No more tents for us...stepping up to campervan, caravan or motorhome?

[Sunflowermoonbeam]

So my husband and I have camped for years, absolutely loved it and found it easy. Had a few years off after our first and only child and jumped back in this weekend with our 4 year old. To sum it up it was a DISASTER!

Pouring rain putting up the tent, pouring rain putting down the tent, dreadful snorer in next tent kept me awake all night and poorly child who then got stung by wasps! Obvs the last two are unrelated to camping but everything feels harder in a tent, in the rain!

So we've driven home agreeing tents are just not for us anymore and that it is time to step up to some other version of camping but we are not sure what to choose. Has anyone done this and what did you go for?

There are obviously loads of options and we have a medium budget.

A newish VW Campervan feels fun and can be used for day trips plus awe could use it as a main vehicle but again space is limited.

Caravans/motorhomes mean we would have to find storage but the space and ease inside would be a luxury! We rented a motorhome once to go to France and it was incredible.

Anyone made the leap? What did you choose and was it the right decision?

How often would you go camping realistically?

Another reminder to think about how often you want to go and where ideally would you want to be staying. They are expensive! That's a lot of eg hotel or glamping stays. I worked out unless we used it 3-4 trips per year it was cheaper to do a combo of renting one, staying in hotels or glamping.

Also think about ulez zones in cities, it's getting harder especially for diesels and most motor homes are diesel.

Do it!
We bought a VW Transporter last year.

We saved a bit of money by choosing a van that was a couple of years old, basic trim and the most basic level of conversion from a company who mass-convert them. We part-exchanged our family car for it.
We then spent some of the money that we had saved on buying equipment and accessories. 😂

Ways that it's better than tent camping:

1. Sleeping on an R&R bed with a good mattress topper is much more comfortable than any SIM or air bed.
2. It blocks out most of the noise (especially with the ceiling pulled down) and nearly all of the light (it came with black out curtains).
3. It gets less cold in cold weather and less roasting in hot weather (we have a thermal windscreen cover which helps).
4. Much less time to set up and pack away, even if we use an awning.
5. It has cold running water, a small fridge and a two ring gas hob which feels safer and less precarious than a camping stove
6. We have a leisure battery and a solar panel, so even without EHU we can still run the sink pump, lights, fridge and charge phones etc for several days.
7. There's storage space for most of the stuff we take camping, so it stays in the van ready for the next trip. Our bedding rolls up and stays behind the R&R bed once it's converted into seats. If we're going away, the only things we need to pack are the awning, a small bag of clothes each, and any perishable food we want to take.

We would for for a few big holidays a year and then probably once a month at least if we had a campervan

Would you consider an older VW camper? The 1980s ones are mega fun. But you need to be able to keep on top of the repairs / maintenance.

Thank you this is so positive and all the things we had thought would be amazing about a camper. We had been looking at T6.1 for a while but got cold feet about the size. How many of you use yours? Does anyone sleep in the pop top roof?

Every year DH and I (no DCs) have 'the campervan conversation'. I don't drive so it would be our only vehicle, therefore we'd be looking at something towards the smaller end of the market. However, we are divers and underwater photographers with all the paraphernalia that entails - choosing the right size/layout would be tricky for us.
We love the idea though, and always ask to have a look at other people's at different dive sites 🙂

The T6.1 has a Euro 6 engine which is ULEZ compliant.

We only camp in it from April to October (I'm a fair weather camper) but we did 10 trips last year and will do the same this year. We do a lot of weekends away.

Through the winter it still gets used as the family car but we don't camp overnight in it.

Sorry just worked out how to 'quote' when replying. Haha yojmu sound just like us. Feels a big decision doesn't it!

Unfortunately not if it is going to be one of our main vehicles, sadly not reliable enough or fuel efficient. In an ideal world yes, they are super cool!

I do use my 1983 camper as my everyday car but I'm not doing a lot of miles. Definitely not fuel efficient sadly! But so much fun. It's impossible to drive it in a bad mood, it makes you happy just being in it!

We had a caravan for years when the kids were younger. Got our first tourer for £1,000 off ebay with all the gear included. Had it a year and fell in love either caravanning then sold for a profit and invested in a newish van with all mod cons. Good thing about a tourer is the space and comfort. Kids have all grown up caravanning and it's so good for them. They still come now at 21, 18 and 11.

So we also a few years ago bought a vw T5 caravelle and had it converted. Now we have loads of options. We have a driveway awning for the campervan. This year we have sited the tourer for a year in one place and used it as a holiday cottage by the sea.

