Buying a trailer tent - need some advice from those who have one.

[crochetdiva]

We want to buy a trailer tent to replace our much-loved, but somewhat impractical vango diabolo 600.

I'm quite fancying a trigano - does anybody have one?

What should I be looking for if I'm buying a second-hand one?

Are there any makes you'd avoid like the plague?

Any advice would be gratefully appreciated.

No advice but I had to LOL. We used to borrow my mum and stepdad's trailer tent but they sold it as it was so much hassle to put up and took up a lot of room at home. We replaced it with, yes you guessed it, a Vango Diablo 600!

We were thinking of getting one recently but went for a Dandy camper instead as I was worried about how hard some the the Trailer tents are to put up (we had problems with a Vango Killington 600 last year, sold it after one attempt to put it up on the drive failed!)

I don't think a Dandy is for everyone as they are made from PVC which some people hate. I've heard them likened to marmite, love them or hate them ! But you don't need to worry about folding them down wet and the PVC is practically indestructible. It is insulated so apparently is cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. We haven't got as far as going away in ours yet as I've been making new cushions, curtains etc. Dustystar helped me put it up. We didn't have any instructions and did it in 15 minutes. I'm confident that with practice I can get it comfortably to 10 minutes including the inside.

It came with a knackered awning so have a Khyam Motordome awning which also goes up in just a few minutes - though I don't think we would need bother putting it up for an overnight stop. This is what they look like. We've got a 5 berth which is a bit bigger and has two small seats with a table but still very easy to tow. I'm going to do it so that I put the DCs on airbeds going on the double bed and the seats so they can go lengthways instead of cross ways and won't have to scrabble over each other if that makes sense. Then a curtain between them. I found ukcampsite very helpful when reading up on them. You get some on Ebay that go for a few hundred pounds so they can be quite cheap and are very easy to work on and clean.

If we hadn't have gone for the Dandy I think we would have had a Camplet or a Combicamp.

Thanks for your help - one of the things I'm worried about is the difficulty of putting it up ... especially the awning!

Not a trailer tent I know, but we have had a Conway Cruiser and now own a Pennine Pathfinder. Both fairly easy and quick to put up. Not sure if Pennine does trailer tents (at least under that brand - they own Conway too) but I know there are Conway trailer tents and would imagine they have the same simple opening system.

Thanks for that, Rubberduck - don't want to get into caravan-ish territory though, otherwise the ILs will expect us to go away on caravan club rallies with them [shudder] ...

we a sunncamp 250 - the smaller but stil large of the range of trailer tents - me and hubby managed to put it up between us and it was fab - sadly we parted with it when i was pregnant with ds - if i could afford it now i woudl defo think about getting a folding camper like a penine fiesta or something.... in my wildest dreams i would have a penine pathfinder or sterling . Look out for mildew, tears and b4 you go on your maiden voyage lay all the awning poles out and make sure all the clicky pole jioners are in situ or actually present or you will look a twonl when you arrive on site and your arguing with your family 3 hrs later! Also check when last time re waterproofed as this is an essential maintenance job. Oooo i wish i had not stumbled onto camping threads as im desperate but dh wont play