Corner Bath, Lavatory, or Wet Bath: Exploring Airstream’s Bathroom Features

May 28, 2024

The onboard bathroom you find in every Airstream travel trailer and touring coach is an essential piece of our “all the comforts of home” mentality. But not all lavatories are created equal, and understanding the features and benefits of each type will help you narrow down which Airstream is right for you.

The lure of high adventure and travel fun leads many people to the Airstreaming lifestyle. But for some, the question of how one deals with waste while out on the road is one of the biggest hurdles. Luckily, Airstream travel trailers and touring coaches feature some of the most luxurious, easy-to-use, and easy-to-maintain bathroom features you’ll find on the market.

Airstream’s Brick-and-Mortar Bathroom Experience

First and foremost, Airstream bathrooms are designed to be as close to your at-home experience as possible. Despite space being at a premium, Airstream’s expert design and engineering teams find creative ways to create spacious lavatories that provide ample room for showering, brushing teeth and getting ready for bed, and – yes – everything else one does in a bathroom. The majority of Airstream bathrooms feature dedicated spaces for the toilet, a vanity with sink and storage, and a stand-alone shower.

airstream corner bath and lavatory flying cloud and trade wind

Airstream Flying Cloud 30FB's corner bath and Trade Wind's mid-ship curbside lavatory

airstream atlas bathroom and basecamp wet bath — *Airstream Atlas's expansive rear-spanning bathroom and Basecamp's efficient wet bath*

Some smaller Airstream travel trailers and most Airstream touring coaches are outfitted with space-saving efficient wet baths (the exception being the top-of-the-line Atlas Touring Coach model with a luxurious residential-style bathroom). These wet baths combine sink, shower, and toilet into one efficient space where everything is designed to get wet. And in almost every model line, porcelain toilets are the standard (most wet baths, as well as the composting toilet option in Trade Wind and the REI Co-op Special Edition Basecamp) utilize durable lightweight plastic toilets.

Survey the RV landscape and you’ll find that many manufacturers don’t go to the same lengths to create a simple, seamless, and stress-free mobile bathroom experience that lets you focus primarily on the fun to be had while out on the road.

The (Somewhat Gross) Truth About Cassette Toilets

Unlike many other RV manufacturers, you won’t find a cassette toilet in any Airstream model. Touted as an easy-to-use and lightweight option for RVs, the truth about cassette toilets is that you’re required to carry a container of sewage to the dump station. These containers typically hold about 5 gallons of liquid waste, and usually feature about 12 inches (sometimes less) of tubing to guide the sewage into the dump station’s septic tank port. It’s a less than appealing reality you have to deal with when all you really want is to hit the trail and enjoy your time spent in nature.

While it’s true that cassette toilets eliminate the need for a bulky waste tank, the benefits of an integrated waste tank are numerous. From their ability to let you boondock far from traditional campground amenities for long stretches to the relative ease of dumping your tanks via the traditional method of visiting a dump station and hooking up a sewer hose, waste tanks make the business of dealing with your business easy and stress free. The motorized RVs we build on the Mercedes-Benz® Sprinter van chassis offer even more ease-of-use when it comes to dumping tanks, with powered retractable sewer hoses and macerator pumps that keep everything flowing smoothly.

Airstream travel trailers and touring coaches offer some of the simplest, low-touch methods of dealing with your waste, it’s the style and convenience of our onboard bathroom offerings that truly set Airstream apart.

Airstream’s Bathroom Offerings

Airstream recreational vehicles are equipped with one of four bathroom setups:

A two-part mid-ship bathroom that spans the trailer’s aisleway
A corner bathroom tucked into the trailer’s rear shell
A unit-spanning three-piece bathroom in the rear
An efficient, space-saving wet bath

Mid-Ship Bathrooms

When it comes to Airstream travel trailers, most feature this bathroom style with a toilet and vanity on one side of the aisle and a shower on the other side. This setup provides the most space available and comes with a few additional benefits when you dig deeper.

NEW_1170x408px_AIRMKT_2021_FlyingCloud27FB_Floorplan_SeattleMist_WEB — *Notice how the mid-ship bathroom is split across the aisle, with a shower on one side and a lavatory on the other (Pictured: Flying Cloud 27FB)*

In the lavatory area you’ll find a high-quality porcelain toilet adjacent to a vanity that features ample storage for bathroom essentials like toilet paper, towels, tissue boxes, and cleaners. Overhead, most bathrooms in this style feature a locker fronted with a mirror. Inside, you’ll find space for storing toothbrushes, toothpaste, and everything else you need to freshen up before bed or get ready in the morning.

airstream international and globetrotter mid-ship bathrooms lavatory — *Airstream International 27FB and Globetrotter 30RB's mid-ship lavatories*

Multiple towel bars give you space to hang hand and bath towels, and the lavatory area included a push-button vent in the ceiling. The toilet is equipped with a foot pedal that lets you empty the toilet bowl with ease or fill the bowl with water with a gentle half-press of the foot pedal.

