Fifth Wheel RV Review: American Perspective on the Celtic Rambler
If you ask most people where “proper” fifth wheel RVs come from, they’ll point straight at the United States. Wide highways, big trucks, huge campgrounds. It’s the spiritual home of the fifth wheel.
Which is why watching Myles RV walk up to our Celtic Rambler at Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf was so interesting. He’s an American who spends his life around RVs, filming them, towing them, picking them apart on camera.
His very first line?
“I am pretty surprised to find that here in Europe, they do make fifth wheel RVs…”
We’ll be honest: we enjoyed that.
We’re a small manufacturer from North Wales (UK). We build a limited number of bespoke units a year, by hand. We know fifth wheels are part of the American DNA, but this video did something quite special. It held a mirror up to our work from the perspective of someone who knows the US market inside out.
And he didn’t just like it. He was blown away by it.
“This would be one of the nicer looking fifth wheels in the US”
Myles filmed the review at Caravan Salon, the largest caravan and RV show in the world. Surrounded by European motorhomes and compact caravans, our presence (with our German dealer Büsching Tuning) looked a little different: a Celtic Rambler, a Dreamseeker, and two pickup trucks that might as well have been unicorns in the middle of Düsseldorf.
He makes the point straight away:
there are almost no half-ton trucks in Europe (For context, “half-ton” is American shorthand for their common full-size pickups, not a literal weight rating.)
there’s virtually nothing this large outside of big motorhomes
and we are the only fifth wheel manufacturer in Europe.
So from his point of view, this already feels unusual.
Then he steps inside a Celtic Rambler for the first time on camera, and you can see the surprise land in real time. Twin beds that convert to a king. Proper solid-feeling cabinetry. Soft-close hinges that hold the doors wherever you leave them. A big circular sink. Corian worktops. Alde heating. A washer-dryer in the living area. A dishwasher. A proper shower with space for someone well over six foot.
His line that stuck with us:
“If this came to the United States, this would be one of the nicer looking fifth wheel RVs in the US, especially at this size.”
That’s not us saying it. That’s someone who spends his life walking in and out of American fifth wheels, on American forecourts, with American expectations of space.
A Closer Look at the Build
Once he steps outside, something shifts. He’s in his element underneath it, around it, tapping things, checking how the doors shut, following the lines of the mouldings with his hand. This is where he usually finds the shortcuts in US models, and you can tell he expects the same here.
What he finds is the opposite.
A full moulded fibreglass shell, front to back. No plywood. No decorative trim pretending to be structure. Proper seals. Thick materials where most people would never look. Independent torsion suspension. The sort of construction choices that take longer and cost more, but pay you back over years rather than months.
At one point he ducks under the slide-out, looks at the seams for a minute and just says:
“Yeah… the precision on this is much, much better for sure.”
It lands differently hearing that from someone who spends his life in and around the biggest US brands. We build these every day, it becomes easy to forget what it looks like to fresh eyes. Especially American eyes that are used to seeing fifth wheels built in huge volumes.
Having someone from the country that practically invented the category get underneath a Celtic Rambler and react like that… it says a lot, without us having to say anything.
Price, Perspective, and a Bit of Context
Throughout the video, Myles keeps returning to one question for his audience:
If this were sold in the US, would you buy it?
The price he saw on the stand in Düsseldorf was the German on-the-road figure (for that exact unit), complete with duties, taxes, and local costs. It’s a number that only really makes sense in that context. In the UK, a bespoke Celtic Rambler starts at £92,500 (including VAT) a very different starting point, and one that reflects the way we build: slowly, carefully, and with materials chosen for decades of use, not a couple of seasons.
What Myles picks up on isn’t “price” in the usual sense. It’s what you’re actually paying for:
a fully moulded fibreglass shell
hand-built cabinetry
solid materials everywhere, even in places most people never see
heating, insulation, fixtures and fittings chosen for long-term comfort
and a build approach that prioritises lifespan and residual value over rapid production.
What his audience had to say
Underneath the video is where the second half of the story plays out.
You see American viewers who have never heard of The Fifth Wheel Company before suddenly realising that:
Europe has any fifth wheels at all, never mind this level of build
the whole shell is moulded fibreglass
the quality of the interior is closer to a small apartment than a typical RV
and yes, people do start asking whether they can import one.
Some talk about how “overbuilt” it looks compared to what they see on their local dealer lots. Others say they’d happily trade a few feet of length for something that feels this solid. Quite a few are simply surprised that something like this exists outside North America.
That’s the bit we quietly love:
America is famous for huge, sprawling fifth wheels. Yet when one of their own experts shows them a more compact, hand-built British fifth wheel from North Wales, a good chunk of them don’t laugh it off.
They want it.
Why this matters to a small British builder in North Wales
For us, this isn’t about one flattering YouTube review. It’s a snapshot of what we’ve believed for a long time:
there is a market, globally, for bespoke, better built units
people will cross borders, both literally and mentally, for craftsmanship
and quality still cuts through, even on a crowded algorithmic feed.
We build a limited number of fifth wheels a year. We’re not chasing volume. Our customers are usually at a stage of life where they’d rather buy the right thing once than compromise three times. They value residuals, engineering, long-term comfort and the ability to tow legally and safely on European roads.
Hearing an American reviewer compare a Celtic Rambler to some of the highest regarded niche US brands, then say “it doesn’t surprise me that this is the price that it is”, is oddly reassuring. It tells us that the hours spent refining a locker hinge, a heating system, or a mould tool are visible, even if most people never see the workshop.
Across the Atlantic, the same question
Myles ends his video with an open invitation for discussion: would his viewers actually buy one if they could? Could they see themselves towing a British-built fifth wheel around the States?
On our side of the Atlantic, we find ourselves asking a similar question in reverse.
What does it look like when a small British manufacturer, used to threading fifth wheels through Welsh lanes and French aires, starts to appear on American recommendation feeds? What happens when people who have grown up around huge US fifth wheels start to want something a little more compact, and a lot more carefully built?
We don’t pretend to have all the answers yet. But we do know this:
When the home of the fifth wheel starts looking closely at ours, something interesting is happening.
And we’re only just getting started.
Want to Watch the Full Review?
If you haven’t seen it yet, Myles’ full walkthrough is well worth a watch. You can find the video here: Watch the review on YouTube.
It’s always interesting seeing your own work through someone else’s eyes, especially someone who knows the fifth-wheel world as well as he does.
Thinking About a Celtic Rambler of Your Own?
Whether you're in the UK or further afield, we’re happy to talk through the options. We build in small numbers, everything is hand-finished, and every unit can be tailored to suit how and where you want to travel.
We also export worldwide, and our team can walk you through shipping, specifications, and any local requirements.
If you'd like to arrange a visit, start a build conversation, or simply ask a few questions, just get in touch with our team, we’re always happy to help.