I'm interested to follow this thread Mrsmac2001 as we are currently in the same situation! We have the same Camplet 2012 as you and are seriously considering changing it next year as it hasn't entirely lived up to our expectations either. I'm not sure if we have the same niggles as you but we are determined to stay with a trailer tent as we love camping, we love how easy it has been to tow and we are not really ready for the responsibility of a caravan yet!
We are trying to base our decision on what to change to on the practicalities of the type of holiday's we go on and the limitations that the Camplet has had.
We also like the Cabanon Mercury as well as the Raclet Safari which we had a very good look at in France this year as we got chatting to a family that owned one. It is really big compared to the Camplet and no poles to whack your head off! More off the ground space between the beds and options for beds under the trailer. Awning is vast and it also has a large porch area. And it has waste water too!! Best thing for us though is the zip in groundsheet and the fact that you can just put up the TT without the awning so we can do overnighters when we travel to the south of France. Not sure if anyone on here has experience of the Safari but would love to hear if they have - we'd love to know the pro's and con's. It's a tough decision as it can only be based on your own personal requirements and it's only when you really use these things that you find out!
We're off to the Caravan and Camping show in Feb to make a final decision. Would be interested to compare notes with you on what you finally decide to go for and also how you plan to sell the Camplet.....
slj76...that is very interesting! What a shame that we are both disappointed. I don't want to slate the product on the forum too much as that is not my way and I am sure that for many it is the perfect trailer tent. It is only when you live with these things that the cracks start to show! I have had a squizz at the raclet safari that you mentioned and that looks like another good tent. I'm not sure if you agree but going back to a more TT style set up is not at all daunting as we never found the Camplet that simple to set up anyway..and my heart is always in my mouth worrying that we will bend that flippin' pole in the process!
We too are off to the show in Feb, we went in October but got a bit dazzled by the caravans and motorhomes if I'm honest, and the tent section was titchy in comparison. We hope to leave the kids behind as they nearly lost the will to live poor things.
We talked to the Cabanon guy from Black Country Caravans, he seemed nice but didn't have a Cabanon Mercury, there or at the showroom that we could see, so that's a bit of a problem. Have you considered Folding Campers?
We must keep in touch and see how we go :-)
Whatever unit you get there are compromises, and it is very much a personal choice. Going from a 6th berth synthetic tent the Camplet was great, a vast improvement, so easy to move around and tow, and I could get it out to dry by myself. If we hadn't had water ingress problems when we started using the side annex I doubt we'd have changed it when we did. However that doesn't mean its perfect, there are issues with the accomodation that only really became apparent with use, but then there always are.
People who are interested in purchasing a unit will search these forums and it is useful to have the cons listed as well as the pros, I don't think its slagging the unit off!
Quote: Originally posted by mrsmac2001 on 15/12/2014We too are off to the show in Feb, we went in October but got a bit dazzled by the caravans and motorhomes if I'm honest, and the tent section was titchy in comparison. We hope to leave the kids behind as they nearly lost the will to live poor things.
My husband was definitely dazzled by the caravans too and has kept a brochure on one for the day he suddenly finds a spare £20k lying around!!!! In the meantime though we just can't afford to shell much more out to change ours and we are therefore looking at a 2nd hand FC or a new TT. As you say, I don't mind at all going to a traditional TT set up as it would be really handy for overnight stops and with a zip in groundsheet in the awning I think the useable space is really increased. My worry with a Folding Camper is that you're back to just a normal awning and after the wet 2 weeks we had in France this year where all awnings, no matter what they were attached to, were totally water logged - for us that meant the kids were limited to playing on the bed.
I do worry though about wet pack ups and the amount of stuff you've got to get out to clean and dry when you get home. At least with the Camplet you can unfold it and just put a couple of pegs in and it drys really quickly. Have you also seen the Raclet Quickstop X-Trail - that's a sort of inbetween TT and FC? http://www.raclet.co.uk/quickstop-xrider.html#!product/prd1/3157104181/quickstop-x-trail - quite pricey though when you start to add all the bits on.
I know what you mean about the tent section of the show - it's definitely not as impressive as the caravans and a real shame that they don't have more of the models on show. Fingers crossed it will be better in Feb. We're also leaving the kids behind :))
Quote: Originally posted by mrsmac2001 on 15/12/2014We too are off to the show in Feb, we went in October but got a bit dazzled by the caravans and motorhomes if I'm honest, and the tent section was titchy in comparison. We hope to leave the kids behind as they nearly lost the will to live poor things.
My husband was definitely dazzled by the caravans too and has kept a brochure on one for the day he suddenly finds a spare £20k lying around!!!! In the meantime though we just can't afford to shell much more out to change ours and we are therefore looking at a 2nd hand FC or a new TT. As you say, I don't mind at all going to a traditional TT set up as it would be really handy for overnight stops and with a zip in groundsheet in the awning I think the usable space is really increased. My worry with a Folding Camper is that you're back to just a normal awning and after the wet 2 weeks we had in France this year where all awnings, no matter what they were attached to, were totally water logged - for us that meant the kids were limited to playing on the bed.
