Advice on buying a touring caravan

[fruitandnutlover]

We are hoping to buy a caravan soon and am hoping someone with a bit of experience can help.

I've been looking for a while and have decided on a 4 berth (we have a 7 and 9 yr old) and I want one that has an end bathroom as I would like a separate shower not a wet room style one.

We don't have a huge budget about £4k so probably looking for one about 10 years old.

Ideally, I would like to get one privately probably Ebay and there seems to be some nice ones but what should we look for? I hear a lot of stories about people buying caravans and then finding damp! How would we know if it has damp if it smells ok inside?

Also, is it worth joining the Caravan Club or the Camping and Caravan club? Do you get good discounts?

Lastly, we are in Essex and looking to go to Kent, The Cotswold area, Hampshire, Sussex and Dorset. Can anyone recommend good family friendly sites? Thanks

I don't have a massive amount of advice but here goes.

Don't get too hung up on the bathroom and shower you will hardly ever use it. The shower uses all the water you have in the aquaroll and most places have really nice facilities.

We opted for bunk beds at the end of
Our caravan for the kids - they are slightly younger than yours but it means that when they are asleep They aren't right beside us and we can watch tv and chat without disturbing them. In the middle of the van opposite the kitchen is another seating area so when they get up I can get them their breakfast without having to make beds immediately.
Ours is a 6 berth and also means they can take a friend with them if they want as the breakfast bit makes into bunks.

It's not massively longer than a 4 berth but wow it feels very spacious having the extra table and lets the kids have somewhere for drawing and playing if we don't have the big table up.

Damp - hmm check van has been recently serviced and look inside all cupboards, under beds and feel the walls and woodwork to check if they feel 'spongy'
You should see any damp patches but check around all the seals and look for cracks in the fibreglass outside.

The floor should be solid and not bouncy - this indicates damp.

Also check the payload or weight of the van against what your car can tow.

An awning is good too, if you buy from a dealer ask them to chuck one in. Great for shoes and extra space if it's rainy and you aren't walking wet and mud straight into the van. Can take bikes etx and leave them in it.

Don't know about sites down there sorry

Oh sorry yes join the caravan club as some of the really nice sites are members only. They do good insurance too for about a tenner a month. Really handy and excellent policy for if you get stuck somewhere with breakdown.

Thanks Purple will defo have a look at the 6 berths.

I wouldn't bother with the end bathroom either. takes up too much space. our friends had one and they have just changed their caravan as they never used the shower when the facilities are so good and you don't want the caravan getting damp.
I would like one with fixed bunks, we have 3 kids so got one with the double bed at the back with bunk over. its a pain to put up and down so we tend to just leave them set up and never get to use the end dining area.

Thanks Rockinghorse I'm glad I asked really had my heart set on an end bathroom but your posts both really make sense.

I would go for the end bathroom - we never use the facilities at the sites. A lot of sites have connections for water on each pitch so you don't need to trail water as you attach it direct to your caravan.

We had a caravan which had a dinette which converted to bunk beds double bed was made up from the other eating area at the front of the caravan. This was a good arrangement as it gave extra living space during the day. Our daughter has one with single beds, one on either side... both layouts had an end bathroom.

There's loads of layouts - you're sure to find one that suits you.

Yes ours has fixed bunks. They are fab as when dd was younger she could go for a nap during the day and ds could still draw etc at the other table.
Dh spent ages and ages looking for the right layout. Ours is a swift oronsay.
I wanted one with a fixed bed for us but so glad we didn't.
Happy caravanning!

Buy a damp meter and go over the van with a toothcomb. dont discount dealers, they will give you quite a bit of money off the forecourt price as you're not part exing. I got a 5k sales price van for 3.5k with no negotiation at all.

I've just got rid of my end bathroom van for one with a side bathroom but still a separate shower. It's an unusual layout, lunar 464. Downside is if you needed privacy to get changed its a bit of a squeeze in the bathroom but upside is more living space.

Check how much you can tow with your car. Can't stress this enough. I tow at 90% to my car kerb weight. Recommendation is for no more than 85%, I wouldn't want to go any higher.

I wouldn't bother with the clubs. The Caravan Club release their vacancies on a certain day and allow members to book pitches and then cancel them at very short notice - which means if you're an average person there's never any vacancies anywhere, they're all booked up. We cancelled our membership.

Also, if you do buy from a dealer, ask them to throw in everything that you need to get on the road as part of the deal. We did this with our first van, and saved around £500 (cost to us, obviously the cost to them was much less) on things like an aqua roll, steps, gas bottles, wheel clamp etc.

I'd also a agree with looking at 6 berths - the middle dinette is so useful. An awning is brilliant if the weather's not so good but the kids still want to play "outside", ours was used for painting, paddling pools, all sorts!

It's a bit easier with booking in the camping and caravanning club because you have to pay a deposit when you book.....puts off the time wasters.

Saying that I only just booked this year's sites two weeks ago. Got where I wanted at the week I wanted for May half term, a week in July, and a week in the summer and then Oct half term.

I've left it a bit late for easter I think, but only looked at the big club sites. I'm sure I'll find a small cl with space.