Only if they let it. We still use hotels, self-catering and so on. I still bikepack.
We did too, Scotroutes, but since the van has gone we've done much more interesting things and met many more interesting people. People buy a van because they want to buy into the lifestyle. A lifestyle hyped by influencers, forums threads such as this one, TV shows, Youtubes etc. And once in people add to the hype because they're doing it and it's fun and it's all impressive on their social media etc. But having been there and dun that my contribution to the thread is that I'm pleased we stopped because our holidays have been more of an adventure without it.
It's perhaps down to people's (and their partner's/family's) comfort zone. Way back when I worked on a campsite most families turned up in their car to rent one of our units or arrived with a tent/camper van/caravan. Each day most of them bumbled around then some went off in the car/ camper van for a few hours then many drank too much - their comfort zone. Then one day a family from Paris turned up at reception on foot for one of our fixed units, they'd walked from the station with each kid carrying their own bag. They wanted to know all about the local area, public transport etc. Interesting interested people full of life who really made the most of that holiday - I was impressed.
One thing I found with the large coachbuilt camper is I hardly spoke to anyone else the whole trip - because i would do my days activities, I had booze in the fridge and a proper kitchen to cook in so didn't go to bars and cafes and didn't mix with folk on the campsites.
Tent camping I spoke to far more folk as I went into the campsite snack bar, went into pubs etc.
this could be a plus or minus point but its something to be aware of
@edukator you are coming across a little snobbish there 🙂 I spent quite a lot of time sitting around campsites looking at the view, but don't assume it's a lesser activity. I live in a city and my job is mentally hectic, so my escape is to take the caravan somewhere peaceful in beautiful countryside and just chill, watching the clouds roll by and the tide change.
i would do my days activities, I had booze in the fridge and a proper kitchen to cook in so didn't go to bars and cafes and didn't mix with folk on the campsites.
Tent camping I spoke to far more folk as I went into the campsite snack bar, went into pubs etc.
Again (just like the post immediately above) this is someone projecting their personal experience onto everyone else. We still frequent cafes, pubs etc when using the van. Similarly if we go for self-catering. It's neither a plus nor a con unless you make it so.
I'm actually surprised that some folk are owning up to being so easily influenced to change their behaviours and think that everyone else is as easily influenced.
scotroutes - it was just an observation. It was something we realised after the trip that we had done.
I'd never really considered caravan but some very good points made in this thread. Being tied to campsites and the difficulty of towing it to remote spots would put me off though.
I got sick of trying to find an air BnB for 1 or 2 nights when all the good ones demanded 5 night stays, and cheap hotels are very rarely in the locations I want to spend a weekend.
I've got a self converted Crafter. It can fit 4 bikes inside, double bed and I'm able to stand up inside. It's got a heater, roof fan, toilet and small kitchen (fridge, sink but no fixed cooking). Conversion cost me around £5k, van was £9k. It's my only vehicle but I do my best to cycle all local journeys, so not really a 'daily driver'. It's too big to fit in a parking space, and internally it's a bit too busy if you're stuck hiding away for a few wet days.
I very rarely use campsites. I couldn't believe how expensive some are and they usually need booking in advance which doesn't work for me. The van is mainly a place to sleep to facilitate hobbies rather than being the holiday, so I'm happy sleeping in forest car parks.
I love the flexibiliy. Last weekend I went to Scotland with no plans. Stayed in two different places, and got a lovely spot each night (one free, one £10). It's not always easy to find a good spot, but it's so worthwhile when it works out.
The prices are pretty high really and are a lot of hotel nights!
Especially when the costs of maintenance, insurance and running costs are factored in. Up thread there's a mention of £1k a year for fixed costs plus soneone owning one for 22 years. Goin away every other weekend to make it worthwhile starts to feel like an imposition to me. Another thing to be done to justify the spend, no thanks.
without exception I have never know anyone who hasnt ended up regretting buying a holiday home as it limits where you go on holiday.
I bought a holiday home about 5 years ago, and I love it. We head down there maybe every couple of months. It also has the advantage that its value is generally appreciating, unlike most motorised transport. (I realise vans hold their value better than cars, but not as well long-term as a building).
