass.

Ah, the bathroom

One of the areas where there is a lot of accommodation for the rounded shape of this trailer is the bathroom. Let’s face it, it’s tiny. While the main cabin of the trailer has a ceiling height of 73 inches, the bathroom ceiling is such that only shorter campers can stand up in here.

Further, this is a wet bath with a cartridge toilet. I know I’ve lost quite a few of you with that combination of compromises.

I honestly couldn’t stand up straight in the bathroom which means that showers would be very uncomfortable. If you’re in a developed campground with a shower house then that’s one thing but if you’re boondocking, the bathroom might get old pretty quickly.

More to know

This trailer, like yesterday’s T@B 400, uses the Alde heating system. This system circulates heated glycol to warm the cabin. I’ve had some readers tell me that this was the best thing since sliced bread and others who positively hate this system.

That same system is also responsible for heating the water in this trailer so shower and sink water are heated by the Alde. I had mentioned that there is no air conditioner sticking out the top but there is an air conditioner in here that’s mounted in the cabin itself and ducted. I’m writing this in winter so there’s no telling how effective this is, but it is different than in many other trailers.

Another unusual thing about this trailer is that there is no microwave, nor is one even available as an option. That’s truly unusual in any RV sold in the US.

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What I would change

This has a very small 12 volt refrigerator. Again, I can see this trailer primarily being a weekender but I would have much rather seen a 12 volt cooler like the Dometic unit that I have rather than this small a fridge.

While I really like the unique style of this trailer in every way, it would almost make sense to stretch it just a wee bit to make the bathroom much more usable. I realize the appeal of this trailer is its small size but the rounded shape makes the bathroom almost unusable to me.

Boondocking and travel access

Since this trailer doesn’t have slides you can use all the features all the time, which is a plus to me.

There are no solar panel options on this but you can easily use the GoPower Duralight solar panels that I have and hook them directly to the battery, so there’s all the solar you might need.

Being a relatively small trailer this has relatively small tanks and sports a cartridge toilet. I like these as they’re really convenient. In fact we have a portable cartridge toilet and it really is easy to use. I know some campers are not excited by these, but they’re pretty good.

Final thoughts

I like the fiberglass single-piece exterior of this trailer as well as the padded interior. It’s a really nice looking package. There are also some nifty little details like those pockets on the storage cabinet.

There are also three wells to store bottles of wine right by the entry door. The unique styling of this trailer is accentuated by an interesting pattern on the side which isn’t swooshes and swirls, thankfully. It’s actually tasteful!

The Moonie-style hubcaps further add to the unique appearance of this model. Inside and out I can’t imagine someone not smiling when they see and experience this trailer.

That’s also a good thing if you’re at an RV dealership. There will be a bunch of white boxes with swishy swirl stickers on them but then there will be this unique blue egg-shaped trailer with the unique wheel covers.

Materials in this trailer are higher end so it isn’t inexpensive but good things often aren’t cheap things.

Overall a nice little RV that I think could easily be pulled by a good variety of vehicles that it would look pretty slick behind. Not for everybody but if this makes you smile, it might be for you.

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