|
I towed a caravan for a few years. More convenient than a motorhome, as you don't need to pack everything away when you want transport and you don't lose your pitch while away. Have you considered a folding caravan, or a trailer tent?
I gave up because the cost of extra fuel, site fees, insurance and storage didn't compare to self-catering accommodation.
|
|
Buying a campervan is a bit like buying a boat.
You have two happy days as an owner, the one whre you buy it and the one where you sell it.
It's a lot of money tied up in a depreciating asset which requires continual spending for maintenance, road tax, insurance etc.
My dad did a similar exercise a few years ago and concluded it made no sense at all from a financial perspective. He came to a similar conclusion with a caravan and went down the route of hiring a camper once or twice a year.
Unless you are planning on spending a lot of time touring Europe, where very cheap camping Aires are available the economic case is always against you.
Two of our neighbours have £50k plus motorhomes and use them a handful of times a year. One of them can't wait to sell it..
|
Buying a campervan is a bit like buying a boat.
You have two happy days as an owner, the one whre you buy it and the one where you sell it.
It's a lot of money tied up in a depreciating asset which requires continual spending for maintenance, road tax, insurance etc.
My dad did a similar exercise a few years ago and concluded it made no sense at all from a financial perspective. He came to a similar conclusion with a caravan and went down the route of hiring a camper once or twice a year.
Unless you are planning on spending a lot of time touring Europe, where very cheap camping Aires are available the economic case is always against you.
Two of our neighbours have £50k plus motorhomes and use them a handful of times a year. One of them can't wait to sell it..
On the other hand, if you use it a lot, campervans and caravans can be very cost-effective - we use our caravan about 120 nights/year and would hate to think what that would cost in hotels, particularly over the peak periods.
|
|
|
|
I think Stackman has got it right. As well as the direct costs of owning a camping vehicle it has to be kept somewhere safe, which can be another cost. Hiring has always been my solution, but your frequent weekend habits seem to make either option expensive. You just have a costly hobby !
|
I think Stackman has got it right. As well as the direct costs of owning a camping vehicle it has to be kept somewhere safe, which can be another cost. Hiring has always been my solution, but your frequent weekend habits seem to make either option expensive. You just have a costly hobby !
You're right there in a way. Just storing, insuring and servicing a small caravan is close to £1k per annum.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I lived in various vans and trucks in London for a few years, very much at the banger end of the market, ranging between 1000 and 2000 quid (though at the turn of the century) I had 24 hour shower and computer access at work.
You could get quite impressive metal-for-your-money with things like converted old ambulances, mobile libraries, and workshop trucks (one of which I had) but these were a bit counterculture, excluded you from Caravan Club sites, and, at least for me, the workshop truck was scarily huge to drive in London.
At the opposte end of the scale I had a Honda Acty pickup truck with a demountable Romahome camper on the back, astonishingly space efficient and not scary at all, if you didnt think about your thigh bones being the crumple zone. These will now be extremely rare, but I have seen a Romahome on a small Citroen which was commoner and might still be available
My huge truck was broken into and vandalised, then stolen, but then I was parked in Kings Cross. so kind of expected, though unexpectedly, the insurance paid up
.I now have a boat. Oo-er.
I quite like the look of the Renault Kangol and its badge varients too for a basic sleeper. Anything much bigger gets to be expensive and onerous, and the roof tent idea has merit, but your dogs might be a problem, compact and bijou-wise
Coild they be trained to sleep in an outside collapsible kennel? You might be able to convince them they were guard dogs. Dogs seem to like that.
Edited by edlithgow on 18/08/2025 at 09:43
|
|
We did the campervan/caravan comparison before deciding on a caravan in 2014.
Did the process again a couple of years ago with, in the end, the same outcome.
We hired a VW campervan in 2023 for a week or so on Harris/Lewis timed for the launch of the Hearach whisky. Worked well on a campsite with loos and showers but was less good, and we never got beyond thinking about this, on the layby type plots offered by the Harris Trust.
