Oh god... DH is looking at buying a caravan. Tell me the good bits please!

[Florencenotflo]

Disclaimer - this is a light hearted thread.

DH is looking at buying a caravan. His reasoning is that with the pandemic, we aren't going to want to travel abroad for a while, we live on the South East coast and there are some lovely places within an hour of here. We can pack up on a Friday and spend the weekends with the kids having mini holidays all the time.

But am I wrong to think it's not a holiday in a caravan? Just same shit different place? We've still got to cook meals (unless we eat out, but we can't do that all the time). I'm the planner of the family so it'll be me packing for us all, making sure we have everything we need.

Please tell me the good bits of having caravan holidays with small kids (1y and 4.5y).

We love our caravan, but then we're not really interested in luxury holidays - the simpler the better AFAIC. You don't have to tax or MOT a caravan but if you've nowhere to store one it can cost over £400 a year for storage. We've had campervans too, and unless you're doing a touring holiday where you're moving on every day or so, I think a caravan is better, because you just set it up and don't have to worry about it for the rest of your holiday.

We don't use the bathroom in the van - don't want the hassle of filling and emptying water cassettes and loos (not much of a holiday for the person who has to do it!) so always pick a site with shower block. Agree with pp about not using big sites with entertainemnt etc. We use Caravan Club sites which are well maintained and clean, and the pitches are usually well spread out, or really small sites with perhaps 6-12 pitches.

The whole pleasure of a caravan holiday for us is that you spend time outdoors - there's nothing like sitting outside early in the morning with a bacon butty and a mug of tea just listening to the birds.

Weather is a big thing on a van holiday though - we don't mind a bit of rain but it can get a bit wearing if it rains every day for a week!

We like to keep things really simple but modern vans can be really well kitted out - home from home with ovens and microwaves, sound systems, fridge freezers etc., and there's always more bits of kit to buy - DH reckons it's like golf or cycling - men are always keen to buy the extras which you don't need, but make them look as if they know what they're doing!

I’ve got a static caravan in a caravan site, no entertainment on site so fees are only £2k a year. There’s a kids play park and LOADs of walking routes and beaches in close proximity. Also entertainment in one of the sister sites which is a 5 minute drive away. I go away every weekend and everytime I’m on annual leave and it’s amazing!

Definitely doesn’t feel like same shit different place to me!

We had a folding camper (caravan base, canvas top half) when the kids were younger and it was fantastic! I loved the fact that we were the only people who slept in the beds, that we weren't regimented into getting up for breakfast at set times, that we were in the fresh air all the time, that I built up my daily step count substantially by needing to walk to the toilet block (several hundred times a day during potty training!), that my culinary skills were tested to the limit by cooking healthy, plentiful meals for 5 on 2 gas burners . Lots of one pan mince or chicken and vegetables with either rice or pasta or potatoes!

I also liked that I wasn't stressing the whole time about the kids damaging something in a self catering cottage or making a mess or having to clean it properly when we left. Yes it was a pain at the end of every summer taking down the camper curtains and linings for washing but not that bad.

The worst bit was when it was wet, boots and trainers never really dried out properly. And clothes and towels felt damp but a quick 20 minutes in the laundry tumble drier sorted those out.

Oh God sorry OP. You have my sympathy.
DH bought one years ago. I hated it with a passion. It was cold, damp, extremely uncomfortable beds and the half hour fight to erect the awning in the rain was always fun.

There was the site in North Wales where the feral children unplugged the electrics of all the tourers on site, tried to steal anything left in the awning and spent the day attempting to aim water balloons at any van stupid enough to have left the roof lights ajar on a hot day.

Never been so happy as the day it went. Not for me at all.

In fairness it was a late 90's van and they are a lot more modern now. Choose sites wisely if you go ahead. Cheap sites will attract a clientele you don't want to be pitched next to (as above)

Packing doesn't have to be arduous, as I guess you would have duplicates of things like crockery, cutlery, toiletries, games, bedding etc that just lived in the van, along with a stash of tins and non perishables, so all you'd need would be some clothes and some fresh food... In that respect it's. Slot less work than a tent, and to be honest, probabaly less work than a self catering place, as you still have to pack everything...

I think he has a point about just packing up (a bit!) and going somewhere for the weekend. But that said, as someone who did a lot of caravaning holidays as a child, if the weather's bad, it can be a bit miserable, so pick your weekends wisely!

We love our touring caravan. We live in a lovely area and there are lots of nice places to stay nearby. We keep essentials, including a few clothes, permanently in the caravan, so minimal packing (just a few clothes). We have a big drive, so no need to pay for storage.

DD has been using it as an office all summer to write a paper

We only eat breakfast in it though, no other cooking... (I refuse to cook dinner on holiday!) and don’t shower or poo in it, just go to sites with good facilities.

First things first.....does he (or you) have the correct licence to tow a caravan and a car with a towing hitch that is able to tow it?

