Community Forums

daveerv · 03-09-2015, 10:55 AM

My wife and I are shopping for our first motorhome and plan to purchase within the next few months. We really like the 2007 or 2008 Monaco 40SKQ, diesel pusher, floor plan with the mid kitchen located just behind the pilot seats. Would like to hear if anyone has major likes or dislikes, issues with that type of floor plan.

DaveeRV.

Old Car Nut · 03-09-2015, 11:08 AM

I do believe that is considered a forward or front galley floorplan and they are hard to find in the larger (40'+) models. Patty and I have spent months trying to find one we like at a price we like.

We liked the idea of being able to still converse while one of us made lunch or grabbed a snack. We also wanted to use the storage area in the front as an expansion of kitchen storage. Then there is the fact that the kitchen is near the door when out on the "patio" area.

Our previous rig had that forward configuration and we loved it.

Good luck in your search.

**NLOVNIT** · 03-09-2015, 11:23 AM

Having the fridge up front near the entry door is convenient for snacks/beverages runs when sitting outside. For us, it is a negative though when it comes to turning the pilot/co-pilot seats around for extra seating in the living area. Guests are less likely to use those seats as they don't feel part of the living "conversation area" being up front on the other side of the kitchen. Plus, when we do have guests, I don't want them having to traipse through my kitchen to get to the couches.

Lori-

Old Car Nut · 03-09-2015, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NLOVNIT

Having the fridge up front near the entry door is convenient for snacks/beverages runs when sitting outside. For us, it is a negative though when it comes to turning the pilot/co-pilot seats around for extra seating in the living area. Guests are less likely to use those seats as they don't feel part of the living "conversation area" being up front on the other side of the kitchen. Plus, when we do have guests, I don't want them having to traipse through my kitchen to get to the couches.

Lori-

x2

austx · 03-09-2015, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NLOVNIT

Having the fridge up front near the entry door is convenient for snacks/beverages runs when sitting outside. For us, it is a negative though when it comes to turning the pilot/co-pilot seats around for extra seating in the living area. Guests are less likely to use those seats as they don't feel part of the living "conversation area" being up front on the other side of the kitchen. Plus, when we do have guests, I don't want them having to traipse through my kitchen to get to the couches.

Lori-

Ditto! X 3. Any MH is small enough, no matter how large it is, to chat with other people in the living area. And it is only a couple feet to walk from a central kitchen to outside vs. a forward kitchen. I don't like the huge refrigerator up front cause it blocks the view out the front windows. IMO

Peralko · 03-09-2015, 02:05 PM

If you like that setup, Country Coach has a 45' Allure with a front kitchen. Some have two opposing couches in the living room that provides plenty of space for guests. All tile heated floors make for easy cleaning and cold weather comfort, and that floorplan has one and a half baths.

H. Miller · 03-09-2015, 02:13 PM

found at least 6 of them @ PPL

chuck49 · 03-09-2015, 05:57 PM

We have an '08 Monaco Dynasty Squire IV. It has the front kitchen, which we don't mind at all, but what really sold us on the floor plan was the bathroom/bedroom layout. To each his own. Buy what works for you.

brobox · 03-09-2015, 06:16 PM

We just charged floor plans from a rear kitchen fridge to a front kitchen fridge. At first, it wasn't our first choice, but to gain a half bath, it was the only choice. Now that we have it...we love it! The drinks are close to the entertaining area and close to the door for outside grilling and drinks. Turned out to work great for the way we travel.

jimj · 03-10-2015, 08:05 PM

Hi Daveerv
Glad to see you are progressing with your search. The front kitchen doesn't look as liveable as the mid kitchen but I have not been around one. That looks like a nice coach. Did you look at the floor plan to see where everyone would set when visiting or while watching TV?
Good luck in your search

JimJ

777 Driver · 03-10-2015, 09:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daveerv

We really like the 2007 or 2008 Monaco 40SKQ, diesel pusher, floor plan with the mid kitchen located just behind the pilot seats. Would like to hear if anyone has major likes or dislikes, issues with that type of floor plan.

DaveeRV.

Hi DaveeRV,

DW and I spent much of my last 10 years working looking for the “perfect’ motorhome.We planned (and have been accomplishing our plan) to spend much of my post-retirement (3 years, so far) traveling in the motorhome.It would be our first RV and we wanted to ‘get it right’.We spent a lot of time looking and discussing our wants/needs.

We bought a 2009 Monaco Diplomat 41SKQ (kitchen forward) and have been well-pleased with our choice.We noted that the home we had lived in for years featured an entry (that we used daily) nearer the kitchen than the living room.Our kitchen was near the entry/exit to the patio.Having the kitchen forward more closely mirrored what we were used to in our home.

Many of the living area forward plans featured a TV mounted overhead in the front.We were concerned that whenever we were watching TV, with a forward living area, that we’d be turning sideways to watch the TV.With the forward kitchen, our big screen TV is mounted such that, with dual euro-lounger chairs, we both have a much better viewing angle.

Loading food is easy; I place it on the copilot’s chair from outside the coach and DW moves it to the refrigerator and pantry.When I’m grilling outside, it’s easy for DW to pass items from the forward kitchen out to me. Yes, cold beverages included.

We haven’t had guests indicate that they felt “remote” while seated in the forward chairs.First, we haven’t had that many guests; second, it’s not ‘that’ far away; third, I usually choose one of those seats.

Bottom line, we’ve been well-pleased with our forward kitchen.

Take care,
Stu

Gary RVRoamer · 03-11-2015, 09:44 AM

I would call that a front kitchen rather than mid - the galley can't be any further forward if it is just behind the driver seats!

We looked at a couple Monacos with that plan and liked having the galley handy for travel, but we soon realized there were more negatives than positives (for us, anyway). For one, the front seats were far from the rest of the lounge, meaning that guests sat in the kitchen while we were in the living room (or vice versa). We also felt the lounge seating was awkward, with no really good place to watch tv, nor any recliner for relaxing & reading. We also felt that the 40SKQ plan sacrificed bedroom space for a larger lounge/galley area and came up short of drawer space. We spend 5-7 months at a time in the coach need need room for a variety of clothing, etc.