Have a look at this website. Looks the business to be sure. I quite fancy a caravan to explore the UK, having spent too many holidays lazing abroad. Promise to eject the Colt and get 200 bhp (minimum) to haul it!
www.theenglishcaravancompany.com/
Best regards.............MD
Made clickable
Last edited by: Pugugly on Mon 13 Dec 10 at 20:18
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Thats the one Zero.
Last time I was in Maine we saw one being delivered to its new home for restoration.
We stopped and the friendly owner let us have a look at.
I guess I have to come clean, the nearest I will get is something similar to this
tinyurl.com/3yp6ojd
( my american friend with a sense of humour sent them :-( )
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You won't need 200 brake for one of these beauties !
www.stimsondesigns.com/index2.php?link=multipod
Ted
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No I won't need even 10bhp ;-)
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You can pull it with a bicycle.
On the other hand the Airstream, although gorgeous, is so heavy it must be aproaching or over the weight limits on UK roads. I was shown inside one once. It had art deco fittings, and in style somewhat resembled those old pre-war carriages they had on the Waterloo & City line. The owner said even a Range Rover was underpowered for the job.
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Take your pick of these
elitechoice.org/tag/caravan/
....., including a six wheeled Airstream
The new 34-foot 2009 Airstream PanAmerica can haul two motorcycles, ATVs or other action/adventure/ outdoor gear, up to 3,000 pounds weight in its garage. The PanAmerica’s 11 foot garage is accessible via a gull-wing door and fold down ramp for easy loading and unloading of your vehicles, plus a pass-through door in the bulkhead with porthole window providing occupants access to both rooms.
Try airstream caravan in a Google search of images and see what a wide variety of Airstream there are.
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...Try airstream caravan in a Google search of images and see what a wide variety of Airstream there are...
At the other end of the spectrum, a few more pods here:
www.365campingcaravanning.com/cvanstents.htm
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My daughter was in New York just before Christmas for her friends wedding.
The wedding ceremony took place in an Airstream. It was and old Airstream so was not exactly big.
Not the sort of venue we have on this side of the pond.
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I would have thought that a B&B would be comfier and cheaper in the long run. And you would not be in your car, followed by a long line of people who want to murder you.
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TBH I have been caravanning for over 20 years but always abroad as you can travel so much further so much quicker & warmer weather.
We normally go over for a month in the summer & follow our nose, usually starting in Switzerland & then down to the south of France.
Trouble with the Uk is the weather! traffic & the roads & everything is so dear, especially parking.
Spain & Portugal is also fantatsic.
Normally we can travel from the Med to calais in 1 day, with a 30ft twin axle van never manage that distance in the UK in a day.
Swiss alps are stunning and some of the sites we stay at the facilities are first class.
The freedom of going where & when we want is just brill.
Euro tunnel makes crossing so easy now .
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>> starting in Switzerland & then down to the south of France.
So what do you do, have it shipped over to Zurich by air freight?
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>> I would have thought that a B&B would be comfier and cheaper in the long
>> run. And you would not be in your car, followed by a long line of
>> people who want to murder you.
>>
You know my customers then?
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Never really understood the caravan thing retro or otherwise. As Leif says it is normally cheaper in the long run to use B and B or small hotels when touring. Caravan sites seem far from cheap. Then there is the sheer aggravation of towing the thing. You are more or less confined to the main roads, no taking a short cut down a minor road. Freedom is a word caravanners often use but having to tow one of the things make you far from free.
Then you get to your destination you sit in a fibreglass box surrounded by all your own stuff rather than experiencing anything new which to me is the whole point of travelling. still, each to his own I suppose.
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Don't be too hard on them CG. At least they get to wear matching jumpers or Regatta fleeces and have "awnings" and stuff to talk about...Must be exciting.
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Yes, I forgot about the awnings, and the 10 inch tv with the dodgy aerial and the water carrying - you just don't get that experience in a hotel.
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>> Yes, I forgot about the awnings and the 10 inch tv with the dodgy aerial
>> and the water carrying - you just don't get that experience in a hotel.
You don't get bed bugs either ;-)
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>> Don't be too hard on them CG. At least they get to wear matching jumpers
>> or Regatta fleeces and have "awnings" and stuff to talk about...Must be exciting.
>>
Oh yes, the fleece is essential for caravanning - a sort of universal indoor/outdoor cardigan!
