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The best set up we ever saw was a VW type campervan towing a small caravan.

The caravan was a bedroom & toilet only and the campervan was used as a lounge come kitchen.

The beauty of this set up was that if they went touring during the day and fancied staying longer at any spot, they had enough bedding with them that they could stay overnight, returning to the site an their more spacious bedroom the following day.

We spoke at length with the couple and were very impressed by their units. They made no mention of having to pay double and struck me as the type that would not have done so had they been asked.

However all that was in the days before we found (and bought) a Folding Camper and now we have what we consider to be the very best (for us) camping outfit imaginable.

Tango’s reply sums it up and is well argued.

How does the system work?

All sites require a licence form the Local Authority. Typical site licences have conditions which run “the minimum spacing distance between caravans shall be not less than 6 metres between units.”. They do not say “the minimum spacing distance between occupied caravans shall be not less than 6 metres between units.” So a campervan beside a caravan would breach that site licence.

Then there is a condition about density such as “The gross density shall not exceed 30 touring units to the acre.” That would be exceeded with a full site + a campervan

Look at what a site licence is there for. A licence is required for the siting of a caravan for the purpose of human habitation. The conditions in a licence are there for safety reasons e.g to prevent the spread of fire between caravans. Always thought it odd though, that a car can be between each caravan and that if a fire spread from a caravan to a car it would then spread to the next caravan wouldn’t it? There does have to be about 3 m between the car and the next caravan

Helen comments “I would have thought that as long as both units are not being used to sleep in, the campervan would count as just an ordinary towing vehicle and common sense would dictate that one pitch would suffice.”  Now, some Local Authorities have thought of this and their site licences are conditioned that the space between vans should be “….6 meters between each unit in separate family occupation”. So those sites can have a campervan next to a caravan without a breach of the site licence. Helen’s point is in the spirit of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act.

So, check with the site to see either just what its site conditions are, or whether the site owner is willing to take a chance (after all site inspections by the Local Authority are annually and it may not be due when you visit). Provided you do not use the campervan other than for towing then you are within the spirit of the law if not the letter. You will probably be told that if you use the campervan for cooking/sleeping/sitting in etc you will have to move.

Phil