Motorhome advice required

[Delbert]

I'm following this thread with interest I've done the Camping Thing, Caravanning Thing and Narrow Boating Thing ( which I prefer to the other two although the obvious limitation being no canals in a lot of places. I'm hoping next year to do the Rock Festival Thing and there is no way on this earth I am fannying about in a tent but a Motorhome sounds the ticket just the two of us and enough liquids to exceed responsable drinking limits for a small force.(Obviously hiring)

[Dr W]

I have been impressed by the folks that go away in a tent.

 

It had not crossed my mind but I have just been down to B&Q and they have a 4 man tent, double air bed, 2xsingle airbeds, 4 sleeping bags all for £99 thats a bargain surely.

 

What else would you need equipment wise?

 

 

Chairs etc?

 

Seconding J@mes response and also suggesting,

1. Get an extra plastic tarp for under the tent as it makes it much easier to clean and pack away.

2. Colemans twin chamber air beds, very comfyand reliable about £35.

3. Colemans dual fuel petrol stoves are very good (have to be a little careful with filling for obvious reasons).

4. Also heard that putting a silver blankey under the airbed helps with insulation.

5. Just bought a Vango 36 LED lantern which can be wound up (2mins for 25 mins light) or charged from mains or car, very useful and much easier than rechargeable batteries, obviously if you go main electric sites it's easier but I don't.

[Alpha Mule]

Well if we are getting into the 'bells and whistles': you can get nifty little LED lamps that stick to the roof of the tent for not too many pennies (or buy a tent with them permanently attached).

Self inflating matresses (get the extra thick ones for the ladies as they are thicker in the hip and shoulder areas). They aren't cheap, but worth every penny.

When buying your tent, unless you have a specific need for something else - get one that has the outside up first!!!!!!

 

Something that comes in handy with my tent, being higher than I can comfortably chuck guy-lines over (mine is an inside up first affair) the apex (to haul the outside over).

This is version 2 (it is 10m long and doubles up with the string hammock)

 

 

Version 1 was only about 4m long and worked great, until it myseriously disappeared one morning while we were away.

Edited May 5, 2010 by Alpha Mule

[harrycatcat1]

Just thought I would let you know I am picking this up tomorrow so if you get stuck behind me please feel welcome to hoot your horn.

 

Keep out of the way from Lincoln back to Chesterfield.

 

 

[starlight32]

Well if we are getting into the 'bells and whistles': you can get nifty little LED lamps that stick to the roof of the tent for not too many pennies (or buy a tent with them permanently attached).

Self inflating matresses (get the extra thick ones for the ladies as they are thicker in the hip and shoulder areas). They aren't cheap, but worth every penny.

When buying your tent, unless you have a specific need for something else - get one that has the outside up first!!!!!!

 

Something that comes in handy with my tent, being higher than I can comfortably chuck guy-lines over (mine is an inside up first affair) the apex (to haul the outside over).

This is version 2 (it is 10m long and doubles up with the string hammock)

 

 

Version 1 was only about 4m long and worked great, until it myseriously disappeared one morning while we were away.

 

 

Incidentally can you name those two knots and what there orignal use was for? (Nautically)

[Dougy]

left is turks head, decoration or used to stop fraying

right possibly boline, benifits, will not slip under load, easy to tie with one hand, easy to un tie, also known as the king of knots due to the importance safety wise

Edited May 8, 2010 by Dougy

[Delbert]

Just thought I would let you know I am picking this up tomorrow so if you get stuck behind me please feel welcome to hoot your horn.

 

Keep out of the way from Lincoln back to Chesterfield.

 

Looks the business Harry I'm betting if you are not used to high siders cornering

was a squeaky bum exercise, can you post some inside views of the bus please

I'm interested in the logistics of the thing .

Derek

[harrycatcat1]

 

 

Not fetched it yet chap rung up and said can I get it Sunday, these are the only photos I have of the inside.

[Dougy]

where are you putting the gun cabinet

[harrycatcat1]

where are you putting the gun cabinet

 

I will think of a way of taking the gun and rod

[harrycatcat1]

Well what a flippin stressful day been out in the camper got to Wakefield and got no gears clutch problem so limped back to near Chesterfield and had to call breakdown man and he diagnosed clutch matser cylinder gone so he towed me home

 

So on the look out for a master cylinder tomorrow.

