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Reck has clearly said a few times in this thread that he has little interest in getting a trailer.  If it works for you, that's great, but I really don't think you're going to talk him round... 

Also: are you seriously saying each and every time you meet a person in a Hymer with no clue how to drive it on a single track road, you stop, unhitch, push the trailer out of the way, reverse the car, let them past, hitch the trailer and then carry on?? 

As we tend to camp in remote places, that's enough to put me off small trailers for life!

Quote: Originally posted by dmsplat on 26/5/2010

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Reck has clearly said a few times in this thread that he has little interest in getting a trailer.  If it works for you, that's great, but I really don't think you're going to talk him round... 

Also: are you seriously saying each and every time you meet a person in a Hymer with no clue how to drive it on a single track road, you stop, unhitch, push the trailer out of the way, reverse the car, let them past, hitch the trailer and then carry on?? 

As we tend to camp in remote places, that's enough to put me off small trailers for life!

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Hi, we've got a volvo estate and since our dog travels in the boot area in a small crate we needed extra space. 

Hubby bought a Thule platform that attaches to the tow hitch of the car and he got the Thule bag that I fill with "essentials" and strap it to the platfom.  It sits no higher than our tailgate window so doesn't add to fuel consumption like a roof box.

When not used on holidays the platform doubles as a bike carrier, takes three big bikes easily.

The only trouble is that once the bag is on and loaded its a bit of a pia to get off unclipping everything, so to get access to the boot is impossible.  The dog's crate needed to be turned around and to get in and out the back seat was folded forward which on a volvo is easy.

We went to the south of France last year with this set up and we got some admiring glances from drivers with roofboxes and trailers while we waited at the toll booths.

To add to Alison's list - the new VW sharan is out later in the year and it has sliding side doors (edit - so does the Mazda mid sized MPV).  The Citroen C8, Peugeot 807 and Fiat Ulysses (spelling??) also have the sliding doors, but all three of these are no longer available new in the UK (which is a shame, really).

As I currently own a C8 with slidey doors, I wholeheartedly recommend it!  No more kids whacking the car next to you when flinging the door open.  No more putting your back out trying to get the baby in & out of the car seat when you're in a tight space...  It's amazing!  (ours are also electric & remote control - push a button on the key - kids can run to the car and get themselves in ready to be buckled in - we LOVE it!).

We have a VW sharan (same as a galaxy) and in 5 seat mode is huge in the boot, we can fit our dog cage in and the double pushchair and the 3 kids are more than comfy in the back with 3 individual seats, Its a 1.9tdi and we currenly get about 42mpg around town and a bit more on the motorway,

Should be ideal for camping stuff, only problem is getting to roofbox youy may need a little folding step or something.

Quote: Originally posted by neilster on 26/5/2010

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Got a Galaxy MkIII. 5 of us went camping and managed to get everything in the back with the very rear 2 seats folded down (no roofbox) And we don't go light.. I.E Vermont Xl + carpet and groundsheet. Sleeping bags.. Pillows, 2 wardrobes, 3 tables, 5 chairs, airbeds, Double burner cooker and cooking stand, towels, clothes, food, pots and pans etc.. and a rc1700 3 way fridge and fishing gear..

We looked at Tourans/Zafiras but they were just that little bit to small..

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My husband has a renault megane estate. The boot is enormous. Only trouble is, I think they may be redesigning it.

I have a kia sportage and with the roofbox can manage all the stuff for 4 of us, but its a bit of a squash.

At least with little ones you can put stuff at their feet. I put a box on the floor by my 4 year old and stick a couple of pillows on it so he can sleep more comfortably on the journey :)

we use our VW Transporter Kombi for camping . It has the comfort and performance of a car and practicality of a van without looking like a commercial vehicle .

We can fit everything inside including 4 bikes and have even taken the BBQ from the garden before !

Also if everything goes pair shaped with the tent there is enough room for a family of 4 to sleep inside.

Its the perfect vehicle for camping on a large scale.