Dan Cartwright has over 12 years of experience in the caravan and motorhome industry. He is a judge for a number of prestigious leisure vehicle awards and regularly heads off in his motorhome with his family. Every week, Dan shares his insights with the community. Here’s what he has to say this week.
Last weekend, I went camping. Simple, old-school, tent-based camping. Now, this isn’t something I do for pleasure. For activities, absolutely, but for enjoyment I’d much rather use a leisure vehicle.
However, this particular excursion was with my five and seven-year-old children, ten other dads from the school and all of their kids, too. So, I didn’t want to stand out by being the only person to rock up in a motorhome.
Let me tell you now, it was miserable compared to a leisure vehicle staycation. I’m going to explain the differences and then suggest why a caravan beats camping in every single way.
The first thing to note is that we’re currently experiencing a heatwave in the UK. Daytime temperatures were around 30°C and, with nowhere to find shade other than inside the ~37°C tent, things were not feeling pleasant. Additionally, despite being boiling during the day, it was absolutely freezing at night!
Other shortcomings of camping include, but are not limited to:
- No electric hook up
- No beds and, once your children jump on the air beds and they pop, you’re forced to sleep on a deflated rubbery disappointment
- It’s difficult to keep food and drinks cold
- You have to cook using a back-breaking single ring on the ground and anything you make ends up covered in grass cuttings
- No storage for cutlery and crockery – rolling over in the night with your face stuck to your dinner plate is unpleasant
- You can’t take anything reasonable along because fitting everything you need into a car is actually a tall order, even for a guy with a pickup truck!
Camping simply doesn’t offer any of the creature comforts that would actually make the trip fun. I observed some of the other dads, who clearly take these things seriously. Then, it dawned on me. Their setups must have cost nearly as much as a cheap caravan.
Why the caravan is the clear winner
At the time of writing this, I’ve just logged onto Facebook Marketplace. Within a few kilometres of my house, there’s a range of leisure vehicles, starting from £600. Around the £2,500 area, there’s a 1999 Eldis Crusader Superstorm, which was a beast of a caravan back in its day.
These older caravans are generally very simple and come with things like fridges and electric hook ups. If it’s hot, you could bring a fan to help boost circulation inside the vehicle and air mattresses can be left behind, because you’ll have the luxury of actual cushions and bedding.
Instead of a single ring, you’ll have multiple hobs. You might even have an oven, grill or microwave. Cupboards! Now, you can put your clothes, plates and other items into storage. Most importantly, when it’s in tow, you can fill your entire car up with things to enjoy, rather than the bare essentials you’d need to survive, uncomfortably, in a tent.
Those serious dads I mentioned earlier will have spent the amount of money it’d cost to purchase a cheap caravan on their inferior setup. Between the tents, cookers, portable toilets, expensive coolboxes and ice blocks, air mattresses, thermal sleeping bags and other paraphernalia, it really does add up.
All of that expenditure, just to make yourself miserable and cold. Yes, a 1999 caravan potentially may not be your pride and joy, but it will offer you a much better experience than a tent.
People talk about towcars, but these professional campers have had to buy perfectly appropriate, large tow vehicles just to fit what would be in a caravan, into the back of their car!
Then, they take it all out, set it up each time and reap none of the rewards from caravanning. So, for a cost-neutral alternative, skip the camping shop. Get on a second-hand leisure vehicle website and find yourself a cheap and cheerful caravan. You won’t regret it.
Photo credit: Mac DeStroir / Pexels