I'd love a campervan, too, but when I did the sums it just doesn't work out for my lifestyle. You really need to be heading off every 2-3 weeks to make it worthwhile, and I can't see that happening.
Campervan person here, though we do occasionally visit holiday rentals in early spring and late autumn.
Holiday rentals always feel very expensive and as others have said always seem to have really shite beds/ovens/kitchen stuff.
There is something quite reassuring coming back to a guaranteed comfy firm bed and a familiar space with your own kit, be that in a van, motorhome, tent or caravan.
I had a Japanese Import Hi-top Toyota Hi-Ace for years and years, even lived in it for 6 months with the Mrs as we travelled round Europe. It was ace but became undersized as the kids came along. It was also becoming problematic to get parts and work done on it as my local "proper" mechanic closed down.
Ended up selling it for more than I was expecting during COVID.
A replacement vehicle was needed. Briefly considered not getting a van and getting an estate/suv/people carrier/pick-up instead. Looked at roof tents which appeared expensive, ugly and faffy at the time though they seem to have improved in the last couple of years. Also looked at big family camping tents.
I did not consider a caravan as I have nowhere to store it and if it's stored at a facility it's another thing to pay for, do before going away. I also, possibly irrationally, dislike them as a concept.
Also briefly considered a Crafter/Sprinter sized van but a glance at my drive soon put pay to that idea.
Ended up with a LWB T6.1 Camper Conversion. The conversion was done by Jack's Shack in Leicestershire. I have no complaints with it. It is right at the limit of what I can fit on my drive.
I WFH so it's my "normal car", I drive it a couple of times a week outside of trips.
Honestly it's great for me, the wife, the dog and 2 teenage kids with some caveats.
Size
For 1 or 2 of us it's palatial. For 3 of us it's spacious. For 4 of us it's a bit cozy. Add in the dog and it starts to feel a bit cramped. If we are all staying somewhere for a few nights, the 17 year old now likes his own space in a small tent. For bike trips away with one or both teenagers it's more than big enough.
Facilities
We're campsite campers rather than layby campers so lack of shower/toilet is a non-issue.
Big leisure battery, solar, hookup, fridge, hob, sink, underslung gas tank etc make life very easy and flexible. Though a more minimalist set up would have be fine too. We also have a Cadac grill thing for outside cooking which is my preference if the weather is good enough. We didn't bother with a diesel heater after having one in my previous van and barely using it. We do have a thermal wrap for the pop top which we have used in early spring.
We have a simple sunshade (I dislike wind-out awnings) that slots in to a C section rail and a massive (it's huge when packed up) inflatable driveaway awning thing that someone gave to us. The drive away awning barely comes down from the roof space.
If you slide the rear seats all the way forward you can get a modern long Enduro bike in length ways, though I haven't done it for ages as I just stick them on a towbar rack.
It wasn't cheap, it's series of compromises dictated by constraints but it takes me and mine on adventures and it brings me joy.
Now divide the cost of owning it including depreciation, and the extra cost of travel to get there in fuel and on the ferry and divide it by the number of nights you spent in it in the last year and add that to £10 per night. I don't know what you do obviously but on the use camper van owners I know make of their vehicles adding £50-100 a night seems typical for people not actually living in them full time. I'd rather be the person in the little white car with the little tent.
When I see people in 80 000euro Campers parked in St Jean de Luz aire between the main road and the railway or any other shitty aire when there are nice capsites within 10 minutes I can't help but smile. That at least is a nice campsite.
I'm married to a woman in finance @Edukator and I don't argue sums with her at all. Science and tech, yes but sums no!
It does make me smile when i see folk in £100,000 ish grand campers beside a busy noisey A road or similar because they will not pay for a camper van berth nearby in a better location.
Some of the places you see campers now....i woukd factor in more overhead or width barriers in car parks becoming fixed in more and more places as the anti wild camping band wagon gains more momentum.
Edukator - I did write a lengthy post to reply to your comment with facts and figures but it vanished when up loading.
the jist of it was, my van is 8 years old and a self convert to be off grid as much as possible, so owes me nothing, as I can sell today for what I paid for it. Yes, the running costs are about a grand a year, but we have 60+ days in it a year and I’ve no desire to sleep in tents unless I’m touring on my motorbike.
