Hi all.
Been looking at changing our old caravan & the vast majority of 4 / 5 berths that we are looking at have fixed beds. We're not averse to a fixed bed but with a 2 & 3 year old the idea of a separate bunk area at the rear, that can be screened off from say 8pm onwards, seems ideal. Problem is this layout seems somewhat rare now.
Keen to hear from any fixed bed owners as to how you get on in the real world with little ones...?
hi we changed from a fixed bunk charisma 570 to a fixed bed vogue 620 mainly because the kids wouldn't sleep in the bunks, but i must say the fixed bed is the best nights sleep i've had in a caravan we wouldn't be without it both my wife and myself suffer with back conditions and we wake up fresher than at home
We had a Bailey ranger (520?). We loved the idea of a fixed bed as it would save all the work of setting up the beds each night. HOW WRONG WE WERE!!!!
The bed was in the corner, so someone was always crawling over the other one to get in/out
It was always untidy, because every time it was made, we needed to get underneath, where 90% of the useful storage space was. So the whole bed had be uptipped, and it was heavy!
But the biggest issue was the amount of space it stole from everything else. The combined shower/toilet was tiny, the floor space was small, and any work tops had totally disappeared, it was impossible to prepare food or put anything down. The bench seats were also shorter.
We didn't have any little ones, but we did have 3 dogs.
So overall, the many downsides outweighed the perceived benefit, for us, anyway
So after 6 months we went back to a more standard layout with plenty of space.
To be honest I think its a bit of a wasted space if you've got children.
We had a 5 berth before (2 doubles and a bunk over) and we left the rear bed up like a fixed bed but it used to take up so much room, We now have one with fixed bunks (adult sized) and a side dinette table and its absolutely brilliant. I like the extra room for the kids to play and also you don't have to disturb when you go to the toilet etc where you would with a different fixed bed.
Don't get me wrong I would love to not have the hassle of making the bed up every night however I would rather have the extra space in the van,
What sort of budget are you looking at? I know someone on here is selling there German Geist fixed bunk van (similar to ours) including awnings and everything for £8k, and its only a year old.
------------- Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
We have an indiana and love the fixed bed. I think when you are purchasing fixed bed van you have to look at the rest of the layout to make sure it also suits your needs. We love the layout of the near side fixed bed - the vans seem very spacious and open - the seats at the front make ample single beds for little ones and when made the the seats into a bed it creates an enormous sleeping space. This is our second fixed bed and would not change back to anything else. The bed is very very comfortable - storage is fantastic - particulary for larger items.
our kids were always falling asleep on the front seats watching dvds as we spend most of our time in the awning so at bed time they would go iinto the van and put the telly on so we opted for the fixed bed our only concern was as we have a boy and a girl we could not make up the front double as they cant sleep together and we came across the lunar lexon ew the front seats are over six feet long and no matter how big they get they can always have a single bed each as we spend most of our time in the awning it works for us
------------- laugh and the world laughs with you fart and you stand alone
We recently changed from a 2 berth with end bathroom (Odyssey 480) to a 4 berth Abbey with an fixed bed.
There are the two of us + one small dog.
We love the bed, but miss the bathroom, the work surface next to the cooker, the draining board, the long bench seats at the front, the central drawer unit,cupboard space......
Yes there is a price to pay for a good nights sleep!
------------- I started out with nothing and I've still got most of it left - Seasick Steve 2008
We have friends with 4 children and a Bailey fixed bed 6 berth. The little ones sleep in the bunks made up from the side dinette (which they leave up all the time) and the older ones sleep on the front benches or in an annex in the awning. It works for them but we needed somewhere for our son to identify as his bed so went for fixed rear bunks. The bunks have curtains not a door but we have found it fine so far. I would love not to have to make up the bed every night but haven’t come across a layout with a fixed bed that would work for our family.
The triple bunk design seems to becoming more common than 2 rear bunks but you can still get them (I know Explore group still make them) or some of the continental makes have different layouts. We found caravan finder good for looking at layouts when we were looking.
Were considering a fixed double with end washroom as the kids are getting unhappy at sharing a double. We were thinking of giving them the two sofas at the front of the van to sleep on rather than making up a double bed every night. We did consider an end bathroom with the two side bunks, but they didn't really look like they were going to be much use as the kids got bigger, especially with the amount of head room on the bottom bunk. There is also the bonus of course that the fixed double doesn't have to be put up every day. You can always put the kids to bed and have an early night yourselves. Plenty of entertainment options in that big fixed bed... Cards, Monopoly...
Thanks for the replies everyone.
There doesn't really seem to be much availability of the "rear dinette" type that we are looking for. Ideally the back end would be a play / sleep area for the kids. I'd love something with a separate shower cubicle also but I guess I'm being too choosy now.
We have just had our first caravan with a fixed bed and we love it. There is only my wife and I + one daughter though, but it works really well. Like Khanny, we spend a lot of time in our awning.
Have a look for Swift Charisma 540 2007+ They have the rear dinette and a seperate shower cubicle in the washroom, Thats what we had before, Also Sterling Europa (not sure of model number)
------------- Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
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Topic: Fixed bed practicalities...
