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Hi - just got back from a wet 'n' windy break in the tent  - just me and 2 kids as hubby won't camp. For the first time I'm thinking about a caravan, as I find the whole pitching/packing up solo really stressful, and spend much of the holiday worrying if it will be windy/raining and if I will fit everything back in the car when I try to pack up!

So this is a real beginners point. I've had a read of a few messages on here, and I'm not even to the stage of picking out interior layouts etc just yet. Just a few quick thoughts to help me decide if I should go down the caravan route.

1) Can I tow with a Ford Focus? And is it easy to get a towbar fitted?

2) Do most people have awnings? Can they be put up alone, or are they strictly 2-person jobs?

3) How much money should I be spending on a caravan for 4 people? I'm not fussed about aesthetic appeal, fashion, newness  etc - 2nd hand is great.

4) I know you can get heating in vans - how effective is it? In order to justify the expense of the van I would need to be using it in Spring/Autumn I think.

Sorry this seems like a few really dopey questions, hope someone is patient enough to help me out!

Hi Kate

Before you start think about what you want, I would suggest that you go and have a look around the nearest dealer and see what you can get for your money. It is difficult to give advice when we don't know how much you want to spend.

You can spend from £500 to £10,000 on a second hand van. If you know someone who is an experienced vanner then persuade them to go with to a dealers. 

Yes you can tow with a Ford Focus but not a very big  van. A tow bar will cost about £200-£300 possibly

Heating in vans is effective but it does depend which van. Most vans are heated by warm air and the unit uses either gas aor electric.

Ask as many questions as you like. Someone will come up with an answer!

The post below has some good points by biffanio

Hi Kate

We came from a tt to a caravan and bought a cheap 2 berth to see whether we liked it and to give us an idea of what we wanted in a 'van.  I always advise getting a cheap 'van to begin with as then if you pick the wrong layout or it doesn't suit you, you won' thave lost much.

Take a look on http://www.whattowcar.com/ for what weight you can tow and http://www.caravanfinder.co.uk/caravans.html and ebay for pictures of 'vans interiors.  You could put a full awning up by yourself but it would be really hard work and i wouldn't want to try it.  You can get porch awnings which are lighter so might be easier to put up.  Towbars are easily available :)

The heating in a 'van is really good as it soon warms up :)  You can go away all year round :)

hth

Not dopey questions at all - and hi ! Those 2 above me there have given good answers (dunno why I'm bothering with my tuppence-worth really ! lol)

I'd say generally you're going to be warmer in a van than a tent anyway.  

Awnings,  even sun canopies can be tricky with 2 people in our very limited experience  - it will be very much dependant on how tall (or not - like Mrs Z) you are, how fit you are, how windy it is, and of course the design of the canopy / awning itself.  We're still trying to find one... !

Spend what you can afford but not neccessarily the maximum - I agree with ashwellgirl.

Jonks answers as regards towing with your car are imo spot on.

And just like to say that much as Mrs Z & I love being in a tent, we don't love the pitching or packing up in awful weather. We do really appreciate the comparitive ease and speed of setting up with our little caravan - there's almost nothing to do ! We're now more inclined to go away much more often for short breaks as a result, and it's a joy to be able to move around to a few different places on a longer holiday too.

All the best  hope you find something nice & sure you'll enjoy the swap.

Porch awnings are so much easier to erect and they can give you all the room you would require for about £200. Check the awning out at home first so you understand its bits and bobs and where everything goes. Tricky to erect first time, less so the second time and after just a few trips it will be a doddle.

What model Ford Focus? What size engine and is it petrol or deisel? Folks need that information to have nay view o nits abilities for you rpurposes.

Oh and don't worry about waht others do..think about what you want out of a van and how your requirements (2 kids/hubby) can be accommodated into a van with comfort. Get your layout sorted first and then look at vans with that layout till you find the right one at the right price

Phil

Hi Phil  myself & Mrs Z discovered that even just a sun canopy proved very difficult for us.  Even  though the actual design was simplicity in itself (never needed the instructions) it was just getting it threaded through the awning channel that was a problem, especially at the top.