Doing the sums on this trip, assuming it was the only time it was going out all year, it’d average about £30 a night all in (excluding food/drink).
When I see people in 80 000euro Campers parked in St Jean de Luz aire between the main road and the railway or any other shitty aire when there are nice capsites within 10 minutes I can't help but smile. That at least is a nice campsite.
we agree there for sure. I don’t want my holiday in lay-by at the side of an industrial estate just because it’s free/cheap. We pick our spots based on where we want to visit. Don’t mind paying at all but don’t look for mega site 4/5* jobs. I’m happy with a field and a view.
People are strange for sure. I know someone who lives on the edge of the Peak District and thinks this is a great view. It's Skegness - the pub is ironically named 'The View'
Guessing some similar minded people can also afford motorhomes
There's seems to be more hate around now for Camper Vans than Caravans! 🤣 I suspect this is mostly driven by jealousy.
Personally neither caravans* or camper vans are for me - I'd rather have a nice hotel or cottage - but I can easily see how they fit into many peoples lifestyles. Especially if you are retired and have time to explore at your leisure.
(*caravans especially as that's all the holidays we had as kids, and me and my brother had to sleep out in the awning so we didn't even have the benefit of a comfy bed!)
On the Basque coast we used to overnight on the sea front in the T2 pretty much anywhere 35 years ago -we were often the only camper. I can't think of anywhere that's allowed now in season. Nearly all the car parks have height barriers, some so low not even a Cali will go under. It's not so much anti-wild camping it's more a case of pro-access, pro-small business, pro-campsite, pro-peace and calm, pro-urban esthetic - because lets face it rows of big white lumps are ugly.
People arriving in a place with their view-blocking mobile house, using very few local services beyond the hyper-markets, running noisy generators and air con or stinking heating all day making a racket in front of a bar, park bench, someone's seaside retreat... is never going to go down well. They're like the cruise ships stinking out Marseille but at least cruise passengers spend a bit of money when ashore unlike the average tight-fisted camper van traveller who bought enough in Tescos or REWE to last a month in Portugal.
Anyhow banning signs have gone up this year at my local children's play area car park - the locals had got fed up. The wild-camping apps don't help, once listed the locals get inundated - that was the case with the local play area.
Just too many of the huge white lumps, most of them heading for the same few already hard pressed locations.
So factor in a few £ or euros for park4night, an aire or a campsite, buy a trailer to put a smart car on and feel welcome. 😉
You can add other smileys to my posts if you think I'm being "snobish" or judgemental. 🙂
I'm happy on what-ever site I can find that's near where we want to do stuff. Be that £10, or as much as £40. The key point for the OP is to make a list and decide what's best, be that a car, tent, motorhome, camper or van. I wanted flexibility and being able to carry the camping gear (incl. tent) without being full to the rafters - it's not pleasant driving a long distance and not being able to see out of the rear of the car, or even the rear side windows when manoeuvring. Van it was !
There's seems to be more hate around now for Camper Vans than Caravans!
I suspect this is mostly driven by jealousy.
Its driven by the huge pest the explosion of camper van usage and roadside camping has created. One spot I used a few times over the years where I only ever saw one other van is a good illustration. A few years ago there was 20 vans there and the machair was damaged. Last year its been fenced off with no camping signs all along it. There is a campsite a few miles away
it's not pleasant driving a long distance and not being able to see out of the rear of the car, or even the rear side windows when manoeuvring. Van it was !
That's the weirdest justification I've seen yet! Congrats! I have yet to drive a van that has better visibility or is easier to drive long distance than a loaded to the roof car. In fact with a French van in the UK I had to undo the seat belt and clamber across the front seat to see to pull out of some junctions when alone in the Ducato. With a UK van in Europe it must be the same. A French car involves some contortions but I can still stay in the drivers seat.
"Machair" is my new word for today.
I have yet to drive a van that has better visibility or is easier to drive long distance than a loaded to the roof car
I can see out of all sides of my T6, so definitely better visibility than a loaded car.