I do worry though about wet pack ups and the amount of stuff you've got to get out to clean and dry when you get home. At least with the Camplet you can unfold it and just put a couple of pegs in and it drys really quickly. Have you also seen the Raclet Quickstop X-Trail - that's a sort of inbetween TT and FC? http://www.raclet.co.uk/quickstop-xrider.html#!product/prd1/3157104181/quickstop-x-trail - quite pricey though when you start to add all the bits on.
I know what you mean about the tent section of the show - it's definitely not as impressive as the caravans and a real shame that they don't have more of the models on show. Fingers crossed it will be better in Feb. We're also leaving the kids behind :))
I must admit, that's quite a long way from the popular viewpoint of things. 'Traditional' trailer tents are the one things you normally try to avoid for 'overnight stops' as they are the one option, above all others, that takes the longest time to set up. The space is brilliant, but the compromise is setup time. This is why the likes of the Campl-lets and the Combi-Camps came about, to bridge the setup gap between traditional trailer tents and the much faster folding campers. You're right though. It's a shame that most of the folding campers, even the new ones, come without the zip in groundsheet. The Raclet Quickstop Xtrail is one of the few exceptions. If you like that, then it's predecessors, the Quickstop and Super Quickstop might be worth a look. The Super Quickstop, particularly, is worth a look, as it is a higher spec model, more akin to normal folding campers, but with the benefits talked about above.
You should find there's a lot more choice of canvas options in the February show. The Autumn shows tend to be the 'Motorhome and Caravan Show', whereas the Spring ones tend to be the 'Caravan, Camping and Motorhome Show' so a lot more to see, camping wise.
If they struggled at the last show, I would definitely leave the kids somewhere for the day for that one.
------------- The one good thing about being wrong is the joy it brings to others..
We are under no illusion that the total set up time would definitely be a lot longer for a traditional trailer tent than our Camplet (though this for us is by no means fast - which is probably more down the high levels of stuff we bring with us!!). What I guess I'm trying to find though is a unit which allows the best of both worlds so we don't lose the advantages of the Camplet if we decide to change.
Maybe I'm missing something but from the videos of the Raclet's and the Cabanon it looks to me like to set it up without the awning so you just literally have the beds is really quick and easy. With the X-Trail in particular, you don't need any pegs at all. I appreciate that these videos are a little far fetched from reality - the X-Trail one is particularly funny as Mum goes off with the kids leaving dad to unpack - yeah right!! Where is all their stuff? Where's the wind, the rain, the sloping pitch, why are the kids (and parents for that matter) not fighting / screaming / moaning? What I think we really need to consider is if this basic set up is enough for a 2 night stay and if the additional space and the ZIG that you get on the full set up is worth it for longer stays.
This is why this forum is so useful for discussion because it gives lots of food for thought.
Talking of all those fun factors; you mentioned earlier about having the kids restricted in the folding camper, insofar as they were limited to playing on the beds. I think it will, partly, depend on how you will mostly be using the unit. If you are going to be pitched up for a long time, then a traditional TT will give you all the flexibility you need, especially if the weather is not so good, as long as you have the sewn in groundsheet. Where you lose the advantage is when you have a number of shorter stop overs. Yes, a folding camper has restrictions, but one of the generally accepted advantages of a folding camper is that you can get to use it equally well, for short periods, without the awning.
You're right; conditions are, rarely, ideal for setting up. A folding camper needs no pegging at all, but still has all the facilities inside, like seating, storage, kitchen ZIG etc. The problem with a traditional TT is that, if conditions are not great, and you have no awning set up, you have very limited space inside, plus you can't easily use the kitchen, etc. You mentioned that you take a lot of stuff with you, as well. Firstly, with a folding camper, most of it will fit inside, so you don't have to carry too much with you in the car, plus, it means it's all to hand. You're not running backwards and forwards to the car to get stuff out when you need it. The Cabanon Mercury, for example, is a lovely tent for longer term stays, but the basic tent, without awning, contains just two beds and a couple of drawers. (Not a space I'd like be confined in with a couple of kids, in bad weather, even for a couple of days). Same applies to most of the Raclets.
Of course, it depends on which model you go for. The smaller FC models will, admittedly, give you no advantage over the Quickstop, and, unfortunately, they wont have the benefit of the zip in ground sheet.
It sounds like the larger folding campers would be ideal for you in many ways, as they can be opened up in 15 minutes or so and be ready to go in 15 minutes or so, they have plenty of space and facilities for a shorter stay (some models even have toilets / wash rooms) and their accommodation can be doubled, for longer stays, using the awning. Models such as the Pennine Sterling or Pullman and the Conway Cruiser are worth looking at, as are the larger Pennine Pathfinder and Conway Crusader. The downside of these models is that, although a lot easier to tow and store than a traditional caravan, they are larger than a standard trailer tent. Also, they wont come with a zip in awning, as standard, so there's always going to be a compromise somewhere.
------------- The one good thing about being wrong is the joy it brings to others..
Will the kids share for a weekend stop? If so, have a look at the Raclet Panama, or the earlier Moovea. With both you can add a two berth bedroom annex to the main unit, which will give you quite a bit of useable living space with a zip in groundsheet for weekends. For longer stays you can add a traditional awning which will allow another bedroom annex.
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Topic: Moving on from our Camplet
