Trailer tent or camper van with a tent/awning?

[2cats2many]

We saw some lovely Cabanon trailer tents at the weekend and are thinking seriously about buying g the Chamonix with kitchen extension (will cost about £7500).

However, I have been wondering if we should instead pay a bit more and buy a campervan instead. Campervan cons include: we'll have to maintain it, tax and insure it and it'll be smaller than a trailer tent.

Pros include: it seems more romantic and less middle-aged than a trailer tent; it feels like I could be more spontaneous and just take off for the weekend if I wanted to; I've always wanted one.

So basically, emotion is very much getting in the way of making this decision! Any advice or wise words out there for me?

No words of wisdom except that words fail me that anyone could choose a trailer tent over a camper van :o

we bought our trailer tent because it was the much cheaper option, but also because the sleeping part of the tent doesn't have to be packed away every day. we have young children so having lots of living space is important to us.

If it was just dh and I (and our budget was bigger) we would probably go for a camper. Although I've always wondered how much having one restricts where you can park (height restrictions, plus width and length). Which could then impact places you can visit?

Fantastic Mr Fox The Cabanon trailer tents are v gorgeous and not at all fuddy duddy. It really was a nice looking bit of kit.

I suppose I'm just thinking that if I'm prepared to shell out £7500 for one, maybe I should pay a few thousand more and get my much-coveted campervan.

We chose the campervan when we had to make that decision

We've got a T4, it cost somewhere in the region of the trailer tent you're looking at, but then we had to pay £2000 on top for a poptop for headroom and for the sleeping space. We use it as our second vehicle so we're still paying for 2 lots of insurance (less than the car) and tax (more than the car).

Pros: it's warmer than sleeping in a tent, the awning is really quick to put up and we don't tend to bother if we're only staying for a night so setting up is quick, we don't have to tow anything, there's plenty of room for all our stuff, no need to store a trailer, the T4 can park in a normal parking space, we've got a cooker and fridge set up and ready to go, all of the stuff we need is packed year round ready to go

Cons: it costs a fair bit to maintain, when we're on a site it takes a good 10 mins to put the top down and detach the awning before going anywhere.

But I love it

We have a campervan, home made interior but the van is the size of a large transit.
I've managed to park it in most places in the uk and france, it's big enough so we can park and sleep without bothering with an awning (especially useful when it's late,dark or raining). Takes just over a space in tesco.
We used my friends vw a few times but it was just too small with 2dcs without an awning. It's also a pain not being able to stand upright when changing.
I can leave the beds in place for the day if I cba, we just sit outside to eat.
I love my van :-) we normally opt for quiet camp sites that are just big fields as we don't 'need' anything (have water, cooker, toilet, electric on board) so the kids can roam free

Buy s folding camper. Best thing ever and you can get an older one second hand for a lot less. They have hot and cold running water, some have loos. Quick to set up and you've got thr best of both worlds.

Campervans are great for instant get aways. We camp at the drop of a hat with the versatiltiy of a campervan. But you do need to be organised about putting beds away etc. It took us a little while but we have now found a set up that allows us to be away from camp in 10mins. We do not have a connected awning as it takes too long to connect and reconnect them, we have a freestanding living space instead. Good for reserving our pitch when we are away from camp too! On the plus side our set up time on arrival at a new campsite is about 20mins to beer in hand, sitting back in camping chair, everything ready. Bonus! I suspect a trailer tent takes a fair bit longer to set up.

However, of course you get much more space in a trailer tent. If you are likely to spend lots of time in your tent it might be better with a trailer tent. On the other hand if the weather is rubbish in a campervan you can just roll up to some picturesque deserted (because of the weather) spot and make lunch and a cup of tea and if you go for a walk and get wet, no bother all your clothes are right there. We have even put the roof up and had nap in some lovely NT carparks! My advice would be don't over think it, go for what feels right - the worst that can happen is that you end up selling it. Don't know about trailer tents but campervans don't depreciate all that much.

Wow, those Trailer tents look amazing! Only question I would ask was whether you had the space to dry it when it got wet? I know you would have the same problem with an awning but they aren't quite so big

My main thought would be that if you want a reasonably new camper van fully fitted out, it is going to cost quite a lot more than £7500.

Personally, I would always go for a van over a tent - but there's no denying it is (a lot) more expensive, both to buy and to maintain/run. I had a budget of £9K when looking for a camper this spring, & that definitely looked like a rock bottom minimum for anything that wasn't old / very high mileage / both.

I've got the half-way option - bought a 2008 plate Vivaro ex-AA (£5400 + about £350 to get some bits done to it) then had it insulated/ lined/ windows/ rock & roll bed which cost another £2K, then another £100 or so for materials to make a front bed for dd, curtains et al. So going on eight grand even for a van without a hightop/pop top, no kitchen, units etc etc.

It suits me, because I wanted a second vehicle, and a larger van is very useful for work, plus really we use it more as a day van to take to the beach, so surfboard, wetsuits & the lot just chuck in, our camping is more overnights at parties, festivals, that sort of thing.

Wouldn't you consider a caravan of you're spending that much? Takes much less time to set up, you don't need to clear away all dcs toys when you want to go out, and its warm and cosy?