Driving wise, obviously not as nice as a car, but not bad
It's campervan all the way for me. I hate tents - too light in the mornings, impossible to regulate temperature, faffy and a proper p.i.t.a if you're away riding/racing and it's raining. I have a more basic van than you're probably considering with no proper toilet and a bikewash that doubles as a shower. It was cheap, takes 5 bikes with wheels on and has a massive comfy bed. Works well for long trips in europe or closer to home, with or without bikes. It's also my only vehicle, though the Mrs has a car for if we want to go further away without much gear. It's also good with the bike garage area for moving big/heavy/dirty stuff for the garden or the building project that we call a house.
Hotel/airbnb can be o.k, but only in cities where there aren't usually any camping options. I'd rather be on a 'free range' style campsite with my van and riding to places from there, or taking 2 mins to pack things up to drive to attractions/riding venues if they're further away.
I can't really see me getting a caravan for a long time, even then I'd probably still want a van for moving bikes and towing it....
It all depends on the sort of places you want to visit and the things you want to do while there.
My 'van' is actually easier to drive than our 'cars' loaded or unloaded. It's even more comfy and a heck of a lot easier in hilly terrain getting up big hills with the additional power, so maybe you've been driving the wrong 'vans'.
Or you've been driving the wrong cars. 😛
One downside of a tent compared to a van or caravan is the need to have somewhere suitable to dry it out once you get home. I appreciate that everyone on STW lives in a detached house with a large, sumptuous lawn but some folk don't have that option.
Yeah, agreed on the tent drying being a problem. We had a massive polycotton tent too so it always needed drying. For years our garden was too small to pitch it. Swapped to a smaller/lower nylon/polyester tent to sort that issue out and to give better resistance to bad weather. Also freed up lots of car boot space.
I have to agree with edukator on some of his points.
Some places have so obviously become victims of the hashtagVanlife****er crowd and I don't blame the local authorities for taking action against them.
WRT the areas behind the bushes in such locations becoming literal open toilets.... It's the day trippers and smaller vans that don't have shitting facilities that are the problem. Generally larger vans have the capacity for pooing onboard.
And it seems that locations popular with climbers are generally the worst, maybe something to do with the climber's more Spartan approach.
Some of the places along the coast in Spain were shocking. 100,000€ monstrosities parked up on bits of wasteland amongst the tomato plantations..... If you're spending that much on a van then surely you can fork out 10-20€ a night for a more suitable location. (Needless to say we didn't stay in the area.)
If you're sure you want to "wild camp" and are sensible about where you park then you can avoid any disturbance. As said previously there are plenty of places where parking up long term isn't an issue.
The point someone made about feeling at home is also valid. I've started in many a hotel room for work and never really enjoyed the experience.
I must be weird because I love a Premier Inn. They feel very plush, homely, comfortable and nice.
My freezing tent feels nothing like that.
When my bigger van comes in, 99% of nights will be at either races or trail center car parks
My daily driver was in for a gearbox linkage bush today so I used the big camper to drop off a bike for some work then went for a big ride while they fixed it.
It was bliss to get back to the van, make a coffee to go with the cornish slab from Robertshaws that I had in the fridge. And a place to have a pee 🙂
One downside of a tent compared to a van or caravan is the need to have somewhere suitable to dry it out once you get home. I appreciate that everyone on STW lives in a detached house with a large, sumptuous lawn but some folk don't have that option.
Volunteer with a local Scout group - most Scout huts have ropes set up to hang tents up to dry
I must be weird because I love a Premier Inn. They feel very plush, homely, comfortable and nice.
We know you're weird 😉
As someone who stays away from home A LOT, when I'm not in the caravan, a Premier Inn will be the very last resort (OK, a Travelodge is the VERY last resort). Horrible soulless places - even the ones that have a bar it's pretty unlikely you're going to interact with anyone remotely interesting.
Give me a decent pub, a room with some character and some locals to chat to any time
We had a smallish motorhome for a few years. Started with a 7 month trip and then used progressively less over the year so sold it.
We sold for about £8k less than we paid for it after about 5 or 6 years - mainly because I needed something to drive everyday, I got a normal van for hauling kit. But we bought in 2004 and the equivalent van is twice the price now.