Does he know what berth he wants? Where will he store it? And does he actually know what to do with one, with regards hitching it up and levelling it etc??

I’ve had a holiday homes for 39 of the last 40 years, 5 have been caravans and a 6th has been like a l lodge.
Two have been statics and three have been tourers, which we never towed just kept on a permanent site.
We still had holidays abroad and in this country as well

@MedicalMystery1
Same here.
Had it three years.
Love having a proper bathroom

We are 50 mins from home
Different world
Well it would be as home is near beaches and caravan in country 😂

You won't have to worry about him speeding! Can't think of any other advantages, cooking in a worse kitchen, sleeping in a worse bed, worse shower ... yes I prefer hotels!

My dd has a pop up caravan, that sleeps 6 .
Takes her 20 mins to pop it up
She goes off on her own and meets her girlfriends who have a small caravan, and a camper van
It’s saved her sanity when lockdown was relaxed

"Tell me the good bits please"

For him: he gets to go on mini holidays, with his fully stocked kitchen, someone to prepare his meals and clean up, clean bed linen and towels available and he can sit and enjoy a drink in a new venue and go out exploring.

For you: none. Or rather, negative. You have to do all the usual stuff in cramped surroundings without your mod cons like a washing machine, reliable heating, etc. Possibly being hustled out for a day out knowing that you'll come back to somewhere where you can't even make a cuppa without clearing up the abandoned breakfast things which are taking up every available surface (of which there are few).

Or maybe I'm being unfair to your DH and maybe he fully intends to plan and organise each trip and equally share every necessary task with you and not get annoying by constantly being in the way.

My children were 2 years old, 6 weeks and unborn when we got our first sts at ic in 1979
It cost £1600 then and site rent was £700
Had it 10 years and were there every weekend
Really happy times
We even took the cat!
He loved it there
Out in the country..he had some great mousing times

The nice things I remember from being a DC were BBQs, visiting lovely UK locations like Scotland and Cornwall for 2 weeks a year, and perhaps two or three shorter trips nearer home.

Disliked: long car journeys, parents arguing (often over caravan related practicalities), crowded sites, noise and some of the other kids/adults we encountered!

Cost of ownership also includes tax, maintenance and mot.

I must have read this wrong. Trailer caravans don't need tax or an mot and the maintenance is minimal.

someone to prepare his meals

The OP said We will still have to prepare meals.

DH reckons it's like golf or cycling - men are always keen to buy the extras which you don't need, but make them look as if they know what they're doing

Oh but we can spot when they don't know what they're doing, despite how many shiny things they have, hence the saying 'all the gear, no idea' .

I think you both have to be fully on board for this to work. I did several long walking routes with a friend who had a motorhome that her husband would drive to each camp to meet us and they loved it. It was fabulous, BUT a) they are quite wealthy, if you're doing it all on the cheap, it might not be so smooth. The motorhome had all the mod cons, if anything broke, they just had no problem fixing it, they weren't bothered about fees to park/store it, etc. b) no young kids (our kids are teens and adults) c) they both wanted it. It is a lot of work.

If one person isn't fully on board it's a drag.

I'd make that clear that if he gets one the work is all on him.

One thing we witnessed many a time was couples arguing terribly whilst setting up a touring caravan. I mean, BAD rows. It was obvious one person didn't want to be there or was the one doing all the shit work.

I would love a big static caravan which I would spend as much time in as possible.

Beds are either fixed, which although comfortable limit your use of the inside of the van. Foldaway beds give you more versatile space -converting to a couch during the day- but are a faff and can be uncomfortable (think upholstered pieces of foam).

Loved it as a kid, love it even more as an adult. It’s so cosy when the kids are asleep, crack open the cheese and wine and watch the world go by. Also, I love the sound of the rain in the roof at night, waking up to the sound of birds tweeting and people’s pots and pans clinking for breakfast. With kids, I’d say an awning is a must for when it rains in the day. Keep Lego and games in the van and they play for hours in the awning. We have ‘caravan clothes’ that we keep in the van, wash when we get home and just put straight back in so we’re ready to roll at the shortest notice. Best feeling was seeing mum and dad pick me up from school with the van on the back. We had the best adventures and now my kids do too. They love it
Go for it, you’ll have a great time!

Oh definitely do NOT let it become a holiday for him while you do all the shit work! Start as you mean to go on and make it very clear that he will absolutely be doing at least 50% of the work - cooking, cleaning and parenting included (just in case he tries to argue that setting up/taking down is his fair share...).

We had a caravan for two years . I loved it , my husband hated it . He called it the torture box,

The last time we used it the drive home stressed him out so much when we arrived back at the house he said if you don't get that thing off this drive I swear I'm going to burn it

I put it up for sale the next day

I would also suggest having special holiday toys, games and activities that are only for use when away with the caravan - that way the children will always have ‘new’ stuff to keep them occupied.

How about renting one as a trial run?

I want a camper van, I have a few that I quite like so we’re going to rent them for weekends away before a concrete decision is made.