Nose weight and tyre pressures checked and are bang on.

It didn’t have any problems towing, but I thought it could be improved. Passat Estates were offered with self levelling as an option, and it seemed like a good idea. I already checked about retrofitting the OEM stuff but it’s prohibitively expensive.

I like that layout Taki, same as the Bailey Olympus we looked at. As for damp – 10 year damp guarantee is pretty persuasive.

http://www.fendtcaravansuk.co.uk/index.htm ❓

Well they look gopping inside and out, but I’m definitely interested in smaller manufacturers. However their website is a joke and there aren’t enough pictures to generate enough interest to go all the way up there.

Found a link to Hobby caravans though which look much more interesting

http://hobbycaravansuk.co.uk/hobby_caravan_details.php?series=De%20Luxe&1=560%20KMFe

Although it’d have to do a lot to knock Tab off the best alternative spot 🙂

Some (most) Hobbys are allegedly too wide to be towed on uk roads. I think it’s a common thing on euro vans. Plus some sites have a ‘no Hobbys’ rule. I’d avoid.

another one

One of my local dealers

TBH I fail to see the point of caravans for holidays. They aren’t cheap to buy new and there’s a tendency to run a much bigger car than you would to make towing easier, costing you more cash all year round.

I’ve always liked the Eriba caravan. They are a little bit like a modern version of the airstream, steel frame, ally skin, streamlined body.

Never looked into them seriously as we all know campervans are better ( 🙂 ) but I think they are priced a bit higher and possibly weigh more, but worth a look.

TBH I fail to see the point of caravans for holidays. They aren’t cheap to buy new and there’s a tendency to run a much bigger car than you would to make towing easier, costing you more cash all year round.

it gives you the freedom to tour round a lot more than you could otherwise.

TBH I fail to see the point of caravans for holidays. They aren’t cheap to buy new and there’s a tendency to run a much bigger car than you would to make towing easier, costing you more cash all year round.

I have a family of four and I can assure you that we recouped the money on it in its first two years against the price we would have paid for a hotel in the areas we stayed in. Plus if you have small children I find the hotel experience (especially meal times) to be nothing but stressful. With a caravan you can plan your day how you want to and not dictated by the hotel.

TBH I fail to see the point of caravans for holidays. They aren’t cheap to buy new and there’s a tendency to run a much bigger car than you would to make towing easier, costing you more cash all year round

The point is that a caravan is about 10000 times nicer to stay in than a tent, and much easier to set up and pack up. That’s the only reason.

And my search in vans is limited to those that can be towed with the car I already happen to have, which is a Passat in this case.

Comparing caravans to hotels though is silly – as above family hotelling is cripplingly expensive and a pain in the balls quite frankly, unless it’s a family orientated resort or something I suppose.

as we all know campervans are better

To be honest, I’ve nothing against campervans, but they are insanely expensive. Plus you have to pack up every time you want to go somewhere. Although I have recently noticed that they are a fair bit smaller inside than caravans on the whole – gigantic American style ones notwithstanding. However even some of those are not big. I’ve been inside the Torq mobile which is huge and inside it’s quite cramped compared to those vans I was looking at.

tron – Member
TBH I fail to see the point of caravans for holidays. They aren’t cheap to buy new and there’s a tendency to run a much bigger car than you would to make towing easier, costing you more cash all year round.

Who says you have to buy new?

I’ve just paid £5750 for a 2003 4-berth Fleetwood. It came with awning, Aquaroll, water pump, folding chairs, folding table, gas bbq, microwave, tv/dvd/freeview, kettle, iron, toaster, cutlery, windbreaks etc, etc.

I use it for work, rather than staying in B&B’s when working away, I already have a tow-car (work vehicle). We’ve just spent 5 days on the Gower, will be going to the lakes in a few weeks, maybe France in the summer and other short breaks inbetween.

The freedom and flexibility are making it seem like a worthwhile purchase already – and the family love it.