If you do buy on I would definitely go for something with a toilet for overnight peeing - wouldn't fancy trooping across a campsite in the pissing rain for a piss in the middle of the night. Our van wasn't massive, one pull out double bed, proper kitchen, fridge etc, tiny bathroom. Fitted in a supermarket carpark spaced ( just about). Anything smaller would have been too small for extended trips
As mentioned the big drawback of motorhomes and campers is having to pack everything up every time you want to drive anywhere - but tbh as long as stuff was in cupboards it didn't move about
I wouldn't go full motorhome/campervan again as I need a usable van everyday, but camper box kits for my multivan which would do me for the occasional night away (plus camping toilet) are an option I'm looking at.
One downside of a tent compared to a van or caravan is the need to have somewhere suitable to dry it out once you get home. I appreciate that everyone on STW lives in a detached house with a large, sumptuous lawn but some folk don't have that option.
I just dry mine in my flat. Hang it over a door for 24 hours.
TBH I was thinking about van sized tents. I dry my wee tents in the garage.
OOh - fancy - a garage 🙂
Geological mapping 1981, a garage for my Mini (home) and bike, and my mate's motorbike:
Premier Inn/Travelodge are cheap and secure and plentiful.
That last bit really depends on where you want to go. Looking at a map showing PIs and TLs, very, very few are anywhere I want to visit 😉
The Aviemore one, and going with my preference for weather based therefore last minute trip booking. Is £146 per night. So not exactly cheap.
Plus, it's a pumped up Travel Tavern.
TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsSTR I too travel for work and have used Premier Inn because I don't want to talk to anyone, ha ha. I really don't want a conversation with the locals. And I am able to walk from the hotel to a different pub/restaurant.
For the OPs question, I think it depends how much planning / flexibility you want and how you like to travel. We book things well ahead and get stuff cheap because of it, mostly off season (i.e. not July or August when we'll just do day trips). Parkdean and Haven type parks are quiet outside school hols, you get to visit different places, and cost £100-130 for a weekend away. If you are retired you can get a week for not much more when the sales are on in Jan/Feb each year. Similarly b&bs and accommodation on booking.com if you book ahead then you can usually find good value in quiet locations. Also yha / bothy / camping barns. Clearly you won't get stays in tourist hotspots or peak summer season cheaply and then a camper or tent or caravan pitch is 'value' though you do have to deal with other people's behaviours on a busy site. Clearly it's not a purely financial decision and there is some romanticism of being able to drive wherever you fancy and having that freedom, but my experience in peak season is you need to book campsites ahead, so the reality in the UK is different from the expectation. I also prefer smaller off-grid places with a tent.
TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsSTR I too travel for work and have used Premier Inn because I don't want to talk to anyone, ha ha. I really don't want a conversation with the locals. And I am able to walk from the hotel to a different pub/restaurant.
This is also me. I want a comfy bed and thats pretty much it. I hate forced conversations.
The point about drying big tents is a good one, but it's similar to Caravans and campers if it's not your daily driver as well. I can fit one car on my drive, (some people don't even have drives!!!) so my van goes on the drive and our small car is parked further up the street. We couldn't fit a caravan on our property so would need to store it somewhere else. Theres another significant cost (it's probably been mentioned already though).
Generally larger vans have the capacity for pooing onboard
Unless the owners implement a no poo rule, as do friends of ours.
I'd guess at least half my friends have some kind of van from T5 up. Never been past a Berlingo car myself, which I do miss. For quick nights away in summer I use a cheap pop up festival tent. Erect before it hits the ground, missis. Chuck in a bouldering mat with some bedding sandwiched inside and you've a boudoir in 5 seconds literally. Doesn't take much longer to pack up.
The missing part of this picture is my wife. Never going to happen and I don't think she'd understand the OP's question. Would you prefer a hotel or<white noise>?
Have we heard enough about driving behind large white box monstrosities? The joys of when one encounters another on a narrow road. Their contribution to the visual environment (picture above of white boxes in a field, some mountains behind)?
And then there's campsites
johnx2
Posts: 4130
Salutary. I am wasting my life...
Unless the owners implement a no poo rule, as do friends of ours.
This is even more so in the caravan community - people have big flash vans and won't poo, won't use the shower, won't cook, some won't even wash the pots. keeping it 'nice' for when they want to sell it. What a waste.
The poo, I sort of get, cos there's the ick of emptying it, but it's not that bad.