 

Just thought that it would make someone laugh anyway, not me let me say!!!!!!

 

All the best

 

Hcc

[Guest gloker]

My father-in-law bought an old diesel prison van (you know the ones, big box body with seperate cells in back.) at an auction for very little money.

ripped the cells out and fitted a caravan interior. It is awesome. and that cost about 8500 all in.

[rodp]

It seems you have had some bad experiences with hotels. I guess we take a lot of time in planning, use the Michelin Red Guide, check Tripadvisor - a useful tool - and seek advice generally and from the many hotels that we have stayed in both in the UK, Ireland and the rest of the world, I honestly cannot think of any disappointment anywhere. Oh yes,and staying with friends is pretty good too, particularly when heading via Scotland & England to get a car ferry to the Continent.

 

 

Now that would drive me up the wall. You mean to say you plan your holidays THAT far in advance, and once booked you cannot change your mind!

 

We, the wife and I, go away the week after next but heaven only knows where as we haven't decided yet. That's the beauty of a caravan. We shall probably book a site a couple of days before we go (maybe), we shall be in a van we know is comfortable, we won't have drunks making any noise, we can eat ANY time we like, we will wake up to the open fields and won't be looking at some grotty stranger over breakfast.

Tried hotels once, not impressed. Everyone to their own.

[harrycatcat1]

Now that would drive me up the wall. You mean to say you plan your holidays THAT far in advance, and once booked you cannot change your mind!

 

We, the wife and I, go away the week after next but heaven only knows where as we haven't decided yet. That's the beauty of a caravan. We shall probably book a site a couple of days before we go (maybe), we shall be in a van we know is comfortable, we won't have drunks making any noise, we can eat ANY time we like, we will wake up to the open fields and won't be looking at some grotty stranger over breakfast.

Tried hotels once, not impressed. Everyone to their own.

 

 

[fortune82]

Ive always thought the idea of going on holiday was you went somewhere you hadnt seen before or liked and lived in more luxurious conditions than your house.

 

A caravan or motorhome is certainly not better than my house! I stayed in one years ago which was boiling during the day and freezing at night. It also bounced like an inflatable toy whenever you walked in it!

 

A collegue bought a motor home for 35K 5 years ago, second hand. It did sub 20 mpg on diesel. When they sold it 4 years later it had lost 7K. When they worked out costs and depreciation it worked out at over £3000 a year. £3000 a year to sleep in a field and **** in a bucket for 4 weeks a year!!

 

Sounds brilliant to me!!!

[rodp]

Ive always thought the idea of going on holiday was you went somewhere you hadnt seen before or liked and lived in more luxurious conditions than your house.

 

A caravan or motorhome is certainly not better than my house! I stayed in one years ago which was boiling during the day and freezing at night. It also bounced like an inflatable toy whenever you walked in it!

 

A collegue bought a motor home for 35K 5 years ago, second hand. It did sub 20 mpg on diesel. When they sold it 4 years later it had lost 7K. When they worked out costs and depreciation it worked out at over £3000 a year. £3000 a year to sleep in a field and **** in a bucket for 4 weeks a year!!

 

Sounds brilliant to me!!!

 

You've obviously not been in a caravan in the last twenty years, if at all, so how can you possibly argue against them. Just to prove this point some vans now have air con, blown air or central heating, mains toilet waste hook up etc, etc. You're talking out of your a**e. :blink:

 

And as for hotels being more luxurious, I don't live in a hovel so they're not.

As for your colleague, it's his problem he didn't use it, not the motorhome's.

 

Do yourself a favour and try one, at least you'll know enough to discuss them then.

[fortune82]

Ahh, I was right then

 

Right about what?

[Beardo]

keep it friendly chaps

[hushpower]

I can never quite understand the attraction of a motor home or caravan.

 

Both cost loads of money and sit around for probably 10 - 11 months of the year doing nothing apart from rusting [look at the cills on the photo of the previous post!]. They block up the drive to your house or sit in the street taking up parking space and look ugly as sin.

 

The money saved on buying the thing and depreciation could pay for loads and loads of holidays in nice hotels B& Bs etc.