I hope matching jumpers aren't compulsory - is that why nobody speaks to us?
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You have a point CGN. There are people who seem to transplant themselves to a caravan site and stay there. I met a very nice chap and his wife at Tewkesbury who did just that - he only left the site for the morning paper and for necessary shopping. But they were quite old!
For most though, it isn't about sitting in a familiar fibre glass box for a fortnight.
I bought a caravan four years ago to explore first the UK. It was a leap for me, because I also thought there was a lot of B&B in the price of a caravan. Problem was I didn't like B&Bs, which can be less than convenient - often no private space other than a bedroom, and basically someone else's house. Compulsory eating out all the time is not what we want - cost aside, in rural areas there is limited choice and often only pub food - fine for a one-off but it becomes very tedious after a few days, and you don't always want to go out after a day's walking.
We get to sleep in our own bed, cook and eat what we want (simple, quick, healthy food means it isn't a chore), eat out when we want, come and go as we please. The new experiences are the places we visit - I'm not interested in experiencing new B&Bs. The caravan and the sites are a means to an end for us, not an end in themselves, and we are out every day until we are tired! We have a small pop-top caravan which is all we need, and we aren't a rolling road block, though we are frequently held up by solo cars just like everybody else.
The only pain with travelling is that you need a long gap to overtake if you do get behind a serious mimser. If it's not possible, then I leave a gap in front enable other people to pass one at a time (I wish more caravanners did this - in my experience they are more likely to be an obstruction when second in the convoy, same as anybody else).
On A roads the pace is often set by the Tesco lorry which is limited to 40mph anyway, but people see a caravan and lose the plot - if you are going to Cornwall in mid summer on your holidays with or without caravan, you are part of the problem!
In the last four years we have explored much of Scotland, Northumberland, North Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, Hampshire, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, North Wales, and Cumbria to name a few. In that time we have only been abroad together three times and we don't feel at all deprived - neither of us likes holiday resorts.
The nearest alternative to caravanning for us would be to rent self-catering accommodation, rather than B&B. That can be a bit hit and miss, and it's not so easy just to move on, as we have done on the odd occasion when a site has not been what we expected.
FWIW, I won't be going caravanning in Devon or Cornwall in high season and bank holidays - I don't like traffic jams either.
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We have a week holiday in the UK every year, just like you to explore the lovely regions of the UK we have. Take the dog too.
Like you we choose a centre to explore out chosen region or area, a base if you like.
We rent a holiday cottage. It has a bath, a real toilet, proper kitchen, a nice lounge, proper sized tele, a private garden to sit out in the evening. In fact all the things a caravan does not have and we don't need to haul the cottage around with us.
We have done this for ten years now, and not even approached the cost of buying or running a caravan.
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well Zero, yes we make Swizterland in a day easy, its just over 500 miles from calais & we always do a 6am crossing.
WE have a nice shower & electric flush loo, large flat screen TV and a lounge & fixed double bed. Warm air heating & all the luxurys including fitted microwave & air conditioning.
Its clean & its ours, trouble with B&B is you don't know who's been in the bed before you or the bath.
I had a friend who caught Viles dieseas from a bath in a holiday cottage & he was seriously ill for weeks in hospital ! He now washes every bath he visits in detol before he gets in ! Ahh
I don't hold traffic up! if your stuck behind me its because someones slow in front of me!
as manetee says we can eat & sleep when we like & leave when we like.
To be honest taking kids too, its a lot cheaper than B&B !
We normally do a month in Europe for around £8-900 for site fees, crossings & insurance, then just fuel & food.
Try B&B for a month for 4 adults & meals when you don't have the facilities for cooking for ones self
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>> well Zero, yes we make Swizterland in a day easy, its just over 500 miles
>> from calais & we always do a 6am crossing.
Ah! You start your foreign holiday in Calais then, not Switzerland.
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Caravanners are like the people who go abroad on holiday and never leave a hotel full of Brits, the only foreign contact they have is with the waiters. You can get more foriegn contact than that in the average UK high street.