I'm on a fully serviced site at the moment, so no need to fill water butts, or empty grey waste hogs. Watched a bloke the other day with a van hooked up to the water tramp across the site in the rain and wind to wash a couple of dishes in the communial area.
I jump out of bed every morning, straight into my shower yet see folk trudging to the shower block to stand on other peoples pubes
I'd argue it's better to allow tourists to occupy campsites than allow airB&B on second homes which raisies rents forcing locals out of their homes and onto campsites. On the local campsite the permanent residents in camper vans or caravans I've spoken too are there because it's all they can afford.
I don't think anyone has complained about drivng behind them till you johnx2. The Col d'Aubsique has a not advised to camper vans sign on it but that doesn't deter them, it's great when two meet in the tunnel. To be honest the open-exhaust-pipe peg-grinding motorcyclists are more of a nuisance/danger and the camper vans have a calming influence on those.
This is also me. I want a comfy bed and thats pretty much it. I hate forced conversations.
No one forces me to talk to anyone, I often keep myself to myself. Have met some really interesting people (as well as some complete bores) and made lifelong friends whilst working away though
In all seriousness its all about the compromises every option has advatages and disadvantages
Yent and hiring the appropriate vehicle is what works for me.
1/4 of the last 3 years has been spent in a tent tho 80 nights of that was in a rooftent which i wouldn't use in Europe
I jump out of bed every morning, straight into my shower yet see folk trudging to the shower block to stand on other peoples pubes
Thanks for that. Going tent camping (toilet but no shower) later this summer and now have that to think about as I trudge to the shower block.
Most shower blocks are pretty decent though, so don't worry. Use someone else's leccy/gas to heat it - you've paid for it !
We went from a T6 camper up to an XLWB Sprinter MX race van & I will happily never spend another night in a camper / motorhome again.
Once we sold it, we even tried camping once, and I can happily say, I’d rather not go away if that was my only choice.
The little one was a total PITA for two people, a dog & bikes, the big one despite being huge, still felt like everyone was climbing on top of each other & always an absolute faff to use. Our rule was having to use it a minimum of 30 nights a year, and all we ended up doing was resenting packing, unpacking, prepping, cleaning & driving a massive, slow & awkward van about.
I’ll happily fund someone’s holiday home venture local to where I want to be & drive our small van there instead.
TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsSTR I too travel for work and have used Premier Inn because I don't want to talk to anyone, ha ha. I really don't want a conversation with the locals. And I am able to walk from the hotel to a different pub/restaurant.
For the OPs question, I think it depends how much planning / flexibility you want and how you like to travel. We book things well ahead and get stuff cheap because of it, mostly off season (i.e. not July or August when we'll just do day trips). Parkdean and Haven type parks are quiet outside school hols, you get to visit different places, and cost £100-130 for a weekend away. If you are retired you can get a week for not much more when the sales are on in Jan/Feb each year. Similarly b&bs and accommodation on booking.com if you book ahead then you can usually find good value in quiet locations. Also yha / bothy / camping barns. Clearly you won't get stays in tourist hotspots or peak summer season cheaply and then a camper or tent or caravan pitch is 'value' though you do have to deal with other people's behaviours on a busy site. Clearly it's not a purely financial decision and there is some romanticism of being able to drive wherever you fancy and having that freedom, but my experience in peak season is you need to book campsites ahead, so the reality in the UK is different from the expectation. I also prefer smaller off-grid places with a tent.
Most shower blocks are pretty decent though, so don't worry. Use someone else's leccy/gas to heat it - you've paid for it !
Oh we're well versed in campsites, lots of years and experience of various standards. There's some right clarty buggers out there, thankfully manky toilet blocks are the exception rather than the rule I find.
I'm currently tenting (stop it) as it works well for longer family hols - great big polycotton airbeam. Not cheap but far less outlay than the caravan or campervan we can't afford or justify. That may change in future if what we're willing to compromise on changes.
The poo, I sort of get, cos there's the ick of emptying it, but it's not that bad
Yeah. It's easy, just do it regularly, especially if it's hot. Anyway, we did have a caravan, not for holidays, but for living in during some building works. Having done a summer in it, some of house was habitable so we moved in and in the excitement/work of doing so forgot about the caravan for a few hot weeks in September. Anyway, I finally remembered and went to check how full the cassette was by opening the flapper door. By this point some serious hot-weather induced shit pressure had built up, and flipping open the flapper door resulted in a huge upwards explosion of our shit into my face as I was peering closer for a look. Most of the toilet/shower room was covered, but my face took the brunt of it.