My brother has a camplet a towing camping trailer they love it as it’s easy to store, pops up in minutes and they have comfy memory foam mattresses. We keep looking a vans / campervans but they are just so expensive. Also once you are on site you have to pack away everytime you want to drive off site.
We have compromised by doing a couple of static caravan hols on really small sites as we like quiet places or camping pods.

VW t5 is perfect for couples or a family of 3. We mostly manage without an awning too, as I believe in keeping it simple. Means you can get away quickly if it is raining on your last day. We are all pretty slim though, so depends on your size and that of your partner.

Thanks all, love hearing all your views and experience. Plenty of food for thought. Without a doubt I'm certain we've closed the door on camping in a tent!

Camper vans are great. Turn up at the camp site, pop the top, get table and chairs out and you're done. I'd certainly never go back to a tent.

Would you consider an older VW camper? The 1980s ones are mega fun. But you need to be able to keep on top of the repairs / maintenance.

I'm going for a retro van (refurbished mechanically) eventually. I am a massive vintage fan. However, the continual maintenance is a worry going forward as is suitable storage for the vehicle. I prefer to plod along when I drive anyway and I'm a bit of a romantic/idealist - see it as a cabin to puruse my creative projects. However, it is a me van and certainly wouldn't be large enough for 3 on its own. If I travelled alone, I would want to set up a bell tent up alongside it to potentially sleep in/storage though I understand you can purchase stand alone awnings. I like sleeping under canvas but also like the idea of having an alternative in bad weather.

I will likely have a second vehicle or will not do many miles day to day. This kind of van is a labour of love and probably something you couldn't depend on. You would have less to worry about with a modern van in terms of reliability etc.

Watching this thread with interest. Will start a seperate thread so as not to de-rail this one but if anyone has a vintage VW and it happy to pm me, it would be good to hear your experiences.

Caravan is great but things to consider

Tow car - got to know weight and how much nose weight it will take.
Weight of caravan. A lot of recent vans are pretty heavy MTLM of 1500 plus so that will need a chunkier tow vehicle.

Storage - I pay &800 a year for storage.
Insurance - arounf £400 plus per year
Breakdown insurance
Awnings are expensive - get an air awning but think there is quite a second hand market.
Kit.
Campsites vary but once you go fully serviced (electric, water and grey waste) you don't go back.

Before we bought the van, we had a folding camper and had a portable flush loo curtained off in the awning. That might be a good interim measure and intro to towing.

We have a folding camper. They are easy to tow and store. They also have many the amenities of a caravan when erected, but you still have to put them up and take them down, and in the rain that can be a pain. We may eventually swap ours for some kind of compact caravan. We have seen a few in Australia that would suit our style of camping. Shipping back to the UK is expensive though.

If you like the idea of an older VW but are worried about space, look out for a Viking conversion. The super viking roof is enormous our van sleeps 6 officially, but you'd need to be friendly. 5 is easy though. And if you only need to sleep 3 you'd have acres of storage in the roof.

I suggest looking at a folding camper - you still get the camping under canvas bit but sleeping and eating is off the ground in the trailer bit so much more civilised! Plus if you get an awning, you get twice as much space for sitting in, hanging wet coats, wellies etc. We had a Pennine Sterling 520 (I think!) in the early 2000s for our family and the kids (and me!) loved it.

We had the camper van conversation. Rented one for a weekend and decided it would not be for us.

Slow and difficult to drive on narrow roads
Everything needed packing up to nip to the shops or beach.
Pop up space was damp and uncomfortable

For the price of one we rent lovely cottages

We had a VW California when our DC were younger, older teens now so has been sold. Had some fab holidays in it, best ones in France and Spain. We used it as a daily drive and being factory fit the height (under 2m) is lower than most conversions, so most car parks are accessible. We also used for lots of days out. We had a great time, our only regret is we didn’t get it when our kids were really small but we had a good 6 years out of it. Go for it, it was a lot of fun!

We now have a vw transporter but have also had a caravan. If I had young kids I would opt for the caravan every time. Once you pitch up it's so much more luxurious. VW transporters require too much messing. We have a long wheel base and it's great for two of us. With young kids absolutely not.

Campers have advantages in as much as they are smaller and therefore can double up as your main car. When away however the small size can prove a real problem as you can have either a lounge, kitchen, dining room or bedroom but only one at a time. An awning helps immensely but it is more stuff to carry and you are semi under canvas again.

Afraid we are committed to our motorcaravan, 6-berth (for just 2 of us) means we have a double bed each plus whoever is up first can make breakfast while the other is still snoozing.
Size can be a problem in some carparks but with experience you work out what places work and which ones don't. Also we are able to park at home but many would not be able (or want) to.

Both types can cost serious money depending on your budget, age and type of vehicle you are going for.