We're planning a trip to the south of France next summer and thinking of options. We have got a Combi Camp Koala which sleeps 2 (we've squeezed 3 in without the awning but there will be 4 of us, all adult sized, and we don't want to have to faff putting up the awning for 1 night!).
I've seen an American style pop top camper for sale within a reasonable distance, has anyone used one and how quickly can they be set up?
We could upgrade the combi camp to a bigger one without any issues but I'm thinking that a pop top type may offer more in the way of home comforts with a built in seating area etc, I'm not sure how comparable they are set up time wise - the combi is quick!!
Don’t know what you mean by “an American style” pop top?
In my experience, a (VW) style Camper is quick: park up, level up only if necessary, plug in EHU, kettle on or open the bottle, sit down inside or outside - 10 minutes max, 5 mins more if chocks are needed. Pop up takes seconds, pop down a bit longer. I can’t add & down time for a drive-away awning as we don’t use one. Great for touring: stay a couple of days then move on.
Your combi will suit if you’re radiating out from the site in the car for a week or two & wanting space for 4 outside under cover.
Sounds like an interesting trip!
Do you have a link for the pop top so that we can visualise.
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------------- XVI yes?
As well is two words!
How does a sage know everything about everything? or does he? or does he just think he does?
Remember, if you buy something you bought it, not brought it.
To clarify it would be this type - I think they just wind up and you pull the bed ends out. I'm all for anything that is super easy to set up as I can't be bothered with anything that takes ages just for a stopover. Our budget doesn't really stretch to a caravan at all (unless it was ancient) hence considering these as an option!
Quote: Originally posted by Fiona W on 28/11/2024
Don’t know what you mean by “an American style” pop top?
In my experience, a (VW) style Camper is quick: park up, level up only if necessary, plug in EHU, kettle on or open the bottle, sit down inside or outside - 10 minutes max, 5 mins more if chocks are needed. Pop up takes seconds, pop down a bit longer. I can’t add & down time for a drive-away awning as we don’t use one. Great for touring: stay a couple of days then move on.
Your combi will suit if you’re radiating out from the site in the car for a week or two & wanting space for 4 outside under cover.
Sounds like an interesting trip!
Ignore what I said above. I took “camper” to be campervan.
My only concern with it would be if something went wrong with it, say an issue with something only particular to that camper, getting if fixed or easily sourcing spares.
------------- XVI yes?
As well is two words!
How does a sage know everything about everything? or does he? or does he just think he does?
Remember, if you buy something you bought it, not brought it.
We swapped our Combi Camp for a Folding Camper this summer, a Pennine Countryman. It opens up with a canvas roof rather than a hard top, so it's not exactly like the one you are looking at, but probably not a million miles away. Set up time is bit longer, both for the cabin and the awning, but not a lot, and the extra ease and comfort is worth it. Combi Camps are so quick, and have such a lot of storage they are hard to beat, but there are downsides and on balance we are very happy with our switch.
With the Combi Camp we had a king sized bed in the cabin, a side awning for one child (which could be shared for a short stay) and a rear awning for the other, with the front awning for living space. It was great for family holidays as the children grew up, and the hope was that it would be flexible enough for us to use different configurations depending on the length of stay, with just the cabin for a quick two person weekend. In practice though the outside kitchen meant we always needed the awing. It was also heavy, and we weren't sure that the two of us would be able to get it down the garden and drive to hitch up, let alone level it by ourselves.
The folding camper is about the same size and weight, but has a leisure battery and motor mover fitted, so it is a doddle to manoeuvre and we can still store it at home. The cabin offers two small doubles, which is far cosier than the Combi Camp, but we can sleep four for a weekend without any awning, and when it's just the two of us I'm having a bed to myself! As the kitchen is inside the cabin we don't need to worry about sheltering it, and the comfortable seating area is a big improvement. We also have a built in heater and lighting which is rather luxurious! Our first trip out was for three, us and our 17 year old grandson and we only put the awning up briefly to try it, most of the weekend we just used the cabin. We couldn't have done that with the Combi because at the very least we would have needed to cover the kitchen, and it wouldn't have been as warm, or as comfortable in the evenings.
It depends a lot on how you will use it. When we were camping with our younger two children, being able to give them their own space was a huge boon and meant far more enjoyable trips. Now we're planning for retirement, a truly liveable main unit and bit of extra ease and comfort are more important.
Have you looked at You Tube? There are set up videos for lots of units on there which might help.
Someone mentioned issues with spares, but Combi Camp haven't had a UK dealer for years, so that's probably not much different.
That turned into a bit of an essay, so I hope it helps!
Thank you for that detailed response, the reasons that we're looking to change are very similar to you and I'm really encouraged by what you've written!!
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Topic: Pop top campers Vs combi camp??
via mobile 28/11/2024 at 9:24am
