Hi all, last year i made the step up to a FC from a tent which i have loved since buying it, only had 4 actually outtings but many days at home with the FC up doing bits and bobs. But now the idea has entered my head of buying a caravan. My initial reason for buying a FC was storage quickly followed by the price to buy a caravan. So recently stumbled across how cheap a caravan is to actually buy VERY suprised so now the idea wont go away. We have 2 kids aged 2 and 5 and have to say our 2 year old is very lively and wont stay still climbing and trying to escape so just thought a caravan would secure him more. Also my other half isn't keen on going away half as much as me so thought i'd be able to go away on my own with the kids especially at weekends when he's working. Could anyone give me a price idea of storage in North or South Yorkshire area plz.
Storage costs can vary quite a lot. you can opt for maybe a farm or a CASSOA accredited site (If your use these some insurance agencies give you discounts)or anon accredited site. I found this by using google search
http://www.cassoa.co.uk/search.aspx
------------- Live every day as if it's your last but not at risk to others :-)
i dont think its buying as said its storage . not easy when its not outside your house . ours isnt.
also insurance can cost a lot, then the servicing . plus you need a bigger tow car.
that is costly when you only have one car per house hold. driving it around town and again insurance, they use much more fuel.
dont get me wrong i love and would do everything possible to keep our van, its the only holiday i would wish for , i just thought i would point out some of the problems.
tenting has always been in our hearts but with the weather and cold, there is no comparison and for children its great, home from home.
but as retirement creeps up these are some of the worries. so if you are in a good job. then thats fine.
We had our folding camper for 3 years but in April we switched to a caravan. We found storage through the CASSOA website after phoning around I chose the nearest to us which was also the cheapest and seems to have better security than the next nearest. We pay £75 a quarter and have access between 8am & 7pm during the lighter months & earlier closing time during the winter months. We go there several times a week sometimes, to do bits & pieces. Theres a cold water tap on site which is useful when we want to clean.
We're so glad we made the change, its opened up a whole new world to us!
We nearly brought a FC this year for the reasons you got one. However when we looked at the cost of a FC compared with a caravan we opted for our first van and have just brought a 2007 bailey ranger which we can tow with our exisiting Vauxhall Vectra. We paid £8k for the van which was only slightly more than the FC of a similar age. The only "downside" is the storage costs but this is only £30 a month for us at a local compound and when you balance this with the fact you can use it all year round I think it is worth this little bit extra. Also we intend to use some of the CL sites so having our own shower was a benefit. The insurance wasn't much difference (we paid £190 for the van for the year) and you still shoud get a FC serviced each year as they have similar gas and electrics (we were looking at the crusader or Quartz 6). If you hunt around you should be able to get a good deal on a van, we managed to get loads of extras included with our van!
take in mind the insurance & extra fuel cost,& servicing + the size room space of the actual van you can afford or can tow with your car.
personaly as a caravan owner (2005 van)the constant repairs & worries regards damp the cost of insurance £245
& 27 mpg £150 servicing ect ect makes me wish I had gone for a decent folding camper
plus if you need to use an awning you have the same problem with drying it out as a tent,TT,or FC
Sorry to pick up on this but if you're constantly having repairs on your 2005 van does this mean you have a bad one? As previously mentioned, a folding camper needs servicing too and the modern ones have almost similar equipment to a caravan, heating, hot water, lights, gas etc so could need the same repairs & maintenance. I've read a few instances of folding campers having damp & rotting doors, side panels etc.
We didn't change our car, we just waited until we found a van that was a good match & had everything that we wanted. To be honest, we haven't noticed a great deal of difference in fuel consumption as we always fill up the car before a trip away regardless of whether we're towing or not and my husband is a good steady driver.If we are using more it doesn't matter, we're just happy to be going out in our van.
The pleasure we get from our van outweighs the costs.
I Bought my 2005 4 berth van s/hand in 2007 makers warranty was not transferable.
I have had water ingress in different areas each year & have just had the dreaded stress cracking to the front panel repaired at the cost of £600..
research into selling the van & buying a decent 2000-2005 folding camper with a toilet & wash basin looks so far as if a decent FC would cost more than I can get for the van.
fortunately previous years problems were covered by the dealers warranty
Thanks everyone for your advice and stories. I'm just thinking it would be more suited cause there's more floor space for my youngest son to run around in. I'm a very impulsive person and once i get an idea in my head i normally act on it but know i'd need to find out about storage first.
I don't imagine the footprint of a caravan would be much bigger than a folding camper. Unless there is a height issue, why can't you store a caravan where the folding camper is stored?
Quote: Originally posted by lshipley on 13/8/2011
Thanks everyone for your advice and stories. I'm just thinking it would be more suited cause there's more floor space for my youngest son to run around in. I'm a very impulsive person and once i get an idea in my head i normally act on it but know i'd need to find out about storage first.
Hi Ishiply, You could also look at folding caravans, solid sides, folds down to about 4 feet, can be stored in the average sized garage, and are allowed to be parked on your drive, as it is classified as a trailer, no storage costs, no need to change to big car to tow it. Maybe worth consideration.
I think a caravan is way better than a folding camper/trailer tent. I used to get paranoid about getting it folded before it rained as I have nowhere to open it up to dry. An awning is much easier to dry as its in smaller pieces and not attached to anything.
Oh, the only thing I forget to say is that the OH wanted the van as it had lots more storage than the FC. We have 1 child under 1 and going away is like a military operation and the van just had so much more cupboard space. I think if the FC had been a lot less money we may have gone for one but when you balanced it up the van came out best for us overall. If you want to stay on CL or CS sites the van also has the benefit of been able to run the heating off of gas, most FC's only run on electric for there heating so you would either need to go for sites with hook up or not go away in cooler months!.
Everyone is different at the end of the day and depending on your circumstances a van or FC may suit each person better! Good luck with whatever you go for........we have just booked our first trip away in a few weeks time and can't wait!
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: I`m thinking of switching?
