Might own a caravan by morning - what so I need to know?

[MovingtoEssex]

Put in a last minute Ebay bid. Fingers crossed!

But help!!!!!! Please!

What do I need to know? We're seasoned campers, and I grew up caravanning but this is my first as an adult!
Its small and lightweight which scares me a lot less!

Caravan insurance? Do I need to tell the car insurance/breakdown?
It'll be kept on our drive.
Hoping to get to Scotland this summer.

Eek!

No legal obligation to have insurance but its best to have it make sure it covers the contents too.
Check your breakdown cover.
Check it has no damp.
Check everything works
Enjoy

Definitely tell your car insurance.
Check your driving license ensure you have a license to tow a trailer, up until about 1997 it was included in a standard driving test, but beyond that you need an additional test.

Thank you!
Driving licence is definitely ok, but good point.
Bidding finishes shortly.

Have you got a tow bar? Lol

I love your thread title

Did you want one?

was it drunk ebaying

Have fun

Also, if you’re going to collect it remember to have a rear index plate made up.

Don't ever visit Chieveley Services on the M4/A34! No caravan spaces! Otherwise, enjoy! Caravanning is fab

@Ernieshere

I love your thread title

Did you want one?

was it drunk ebaying

Have fun

🤣 have been looking for a while but thought I'd bottle it / oversleep if I didn't bid last night. Now a proud caravan owner 🥳

Congratulations

Congratulations! Our caravan is our favourite thing - we have travelled all over Europe in it and it is just fabulous! Just back from two weeks in it actually :) You're going to have a ball!

Well done, Congratulations, Happy Caravaning!!!

My car has a tow bar (ex demo car) I know when insurance company gets to the optional extras I mention it. They tell me the car is insured to tow but insurance doesn't cover to trailer.

Ha ha your title conjoured up weird Harry Potter like images of how you aquired a caravan.

I envy you.

Personally I'm hankering after a little camper van, just enough room for me and dh (and a loo somehow)
Maybe when we retire, or kids grow up, go off round Europe in it.

How exciting - we’ve had our caravan 5 years now and love it - off to Cornwall in August

My parents had a caravan for a number of years. They said the best thing they did was a one day course on driving and parking with a caravan

Check your driving license ensure you have a license to tow a trailer, up until about 1997 it was included in a standard driving test, but beyond that you need an additional test.

That is completely wrong. It changed in 1997 but you can still tow a trailer or caravan, just with more restrictions on the weight.

Its not that wrong I'll stand by the comment check your licence its also interesting that another poster commented her parents felt they benefited from a course in towing caravans.

Aargh, I wouldn't recommend it, but that's just me. I'm sure others will. I really wanted one, but the thing is such a faff. It's terrifying to have it behind the car, feels very odd driving. It takes an age to sort out its water, electrics etc (maintenance I mean, rather than use). And now the 12 year old doesn't want to sleep in it as the bunks are quite small, so we're now looking at a tent for him. Then probably another tent for the 10 year old soon. We could use inner tents in the awning (another faff) but that's our bike storage and dog crate area gone if we do that. So we're now looking at a caravan and 3 effing tents. Where we used to have one tent. So needless to say the last few trips have been spent with us driving past the caravan on our drive to get to a holiday cottage or similar 😂

Oh and manoeuvring it. You can get the motor movers but it's a lot more weight...

Timewasting - read the Ops posts. She's just bought it from ebay!

Just because caravaning didn't work for your family doesn't mean it won't work for a different family.

@TimeWastingButFun certainly some of my concerns there! Wondered for a few years and now made the leap.
Love camping. Have a compact ish 6 person tent, but the nightmare of packing it up damp and getting out again at home always fills me with dread.
It was either a caravan or going for a 3 man tent.
My ideal is packing most stuff up the night before an early departure (I hear you all laughing 🤣).
Teen is now in his own tiny tent.
2 tweens excited by caravan.
Caravan is tiny but with 2 double beds/lounge areas. Hoping it will allow camping at Oct half term and Easter, and also with dogs which would shred the tents.
Hoping a practical layout.
I'm certainly nervous!
I'm sufficiently ancient that my driving license is definitely ok.

Ha yes the damp tent thing is pretty bad. Before the caravan we ended up throwing away 3 tents when they leaked - two in one year! And my husband loves the privacy aspect of the shower - he hates using public showers. There are lots of good things too, for sure.

We bought our first caravan in similar circumstances. It was so easy after camping. So lovely to be warm and dry on a wet day. And so easy to just keep duplicates of toiletries and cooking stuff in the van, all you need to do is pack food and clothes.

@TimeWastingButFun

Ha yes the damp tent thing is pretty bad. Before the caravan we ended up throwing away 3 tents when they leaked - two in one year! And my husband loves the privacy aspect of the shower - he hates using public showers. There are lots of good things too, for sure.

my absolute main reason for wanting a camper van rather than a tent is to have a loo and shower in it. (and guaranteed dry bed)

Yes the toilet! Not fussed about shower, but late night toilet trips are the pits.

I agree, yes to the toilet, but have never used our shower. Easier using site showers than filling the water tank!