Mrs Z is only just over 5ft small, even on the `van step she couldn't reach properly and it was very difficult to keep the awning track in the rail. I had to do all of the `high up stuff' & it nearly crucified me as I was also supporting most of the weight - it would otherwise have come out of the channel.

Had it been at all breezy it would have been nigh on impossible for us to do without damaging it. 

We got our first caravan last year, a 1988 swift challenger for £700. I tow with a 1.6 megane as the swift is really light and it tows great. My tow bar cost £190 to get fitted but was quoted £300-400 so shoparound.

I was always freezing when camping in our tent but the van is so much better, we only use a heater from sept onwards and then we just use a cheap fan heater from argos.

We have a 260 porch awning and I reckon on a calm day I could easily put up myself, infact probably be much easier without him interferring ,lol.

Good luck, I have no regrets whats so ever getting my caravan and have saved a fortune in holiday costs this year alone.

Lisa

Quote: Originally posted by lisamarieallen100 on 28/8/2010

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We have a 260 porch awning and I reckon on a calm day I could easily put up myself, infact probably be much easier without him interferring ,lol.

Lisa

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Excellent and Ditto !!!

Poor old Zorro. Have you tried spray polish into the awning channel before you thread? Mine goes right up and along with just me pushing it from one end. .....and I find it works better without the wife (shhhh)

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by Zorro on 28/8/2010

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Hi Phil  myself & Mrs Z discovered that even just a sun canopy proved very difficult for us.  Even  though the actual design was simplicity in itself (never needed the instructions) it was just getting it threaded through the awning channel that was a problem, especially at the top.

Mrs Z is only just over 5ft small, even on the `van step she couldn't reach properly and it was very difficult to keep the awning track in the rail. I had to do all of the `high up stuff' & it nearly crucified me as I was also supporting most of the weight - it would otherwise have come out of the channel.

Had it been at all breezy it would have been nigh on impossible for us to do without damaging it. 

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Pop to your local dealer and ask him what weight you can tow, the weights of every van are on a little plate by the door so get him to show you that too & explain it.

Heating in the van is fine, the Truma ones that are fitted do work better on gas but we run our on electric no problem so the cost is all paid for in the nightly EHU tariff, we set ours to between 3 & 5 and just leave it on to keep the temperature maintained, if we're ever cold when we first get in we just put the portable electric fan heater on for ten minutes or so and it soon warms up.

With the awning it would be fiddly putting it up alone, how old are your kids? all you really need is someone to just hold the poles upright whilst you connect them.

You may find Hubby is more willing to come along in a caravan.

Hiya, I had been camping for years with my 2 boys and loved it.  Without going into details ... a tent in a field - litterally! for 1wk with only portaloos and a cold water supply - usually for the animals that would normaly inhabit the field, just wasnt all that much fun.  Hence I went out and picked up a small caravan for £90.  I was able to establish that I was quite comfortable towing the van and from there I decided what was important to me and mine.  Im now in a Baily Ranger 2000 model and I love it.

I agree with phill about the spray polish. However if you take a small strip of the awning skirt that goes along the bottom of the caravan and spray that you can run it along the awning channel, just makes it a bit easier.

PS  I still love camping

hi - thnaks so much everyone for all these thoughts - good to know I may be able to get one at a better price than I thought, and that the awning should be OK - I'll find a dealer and go for a wander round.

Cheers!

Quote: Originally posted by allypally1967 on 29/8/2010

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sorry guys but i would have my tent every day of the week!!!
if you get electric you can have the warmth you get in your tins!!!!
we have a fridge /toaster etc just like in a caravan..it can be done!!!
we have just bought a tunnel tent,lovely and roomy and no danger of tipping over on the motorway!!!!..or that matter holding up all the traffic!!!

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