Across the aisle, a spacious shower with a residential shower head provides space to clean up after a long day adventuring or ahead of a night out on the town. Shower heads often feature push-button shutoffs to help preserve precious fresh water resources, and a tankless propane water heater that delivers on-demand hot water. Curtains can be extended on either side of the aisle to create a private changing room area and then tuck discretely into the cabinetry to allow unimpeded movement up and down the aisle.

Finally, many Airstream travel trailer owners love to utilize their shower as a storage space when not in use. Shop shower accessories at our online store, Airstream Supply Company, including luxurious teak shower mats, our exclusive soap bundles, and an ingenious Quick Dry Towel Bundle that allows you to set up a dryer room that gets towels and wet bathing suits dry in no time flat.

Airstream Models with Mid-Ship Two-Piece Bathrooms

*Note: Information correct as of Model Year 2024

Corner Bathrooms

Several Airstream travel trailer models feature unique corner bath setups, with everything located in the streetside corner of the rear shell. In this setup, a toilet and vanity are located just inside the door, with the shower accessible on the left.

NEW_1170x408px_AIRMKT_2020_Caravel20FB_Floorplan_Tungsten_WEB — *Corner baths feature an expansive but efficient bathroom setup in the trailer's rear shell (Pictured: Caravel 20FB)*

The amount of room inside these corner baths varies with the length of the trailer – the 30-foot models feature wide lavatory areas with more storage, while smaller floor plans have correspondingly smaller bathroom footprints. But no matter the length of your Airstream, these corner baths provide all the comforts of home in a unique, space-saving setup.

bambi 22 lavatory — *Bambi 22FB's rear-spanning bathroom with shower on the left, vanity in the middle, and toilet just inside the door to the right.*

Airstream Models with Corner Baths

Rear-Spanning Bathrooms

One of the most popular Airstream bathroom setups also includes some of our most luxurious, residential-style bathrooms available.

NEW_1170x408px_AIRMKT_2021_International23FB_Floorplan_Aqua_WEB — *The rear-spanning bathrooms in some of Airstream's mid-sized trailers offer a great combination of space and features. (Pictured: International 23FB)*

AIRMKT_2023_Classic33FB_Floorplan_EstateBrown_Chamomile WEB — *The Airstream Classic 33FB's rear-spanning bathroom is large and luxurious.*

NEW_1170x408px_AIRMKT_2023_Atlas_Floorplan_ModernGreige_WEB — *Atlas features one of the largest and most luxurious onboard bathrooms you'll find on the market.*

A favorite in Airstream’s mid-sized travel trailer model lines, rear-spanning bathrooms provide the best of both worlds. In a rear-spanning bathroom, everything is contained in one space, with a three-piece setup that also includes ample room for changing, toweling off, or freshening up. These wide bathrooms feature a wide vanity with lots of storage, flanked by a toilet on the streetside and a shower on the curbside. These rear-spanning bathrooms also feature a window to let in light and give you a view of the nature around you.

caravel 22FB and Classic 33FB — *Airstream Caravel 22FB and Classic 33FB with rear-spanning bathrooms*

In our top-of-the-line travel trailer and touring coach models – the luxurious Classic 33RB and Atlas Touring Coach – rear-spanning bathrooms create some of the most residential-style bathroom experiences you’ll find in any recreational vehicle. In these models you’ll find a spacious shower with added style, wide vanities, plenty of storage, and additional comforts like towel warmers and handle-flush toilets (features sometimes change – check with your local dealer for updated specs and available amenities).

Airstream Models with Rear-Spanning Bathrooms

Wet Baths

Packing everything into one convenient area, wet baths are the perfect blend of comfort and space-saving efficiency. Designed with water-proof functionality so that everything can get wet, this type of bathroom is true to its name.

NEW_1170x408px_AIRMKT_2024_Basecamp20_ScarlettPeak_Floorplan — *Basecamp's efficient wet bath combines everything you need in one space (Pictured: Basecamp 20)*

Interstate 19 Floorplan Classic Canyon — *All motorized Airstream touring coaches (except Atlas) feature space-saving wet baths. (Pictured: Interstate 19)*

Inside a wet bath, you’ll find a sink, toilet, and showerhead. Some models include additional features like towel racks and soap dispensers, and in Basecamp 16 models there’s a convenient pass-through portal that allows you to utilize the showerhead outdoors for cleaning off gear, pets, or yourself.

airstream interstate 24GL and Rangeline touring coach wet baths — *Airstream Interstate 24GL and Rangeline touring coach wet baths*

Aside from Atlas, all Airstream touring coaches feature a wet bath design. Rangeline’s unique European-inspired design goes even further in the space-saving realm, with an innovative fold-down sink that stows away while showering or using the toilet.

What the wet bath design sacrifices in the name of space-saving efficiency, it more than makes up for in more interior living space and convenience – especially when you’re far from campground bath houses or your brick and mortar home. As promised by Airstream founder Wally Byam decades ago, Airstream will always prioritize the ability to bring along the comforts of home. With a wet bath on board, you get that comfort coupled with the ease of a fully-plumbed waste tank setup and a space-saving design.

Airstream Models with Wet Baths

Ready to experience all the comforts of home for yourself? Visit your nearest dealer and see these incredible Airstream bathrooms for yourself – and start dreaming of your own Airstream adventure out on the road.

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