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>> Caravanners are like the people who go abroad on holiday and never leave a hotel
>> full of Brits,
Methinks you doth protest too much ON. Shall we stereotype buyers of Korean cars next? Hyundais and Kias are much beloved of caravanners, as Injection Doc will attest ;-)
Last edited by: Manatee on Tue 28 Dec 10 at 13:30
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>> Hyundais and Kias are much beloved of caravanners, as Injection Doc will attest ;-)
>>
I already own a house, I will definitely not be dragging another one around with me when I go roaming around. I suspect I would spend more time faffing around with the caravan than enjoying the area I am visiting.
I would expect that KIA / Hyundai cars are excellent for towing, they are for most things. :-)
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>>I already own a house, I will definitely not be dragging another one around with me when I go roaming around
Good for you ON. I don't really want to convert anybody - the increased interest in caravanning has put more pressure on the site network already.
Meanwhile I'm laying my plan to bring Scotland to a halt this summer.
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>> Meanwhile I'm laying my plan to bring Scotland to a halt this summer.
>>
Thats one problem with living somewhere pleasant, everyone and his dog turns up in summer. :-)
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Does Scotland have a summer then?
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>> Does Scotland have a summer then?
>>
No, its a dreadful place always wet and windy, no electricity or mobile phone coverage.
One good bit is that in summer the rain is marginally above freezing. :-)
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>> No dog in my case!
>>
Glad to hear that.
No animals should EVER be put into a case.
Perhaps a properly designed transport box/cage, but a case??
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>> WE have a nice shower & electric flush loo, large flat screen TV and a
>> lounge & fixed double bed. Warm air heating & all the luxurys including fitted microwave
>> & air conditioning.
Ours is more like up market camping by comparison! Though we do have a washroom.
We have done winter caravanning in the UK, but in January we're not masochists. In January we're booked for country hotel weekend to lighten the winter gloom.
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>> We have a week holiday in the UK every year, just like you to explore
>> the lovely regions of the UK we have. Take the dog too.
Don't have a dog. Don't want to stay anywhere that dogs have been given free rein either, knowing how some people allow them everywhere. But I understand that some people like them!
>> We rent a holiday cottage.
I can see us doing that again as we have in the past. Very enjoyable.
>> We have done this for ten years now, and not even approached the cost of
>> buying or running a caravan.
I certainly wouldn't bother owning a caravan for a week a year either. We probably use ours for about 40 nights a year on average, and I doubt we make a profit on that - but I've never tried to work it out.
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"Caravanners are like the people who go abroad on holiday and never leave a hotel full of Brits, the only foreign contact they have is with the waiters."
Well Old navy not me!
We travel and explore, like to see as much as possible, very rarley stay on site all day.
also like lots of mountain hiking & cycling canoeing.
Spent a month in America early this year & visited something every single day for the whole month! then came home for a rest ! lol
so were not all tarred with the same brush.
I have met many people that have never travelled or been anywhere or done anything now that is boring
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I agree with Manatee and Injection Doc and they've both hit the nail fairly and squarely on the head.
We're not trying to convert anyone to having a caravan, in fact we'd prefer it we were the only ones on a site.
We have owned the van for 3 years now but have never cooked more than toast in it, preferring always to eat out.
I can get up at 3.30 and wander outside and watch the sunrise, talk to the wildlife and enjoy the solitude.
That's impossible in a B&B.
We always used self catering before we had the van but as stated, what you see in the brochures isn't always what you get.
The last one we had was in Looe with a fantastic view of the harbour from the balcony, but the fortnight was very cold and wet. We love walking whatever the weather but upon getting back we found that there was no heat whatsoever to be had between May and September. Wet clothes and walking shoes stayed wet for the duration. The cost per week was £450 and we came home after five days.
In the van we have a shower, hot water, a toilet and fixed bed that is more comfortable than the one at home. Blown air heating is a boon and available when we need it. The site is a base to return to at night and but last year we did find that almost everyone had bought a tent and invaded us!
It was obvious it was just a cheap holiday for some and that it was their first year camping, I wonder how many have sold them over the winter.
Pat
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I guess the biggest reason why I wouldn't buy a caravan is the the same reason I wouldn't buy a boat. You tie up a large amount of money in a depreciating asset and need to spend a lot of time and effort maintaining and storing the thing. You then feel obliged to take all your holidays caravanning or afloat as the case may be to justify the expense. I much prefer to keep my options open and choose whatever I fancy each year be it self catering, touring in B and Bs or staying in a decent hotel, renting a narrow boat or going on a cruise.