Don't do that.
... Just thought of another issue with motorhomes or any camper higher than a standard Traffic/Vivaro/Transporter
Lots of places in France, especially beaches, have height restriction barriers to prevent people parking up motorhomes/ big campers in car parks and staying overnight (or for a whole holiday in many cases).
It was becoming a pain for us by 2010 as although we'd pay for a campsite we would want to drive to beach for surfing. I imagine it's even stricter now
This is a by-product of just how popular motorhomes are in France, Germany and NL. Basically huge numbers up sticks and drive to Atlantic coast for weeks on end - free camping in car parks and basically anywhere a van would fit.
... Just thought of another issue with motorhomes or any camper higher than a standard Traffic/Vivaro/Transporter
Lots of places in France, especially beaches, have height restriction barriers to prevent people parking up motorhomes/ big campers in car parks and staying overnight (or for a whole holiday in many cases).
It was becoming a pain for us by 2010 as although we'd pay for a campsite we would want to drive to beach for surfing. I imagine it's even stricter now
This is a by-product of just how popular motorhomes are in France, Germany and NL. Basically huge numbers up sticks and drive to Atlantic coast for weeks on end - free camping in car parks and basically anywhere a van would fit.
A few places in Morzine have it, like the Nyon car-park. Although last year the barrier was open on 50% of it.
By this point some serious hot-weather induced shit pressure had built up, and flipping open the flapper door resulted in a huge upwards explosion of our shit into my face as I was peering closer for a look. Most of the toilet/shower room was covered, but my face took the brunt of it.
Don't do that.
Lolz 😆
Re cassette toilets.... They're rank. The emptying stations are almost all rank. The chemicals used are rank.
I built a dry-separating toilet (trockentrenntoilette auf Deutsch), buying only the funnel bit and cutting it to size. Built a box in which sits a canister for the piss and a bucket with a bin liner for the poo. This is enclosed in box in the van. In the underside of the shitter is a hole which lines up with a mini 12v computer ventilator which extracts to the underside of the van.
Do you business. Toilet paper, if you're feeling posh use a wet wipe or two and chuck a little saw dust on top of your feeling flush.
No stinky air in the van. Emptying is a car of pouring the piss down a toilet. The solid waste can be bagged and chucked into any bin, just like you do with your doggy bag.
Much better than fannying about with a chemical toilet and other people's excrement.
Double post
I'll stick with the porta potti and a no poo rule. We use a single 'eco' chemical which works well, and you don't need much of it.
By this point some serious hot-weather induced shit pressure had built up, and flipping open the flapper door resulted in a huge upwards explosion of our shit into my face as I was peering closer for a look. Most of the toilet/shower room was covered, but my face took the brunt of it.
There's a valve that equalises the pressure as you open the flap. It can get blocked though or stop working as I think you discovered. It happened on ours when I was a kid but we found out on the actual holiday so just a bit of a pop until it was fixed.
As for stink - modern toilets that work properly are fine.
^^^fully capturing the glamour of the modern gypsy lifestyle
Have previously had Overland prepped Defender before rooftents were a thing - was great at the time.
Nowadays we want more comfort so have a small T@B320 caravan. Tows well, actually plenty of room, well built. We leave it stocked and just throw a bag of clothes in.
If it's just me and doggo then I chuck a tent in the car.
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The poo, I sort of get, cos there's the ick of emptying it, but it's not that bad
Yeah. It's easy, just do it regularly, especially if it's hot. Anyway, we did have a caravan, not for holidays, but for living in during some building works. Having done a summer in it, some of house was habitable so we moved in and in the excitement/work of doing so forgot about the caravan for a few hot weeks in September. Anyway, I finally remembered and went to check how full the cassette was by opening the flapper door. By this point some serious hot-weather induced shit pressure had built up, and flipping open the flapper door resulted in a huge upwards explosion of our shit into my face as I was peering closer for a look. Most of the toilet/shower room was covered, but my face took the brunt of it.
Don't do that.
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