The issue frankly was lack of an on board toilet. Easy enough for me as a bloke to pee in the hedge bottom but even as an accomplished outdoor person Mrs B found concealment to crouch and wee thin on the ground.
The other thing is the need to pack everything away just to pop to the shop. OK on that trip but I've lost count of the occasions, over 25 years of camping or caravan holidays in France I take the car to get bread while Mrs B and, when they were wee, kids set up coffee etc.
A small caravan, we have an Xplore 304, was a better compromise in the ned.
|
|
If you are happy with in effect camping, but sleeping in a van rather than a tent there are many small vans available which fit the bill. Insulate and board out, bed in the back on a raised platfrom and the rest of the camping gear in boxes ready to be used when needed. Drive away awning for some extra living space and somewhere to store gear and keep your pitch if you need to drive somewhere. A friend has a Berlingo used in this way.
If you want more comfort you will be into camper vans which are more expensive, but have more home comforts and fitted kitchen, pop up roof, water and waste tanks etc.
|
|
thanks
what vans would you recommend
|
|
|
|
|
In the financial calculations, also include the cost of hiring a camper van when you want to travel somewhere.
If you're retired and travelling mostly in off peak periods this may work out cheaper. It also allows you to avoid doing the long distance motorway part of the trip in a van (which is expensive on fuel and not as comfortable). You can then either drive, take the train or even fly to a camper van hire place more local to where you want to visit.
|
If you're retired and travelling mostly in off peak periods this may work out cheaper. It also allows you to avoid doing the long distance motorway part of the trip in a van (which is expensive on fuel and not as comfortable). You can then either drive, take the train or even fly to a camper van hire place more local to where you want to visit.
Most suggestions seem to have made little allowance for those dogs ! Flying anywhere with them sounds like a no-no to me .... :-)
|
|
Great answers
..so are there any good SUV's, MPV's ( maybe small vans ) etc within or under our budget that would suit ie..loads of room for the dogs, ideally sliding door, ability to fit fridge/cooker or at least be able to have plenty of room for us all to sit and eat
thanks
|
|
Kangoo and Berlingo comparison
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkt4DL0X61g
He mentions a few slightly more upmarket alternatives. These ones are set up as MPV,s but I think there are vans too which would give you more space/conversion options, and should still be fine for use as daily drivers.
|
|
You have not mentioned annual mileage, but if not too high and if you have a JDM import specialist within a reasonable distance*, i'd be considering a JDM MPV. Maybe not a bigger one like a Toyota Alphard or Nissan Elgrande, but something like a Honda Stepwagon. While you do get ones with the 2.4 engine, most will be 2.0 (and they will all be auto), and while not exactly a paragon of efficiency (high 20's - 30 average, maybe 35 on a cruise), more manageable mpg than the V6 Alphard or Elgrande. They all have three rows of seats, but the third row will either be split in the middle and fold up either side, or fold (completely) into the floor, depending on age. Middle row seats will slide fore and aft, so with third row folded and middle row slid forward and folded against the back of the front seats there will be masses of room for the hounds. They will also have sliding rear doors (though some only have the one). I was going to post a link, but i'm struggling to do so with my new tablet!. Plenty on eBay though, look them up.
As well as the Stepwagon, similar others include the Toyota Noah/Voxy, Nissan Serena and Mazda Biante.
*Obvious place for servicing and/or parts, so one nearby would be good.
|
|
|
|
Great answers
..so are there any good SUV's, MPV's ( maybe small vans ) etc within or under our budget that would suit ie..loads of room for the dogs, ideally sliding door, ability to fit fridge/cooker or at least be able to have plenty of room for us all to sit and eat
thanks
I would look at the Hyundai i800, the Toyota Proace Verso/Peugeot Traveller/Citroen Spacetourer and, if you can bring yourself to look at it, Ssangyong Turismo. They are all massive. I have seen a Turismo camper, but only one and only once
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