I must admit though I wouldn't mind renting one of those giant camper vans they have in the US and Canada for a week or so - they look like fun.
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I've just noticed the supreme irony of a caravanning thread in the "non-motoring" section.
Like CG, I wouldn't mind touring the USA or Canada in a Winnebago; but in this country, no thanks. Given what I do for a living, it'd be a busman's holiday, though I probably wouldn't have the hassles most motor-homers suffer regarding getting the damn things through gaps big enough for a supertanker.
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I had thought of moving but my own prejudice stopped me ! :-)
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>> I had thought of moving but my own prejudice stopped me ! :-)
And ours. You're a Taff now, we'll not be having you back any time soon.
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Z must be getting worried, everyone with sense has abandoned the South Eastern hell hole.
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Quite so ON. They even, ( allegedly ) don't point and sneer at people in Mitsubishi Lancers anymore down there. Also, well I've heard anyway, although it could just be an urban myth, that they even let cars like that into the Waitrose car park now.
A pretty pass it has come to and no mistake...
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Margaret Beckett is an avid caravanista. That fact alone is enough to ensure that I will never risk using or owning a caravan. The mere thought of her frightens the beejayzuz out of me.
Last edited by: Leif on Tue 28 Dec 10 at 19:57
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The mere thought of her frightens the
>> beejayzuz out of me.
>>
Try having her as your constituency MP; which I was unfortunate enough to suffer when living in Derby.
So stuck-up that she makes Maggie sound common.
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You wouldn't actually have to go caravanning with Margaret Beckett, Leif ;-)
Nick Clegg likes walking but I haven't let that put me off.
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If it's the size of a shed on wheels and it looks like a shed on wheels then it probably is a shed on wheels...
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"Margaret Beckett is an avid caravanista"
So are Jamie Oliver,Robbie Williams, and Kate Moss. according to the Caravan Club. Not sure what that proves though.
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Not sure what that proves though.
Enough CG, enough - imagine being pitched up alongside one of those tiresome clowns....
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Oh I dunno, on reflection, Jamie could probably rustle up a decent sausage butty, Robbie could lead us all in a chorus of Ging Gang Goolie or whatever it is caravanists sing round the campfire and Kate might liven up the shower block scenery a bit.
Maybe there's something in it after all.
Or not...Look at the state of Ted. Coincidence?
:-)
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When I retired, I thought it would be a good idea to buy a tourer, but store it in different parts of the UK for extended periods to then use as a base to see those parts of the country, thus minimising the towing about lark.
SWMBO put the mockers on that! Looking carefully at the comparative costs of 'vans and self-catering accommodation, I think she may well be right.
I can totally agree with the bed-bug comment of other people's property, having had first-hand experience.
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I don't look at comparing price of renting / B&B's with price of a caravan, firstly with a family of four its a close run thing cost wise, I change my caravan every 2.5 years and have always used the same dealer & often get away with a price change of between 1800 & £3000 as I always look after our vans.
They are stored under cover & cost 260 a year & Ins about £300.
We use it mostly every other weekend & normally minimum of 4 weeks abroad.
For the amount of use I consider it good value for money as for the type of accomodation we have it takes along way to beat at B&B's
No disrespect to B&B's but having had a business myself & our friends owning a busy hotel the things people do in these rooms & the mess they will often leave them in, beggers belief & as I said in one of my other posts ,I would rather have my own bed.
The freedom of the van has allowed us to take off sometimes at an hours notice & just go, even better sometimes we have done the same thing with going abroad, I can remebmer once deciding at 8pm that perhaps we should take off to France for a week or two & by 03.30 we were at the tunnel & my neighbour dealt with my additional insurance & off we went. We had an absolute blast & spent a month touring with no plans & these have been some of the most fantastic breaks ever.
I spent many years flying abroad, hours delayed at airports & horrendous delays returning & double booked hotels & carp ones as well.
In fact we flew to Scicily recently & had delays going & 7 hrs delay flying back, hotel was 1st class but at 3k for 1 week for two no more than I would expect!
Taking the Family to the states for a month & visiting places every day knocked a hole in 20k but had a holiday of a life time so its not about price its about enjoying a holiday & having happy memories.
I work all year for my holidays so darn sure I'm going to enjoy them & not worry about how I can save a tenner!
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Retro Caravans - Zero
