We changed from caravanning to MH last year & have no regrets, far from it we wish we'd done this years ago. There's a few disadvantages of course cost of comparable MH to caravan much higher & a decent sized MH isn't so great if you want to tour the single track roads in the Scottish highlands ! I agree with Motley though - as long as your van has well-planned storage & you've organised cupboards properly you can be ready to go in just a few minutes. One of the great joys of campervans & MH's is the lack of hassle, we love it.
Our one has 2 lots of seating both which convert to a bed (1 x double 1 x K/S) which gives great flexibility. If we're just going away for a 1 night or a few days we make up the big bed at the back before we go & still have the smaller seats at the table by the kitchen to use. The bed over the cab bit we use to store camping chairs etc.
Different strokes for different folks though, just sit down & have a good think, make a list of the things that matter to you & also pros & cons of caravan v Mh etc we found that helped a lot. Definitley go look at shows too if you can Something worth bearing in mind is that the big MH's with 1.9 engines are going to use more fuel to lug all that weight about than same vehicle with a bigger engine. Our MH uses less fuel than our 4x4 does & that's without towing a big carvan ! We get over 40 to the gallon (it's a 2.4 TD engine) & our MH is pretty big - 22 ft long I think & 7'5 wide.
Motley's comments are spot on. There's lots of folks on here who have had caravans and/or motorcaravans or both at the same time.
I find that as life circumstances change and perhaps parking space (!) , then your selection of mobile "home" will vary to meet your needs and desires.
I love our combo, at the moment!, of small campervan plus small caravan. The caravan is only worth about £2k, almost not worth selling (?). But not everyone wants a rabbit hutch (LOL) campervan even for just day van use.
Whatever your choice, keep those wheels moving. It's not a dress rehearsal.
------------- cramming for my finals in the twilight zone
I changed from a caravan to a campervan about 3 years ago and regret it a bit from a financial point of view, although I love the campervan to live in.
I'm not in the £15,000 league though. My car was 2001 and my caravan was 1996. I paid £130 road tax and about £150 insurance for the car and £72 insurance for the caravan.
I now pay £150 insurance and £225 road tax for the campervan and £30 road tax and £150 insurance for my current car.
Regarding fuel consumption, I was getting 35 towing the caravan, now I get 26 in the campervan. Obviously I had the car to go out in and getting up to 50 mpg.
I've been seriously thinking about getting a tow bar fitted to this car and looking for another small caravan.
I do take the van out when I'm on site. I go away quite a bit with a friend and we alternate taking our vans out for the day.
Dinkum has the best set up in my eyes, best of both worlds, got your accommodation on site and a day van for your touring
I towed my little Elddis 302 behind a self build camper van (which to honest was better suited as a day van). A doddle to tow outfits no longer than a large motorhome. Shame I had to convert it back to a workhorse.
Yep, we're very happy (over the moon in fact) with our old van too, & she's over 20 years old. Ok so the upholstery's a wee bit tired looking & not to my taste but it's clean & the pattern isn't so bad it makes we feel ill ! (I've personalised her with cushions & pictures & pretty hooks & what have you anyway) .. But the layout is perfect for us & we're very glad we went for a roomier one with a decent engine. Suits us best & we really did not want the hassle of towing anymore. Different strokes for different folks, it would be a dull world if we were all the same. We'd not swap our old van even if we could afford a brand new expensive one cos we love her & know she#s dependendable.
I know this sounds ghastly, but I wish I'd taken a photo.
We saw an old Renault MH on holiday and the rear doors were open.
All of the seat cushions and backs had crotchet covers on. It looked great with the age of the van.
If you watch Emmerdale, it was like Dingles on wheels!
Quote: Originally posted by naturlist123 on 22/9/2014
Why do I see so many MH,s towing a car using a Aframe on our roads now days twice the road fund licence, twice the insurance, twice the maintance, usually ten tyres and twice the fuel. you must be living in cloud cuckoo land to say its no dearer than car and van or dont you count these costs only pitch fees and EHU.
We have a Motorhome (Hymer 584)and tow a Peugeot 107, tax on MH £165, tax on car £00.00, mpg on MH 27-30 towing car, mpg on car 47-50. No extra cost on sites, MH good on tyres, car very good on tyres. Lots of independence. We live in our MH!
we had a caravan for 8 years and bought our first motorhome in July. we looked at loads at the dealerships and ordered the Elddis Accordo 105. it's 6m long and plenty big enough for the 2 of us.
We are now in benidorm and love the van, we would never have brought the caravan abroad as the Aires are only for motorhomes and it's a hell of a long way to tow something.
the only slight downside is not having a car to get about in, but they all use scooters here so I'm going to look into getting one on the back.
We had caravans for 40 odd years and my wife so much enjoyed the towing experience I was happy to sit back and navigate, well, until we got a sat nav!
Now though with the MH, no way. She tried it once and that was it. She doesn't know why but she's uncomfortable with it. This is the lady that towed a twin axle with a Discovery!
So...MHs do have one drawback
In a former , coachbuilt motorhome, with 2 adults and 2 children on board, we timed how long it took from beds up, night time "trim" to driveaway as 20 minutes. Left the awning freestanding and all loose things stowed.Kids belted in.
I think that this a reasonable time and not off putting to use a motorhome?
Talbot Excalibur 2 litre petrol . 4/5 berth.
Having said that, we did tow a Suzuki Alto behind it for a period. We were very glad we did, especially when a family member got Air ambulanced to Treliske hospital in Cornwall.The car made this aweful situation much less stressful
------------- cramming for my finals in the twilight zone
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: cost fuel
Something worth bearing in mind is that the big MH's with 1.9 engines are going to use more fuel to lug all that weight about than same vehicle with a bigger engine. Our MH uses less fuel than our 4x4 does & that's without towing a big carvan ! We get over 40 to the gallon (it's a 2.4 TD engine) & our MH is pretty big - 22 ft long I think & 7'5 wide. 