 

If you have a motor home or caravan, it is probably illegal to park it in some nice place when you do go on holiday so you end up in a campsite or caravan park with hundreds of others all next door to each other - not much fun surely?

 

Then you fill up your motorhome or caravan with food etc from the supermarket and then that means

 

[a] you have to cook it in some silly little stove [when you have a nice kitchen at home] and wash up in some silly little sink or else cart it to some sort of ablutions block. What sort of holiday is that?

 

you dont support the local economy by trying out local pubs, restaurants etc

 

[c] you have a chemical loo which needs to be pumped out - or else you lose all your dignity and use the stinking campsite conveniences

 

[d] the shower is tiny and the water tepid [think of that nice bathroom you have at home]

 

[e] if the weather is bad and you cannot go out, you will literally be climbing up the walls of a glorified Transit van

 

[f] you meet no-one except other "happy campers"

 

[g] it is a nightmare to park in any town or village

 

[h] it wont fit under the 6 foot height barrier of any car park which is intended to keep commercial vehicles out

 

you will get nothing but contempt from all the other motorists in cars who get stuck behind you - kind of selfish isnt it and I am sure YOU are not like that ?

 

[j] you have no privacy

 

If you lived in the big wide open spaces of the USA with the freeways I could perhaps understand and if you had something spacious and cool like a Winnebago which could accommodate a couple of motor bikes or a car to tour with, maybe I could understand that as well.

 

Please either explain the attractions - someone - or else redeploy the money saved into taking your car with you on holiday, finding a B&B or a hotel or else even a self-catering cottage and have some real fun.

 

I am so puzzled! I spent one night in a caravan in north Wales in 1971 - more than enough for a lifetime - I still remember it with horror.

[Browning GTS]

I can never quite understand the attraction of a motor home or caravan.

 

Both cost loads of money and sit around for probably 10 - 11 months of the year doing nothing apart from rusting [look at the cills on the photo of the previous post!]. They block up the drive to your house or sit in the street taking up parking space and look ugly as sin.

 

The money saved on buying the thing and depreciation could pay for loads and loads of holidays in nice hotels B& Bs etc.

 

If you have a motor home or caravan, it is probably illegal to park it in some nice place when you do go on holiday so you end up in a campsite or caravan park with hundreds of others all next door to each other - not much fun surely?

 

Then you fill up your motorhome or caravan with food etc from the supermarket and then that means

 

[a] you have to cook it in some silly little stove [when you have a nice kitchen at home] and wash up in some silly little sink or else cart it to some sort of ablutions block. What sort of holiday is that?

 

you dont support the local economy by trying out local pubs, restaurants etc

 

[c] you have a chemical loo which needs to be pumped out - or else you lose all your dignity and use the stinking campsite conveniences

 

[d] the shower is tiny and the water tepid [think of that nice bathroom you have at home]

 

[e] if the weather is bad and you cannot go out, you will literally be climbing up the walls of a glorified Transit van

 

[f] you meet no-one except other "happy campers"

 

[g] it is a nightmare to park in any town or village

 

[h] it wont fit under the 6 foot height barrier of any car park which is intended to keep commercial vehicles out

 

you will get nothing but contempt from all the other motorists in cars who get stuck behind you - kind of selfish isnt it and I am sure YOU are not like that ?

 

[j] you have no privacy

 

If you lived in the big wide open spaces of the USA with the freeways I could perhaps understand and if you had something spacious and cool like a Winnebago which could accommodate a couple of motor bikes or a car to tour with, maybe I could understand that as well.

 

Please either explain the attractions - someone - or else redeploy the money saved into taking your car with you on holiday, finding a B&B or a hotel or else even a self-catering cottage and have some real fun.

 

I am so puzzled! I spent one night in a caravan in north Wales in 1971 - more than enough for a lifetime - I still remember it with horror.

 

I would like to comment on the caravan realated bits above

 

1. our van does not sit around for most of the year we stay in it every time i get a long weekend off, its kept at a site in a small village on the edge of the cotswolds and as we live in a town its like the home in the country. Last year we spent a total of 65 days in it.

 

2. The money saved on B&B and hotels means we can go away so much.

 

a. the stove is big enough for all our needs, like cooking nice bits of fillet steak.

 

b. as we are away we use the local pubs at least 50% of the time.

