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Please can anyone give us some advice?

We are thinking of buying a trailer tent/folding camper. We currently have a tent (8man) but thinking we will gain more space whilst camping and transporting the 4 of us (2 adults,toddler and baby) and all luggage/equipment,bikes etc. Realised this wet weekend we just haven't enough space in the car and perhaps our tents not up to that much rain.

What kind of thing should we be looking for/avoiding? Any recommended folding campers/tt for the first timer? We've got a fairly limited budget -or is it not worth cutting costs on buying a folding camper/tt?

All advice gratefully received from you experts!!!

Quote: What kind of thing should we be looking for/avoiding? Any recommended folding campers/tt for the first timer? We've got a fairly limited budget -or is it not worth cutting costs on buying a folding camper/tt?

The Folding camper vs Trailer tent discussion tends to go on a bit.  Having had a tent -> Folding camper and now a caravan, I can tell you that............. Folding campers are more expensive BUT hold their value really well.  Folding campers base unit (without awning) can be fully erected in from  10-20 mins depending on type for an overnight stop and sleep up to 6 people, with the cooker and sink under cover in the unit.  For the longer holidays an awning can be added which more than doubles the usable area.  You can get a unit with or without mains electricity or at the other end of the spectrum one with a toilet and vanity sink and an oven.  The FC I have experienc of is the Pennine Pathfinder - an excellent piece of kit.

The Trailer tents I understand have larger beds and any cooking may have to happen oputside for overnight stops.  This sums up my knowledge of Trailer tents! 

 I KNOW without a doubt that someone will be on shortly singing - nay YELLing the various plus points of Combicamps and probably Dandys (Riva)

Ultimately your decision will be based on what your specific requirements are and how far the pocket stretches.  You'll love the getting your bum off the floor feeling though!

If you decide on buying a tt/folding camper have a look on ebay.  You can pick up a tt for much less than from a retailer and if you have a budget take your time think long term, the children are only going to grow so think about a larger awning, we have 3 children and bought our 1st tt when they were small, we soon realised our mistake as we didn't have a large enough awning and were constantly in each others way.  We have never bought a brand new tent and have never yet had a bad one. 

Good luck

I think for budget you can't go wrong with the Sunncamp 400se we had one for two years and it is easy to tow and a very spacious awning. We used to put the travel cot in a corner of the awning for our little one. With practice we used to be able to put all of it up in just over an hour. We have since upgraded to a folding camper and paid a lot more for it but it is up in 20 mins it is obviously a lot more comfortable if the weather is bad (like last weekend) where we where able to sit in the main unit.

It is totally a personal choice, your best bet is to go and have a look at both and see which one is more suitable for your family. then have a look on e-bay as the Sunncamp are going quite reasonably.

Karende

I think that you really need to go and look at a whole range of different folding campers and trailer tents before you make a decision.  I was amazed when we began looking at just how many different makes and models there are and how much they vary in size from quite compact to absolutely huge!

Have a look at new ones first, decide what you like and what size you need and then, if you have a limited budget, look around for second hand in the style you like.

Finally, as I would hate to disappoint PenninePlodder, have a look at the Combi Camps, they are brilliant.  They are classed as a trailer tent but only take a fraction of the time to put up that a standard trailer tent takes due to the way they fold out.  They aren't as big as some of the huge trailer tents though so if space is what you want they may not suit.

Thanks all for the replies.

I think we'll have to have a day trip out to Camperlands at Manchester to actually see some folding campers/tt's in action! Can't find anywhere locally that actually has any! But getting the car LPG'd next week so it will be after that.

Nice to see the sunshine today.

I have a Dandy and was out in the rain last weekend  very comfortable thank you... They big advantage though is that when I bring it home I do not have to bother drying it out .....

I packed it away sodden in Feb and brought it out for this weekend and it was fine..... Now put it back after foul weather.. with no worries ... for me this is a really big advantage!

Most folk would just love to demonstrate their beloved holiday homes.  I don't think it would be cheeky and who better to answer all the what's who's and where's?  I'd go along on spec...

hi there, were selling a tt, were a bit far from you tho, but if you like i could forward some pic's on to you just to give you an idea of the size, ours is 6-8 berth and we stored alot of thing in the trailer which freed up loads of room in the car,

june