Hi. Saw one of these for the first time and really liked the set up. What can you tell me about these caravans good or bad? They apperar to have sold for £14,995 new in 2009 is this about right?
Hi I am an Ardennes owner. I would be really keen to find out how many there are in circulation. I have been told that we have one of about only nine made.
I love mine, the layout is perfect for my family.
Few little niggles. For instance the plug socket right next to the sink and the fact that the sink does not have much work surface to the left of it meaning that some splashes can go on the furniture if you arent careful or let the kids do the washing up. Loads of cupboard space though. We went to the Isle of Wight for 10 days, two adults and two teenage boys, and still did not manage to fill all the cupboards. Storage under the 5 seater dining area and also under the seating at the other end, all with really great hinged slates for easier access. Big bathroom and shower cubicle. Lovely lighting, in fact tons of lighting, over head, spot lights, under lights, awning light. Microwave, good quality fittings, removal carpet, nice cream, beige and a touch of duck egg blue furnishings.
I saw this caravan when it won the competition and loved the layout and have been looking for one ever since. We think the reason they are so hard to find is purely because there are so few of them. They also seem to have held their price as the two we found on the market over the last 6 months are still being sold for around £14.995.
I would love to hear from any other Ardennes owners.
------------- May Gullivers C&CC
May b/hol St Neots C&CC
June Boating Regatta Cambs
July/Aug IOW Appuldurcombe Park site
Chertsey C&CC site
Cofton Holiday Park, Devon
Hurn Lane, Caravan Club site
Walton on Thames C&CC site
Clumber Park Caravan Club Site
Lady Margaret's Park Caravan Club Site
Min Y Don - Wales
I think that there will be more than 9 but how many more I would like to know. Glad you like it, can't wait to see if we ever get one. What do you tow with and how does it run, its quite a light van for a twin axle.
Actually curiosity got the better of me and I emailed Bailey direct last night. They tell me there were 60 made and that is official.
We tow it with a Kia Sorento 2005 XSE. My husband says that he doesnt even know he is towing it with the fab ATC breaking system. It can be a little bouncy sometimes but he finds it no problem at all. This is our first twin axle so dont know how it compares with others for weight.
We love the spacious feel of it, the long window with low side cupboards all the way down the one side which gives it a really open and light feeling. There are two sky lights and one vent sky light above the cooking area that has a 5 or 6 speed extraction fan but it also reverses to bring air into the van, also at the 5/6 speeds. There is also a skylight vent above the shower cubicle.
We brought it in April and have used it 5 times this year already and cant really fault it. It seems to be very user friendly.
I hope you find this info useful but if anyone has any questions we would be very happy to help.
Proud Ardennes owners. x
------------- May Gullivers C&CC
May b/hol St Neots C&CC
June Boating Regatta Cambs
July/Aug IOW Appuldurcombe Park site
Chertsey C&CC site
Cofton Holiday Park, Devon
Hurn Lane, Caravan Club site
Walton on Thames C&CC site
Clumber Park Caravan Club Site
Lady Margaret's Park Caravan Club Site
Min Y Don - Wales
you didn't happen to buy it from White Arches by any chance? I ask because thats where we saw the only one that we've ever seen and it wasn't there for long. Well done getting that build number. I'm surprised the minimum run number is that low due to tooling/build costs. Glad you enjoyed it, it really does seem to be a good layout.
We went to White Arches but it cost a lot because of the motor movers on it. We found ours in Kent, Lee Davey Caravans. It was only £11.995 because it did not have movers. Simple, we just got a front tow bar installed on our car at a cost of £150 and you can turn our caravan on a penny, well nearly.
We were told the reason they made so few was because the show rooms did not want to sell them as they had no interest so they stopped making them due to lack of orders. However, on recent looking around at info it would appear that Baileys only ever intended it to be a limited edition.
------------- May Gullivers C&CC
May b/hol St Neots C&CC
June Boating Regatta Cambs
July/Aug IOW Appuldurcombe Park site
Chertsey C&CC site
Cofton Holiday Park, Devon
Hurn Lane, Caravan Club site
Walton on Thames C&CC site
Clumber Park Caravan Club Site
Lady Margaret's Park Caravan Club Site
Min Y Don - Wales
We thought that White Arches were trying it on, but didn't blame them when we found out how rare Ardennes were. Like most vans layouts they either work for you or they don't. I just think that its a van that can be most things, fixed bed if you wish, end bathroom, two seating areas and so on.
We have a Bailey Ardennes, and I must say its the best family caravan, yes I agree about the electric socket, but that's probably the only niggle we have. We bought it in May 2011 after having a ranger 6berth Witt he fixed back bunks , which was fine while our children were only small but now they are 13 and 10 they need a bit of spqce, they have no problem sharing a large double bed which doubles up as a large dining table which is great space for them to sit and play at or watch telly as there is a second tv point that end of the van. the bathroom which is the full width of the back is just fab, giving loads of storage space, and room to manoeuvre in, which other vans of similar size lacked. It really is a very well thought out van with storage that goes on and on . We are highly impressed and wouldn't part with it, but I know they are as hard to find as hens teeth !!
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Topic: Bailey Ardennes