 

c. all camping and caravan, caravan club and a lot of independaent sites toilet block are kept very clean and do not stink.

 

d. yes small shower in van but not in blocks also most new vans will heat water up to same as a home boiler.

 

e. the same if weather is bad at home, i just watch our portable sat` system.

 

f. its suprising the amount of locals you get talking to in the pubs ( see b )

 

g. leave van on site and drive car.

 

h. see above.

 

i. Funny but i pay same road tax, and still get stuck behind lorrys tractors down country lanes when towing.

 

j. ? just shut the door.

[Browning GTS]

I can never quite understand the attraction of a motor home or caravan.

 

Both cost loads of money and sit around for probably 10 - 11 months of the year doing nothing apart from rusting [look at the cills on the photo of the previous post!]. They block up the drive to your house or sit in the street taking up parking space and look ugly as sin.

 

The money saved on buying the thing and depreciation could pay for loads and loads of holidays in nice hotels B& Bs etc.

 

If you have a motor home or caravan, it is probably illegal to park it in some nice place when you do go on holiday so you end up in a campsite or caravan park with hundreds of others all next door to each other - not much fun surely?

 

Then you fill up your motorhome or caravan with food etc from the supermarket and then that means

 

[a] you have to cook it in some silly little stove [when you have a nice kitchen at home] and wash up in some silly little sink or else cart it to some sort of ablutions block. What sort of holiday is that?

 

 

 

you dont support the local economy by trying out local pubs, restaurants etc

 

[c] you have a chemical loo which needs to be pumped out - or else you lose all your dignity and use the stinking campsite conveniences

 

[d] the shower is tiny and the water tepid [think of that nice bathroom you have at home]

 

[e] if the weather is bad and you cannot go out, you will literally be climbing up the walls of a glorified Transit van

 

[f] you meet no-one except other "happy campers"

 

[g] it is a nightmare to park in any town or village

 

[h] it wont fit under the 6 foot height barrier of any car park which is intended to keep commercial vehicles out

 

you will get nothing but contempt from all the other motorists in cars who get stuck behind you - kind of selfish isnt it and I am sure YOU are not like that ?

 

[j] you have no privacy

 

If you lived in the big wide open spaces of the USA with the freeways I could perhaps understand and if you had something spacious and cool like a Winnebago which could accommodate a couple of motor bikes or a car to tour with, maybe I could understand that as well.

 

Please either explain the attractions - someone - or else redeploy the money saved into taking your car with you on holiday, finding a B&B or a hotel or else even a self-catering cottage and have some real fun.

 

I am so puzzled! I spent one night in a caravan in north Wales in 1971 - more than enough for a lifetime - I still remember it with horror.

 

I would like to comment on the caravan realated bits above

 

1. our van does not sit around for most of the year we stay in it every time i get a long weekend off, its kept at a site in a small village on the edge of the cotswolds and as we live in a town its like the home in the country. Last year we spent a total of 65 days in it.

 

2. The money saved on B&B and hotels means we can go away so much.

 

a. the stove is big enough for all our needs, like cooking nice bits of fillet steak.

 

b. as we are away we use the local pubs at least 50% of the time.

 

c. all camping and caravan, caravan club and a lot of independaent sites toilet block are kept very clean and do not stink.

 

d. yes small shower in van but not in blocks also most new vans will heat water up to same as a home boiler.

 

e. the same if weather is bad at home, i just watch our portable sat` system.

 

f. its suprising the amount of locals you get talking to in the pubs ( see b )

 

g. leave van on site and drive car.

 

h. see above.

 

i. Funny but i pay same road tax, and still get stuck behind lorrys tractors down country lanes when towing.

 

j. ? just shut the door.

 

one attraction at least 2 of the farm site we stay on i also have shooting permission from staying there.

Edited June 1, 2010 by Browning GTS

[harrycatcat1]

It just goes to show that camping and or caravaning is like salt and pepper some people like it and some dont so we will all have to agree to disagree.

[Andy75]

Camper-vanner myself Not sure what the attraction is in sleeping on beds that are only a (hopefully cleaned..) thin sheet away from a mattress that's seen god knows what on it recently :S I don't enjoy other people's bodily fluids much!

 

Plus, it means I get to go where I want, when I want, and the Dog comes too