Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection may lead to severe respiratory illness in young children. Thus, there is a need for a live attenuated vaccine, which would mimic the natural course of infection without causing illness; however, restricting viral replication also reduces the immune response. Reported herein is a method of vaccination using a single dose of a recombinant RSV lacking the M2-2 protein that surprisingly induced a stronger immune response to RSV than previous vaccine candidates despite being more restricted in replication.