Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2022 i Campervan

Let’s start with the elephant in the room − the cost of fuel is through the roof! We’ve experienced a huge price hike in a very short space of time, and I can’t be alone in saying that my usual, regular campervanning trips have been somewhat curbed by the price of diesel at the pump today. But that’s not all bad news. Back in lockdown when we couldn’t leave our home counties, we celebrated the joys of discovering the delights on our own doorsteps, and praised the environmental benefits of our reduced carbon footprint through travelling fewer miles, so that’s what I plan on doing again − celebrating everything local. For example, last weekend, I camped at a pub only 12 miles from my house, just so that I could…

The European vehicle safety organisation, Euro NCAP, has awarded the Fiat Ducato with the safest rating for a commercial van of 2022. It assessed vans based on their crash-avoidance system fitment and performance. The picture that emerges is one of slow but steady improvement, with several vans being better equipped than they were a year ago, with systems that perform better than they did. Where manufacturers have made more substantial updates to their vehicles, big performance improvements are seen. Just one, the Fiat Ducato, has become the first van to achieve the top platinum rating. Last year, Euro NCAP drew attention to the poor level of fitment of safety equipment in commercial vans. New legislation will force van manufacturers to fit basic avoidance systems, already widely available on passenger cars,…

After shipping my campervan to Canada in order to explore the other side of the pond on a road trip of a lifetime, my current location, the Mojave Desert in southern California, was a long way from where I needed to be, which was anywhere in Canada. My visa was about to expire and the clock was ticking to cross the northern border out of the USA. My journey to leave had been delayed, as late snow closed roads east of the Sierra Nevada mountains and rain caused floods on the coast. I also had my golden rule to stay clear of interstates, which are marvellous for eating miles but are no good for seeing America. My plan was to head to the coast just north of the flooding in…

1 Sands Caravan & Camping, Highland Gairloch, Wester Ross IV21 2DL 01445 712152 sandscaravanandcamping.co.uk 28 March – 31 October For a beautiful campsite right by vast golden sands, this site in the Highlands of Scotland is a perfect choice. It might be a long drive up here for some, but we promise you it's worth it! It’s all about location, location, location here. Situated on the beautiful west coast of the Highlands with views of the Isle of Skye and the Outer Hebrides, you can choose a sheltered spot among the sand dunes or a raised pitch with unrivalled views. There are grass and hardstanding pitches with electric hook-up, plus a licensed café/restaurant, toilets and showers, a laundry room, dog walking area and dog wash. To explore the area, there are…

What’s not to like about May? Two bank holidays, light evenings and maybe even some spring sunshine. Looking back on a pre-pandemic May, our first expedition was to the Lake District because my husband, Chris, had a weird compulsion to run another Lakeland Trail, despite coming a cropper on the last one he did in Keswick. Bizarrely, some friends also wanted to try the run, so they joined us at Windermere Camping and Caravanning Club campsite. Not that the campsite is actually on Lake Windermere, which must come as a disappointment to anyone wanting to pursue watersports. It’s actually about 10 miles away, near the village of Staveley, where the run was taking place. This is a quiet corner of the Lakes, easy to access from the M6, and the…

Over 70 years ago, Volkswagen introduced its Bulli – the splitty or T1 – to the world. It became a massive hit and the base for campervans around the world. Now VW has launched its ID Buzz, taking retro design elements of the original and combining them with fully electric drive, in either van or people-carrier forms. The ID Buzz Cargo is the van version, which offers two or three cab seats and sliding doors on one or both sides. It has a wheelbase similar to the current T6.1 Transporter but is shorter overall, at 4.71m. It is also 81mm wider. The ID Buzz was first shown in concept form five years ago; now its launch has been confirmed for the autumn, with advance orders already possible in some countries.…

With electric campervans still suffering from reduced range compared with diesel-fuelled vehicles, CampervanCo has come up with a hybrid model offering electric motoring, yet retaining the flexibility of a petrol engine for longer distances. Its new Evolution PHEV, produced under the Eco Campers brand, will offer up to 26 miles on an electric charge but also has a 1-litre Eco Boost range extender engine. It is based on the plug-in hybrid version of the Ford Transit Custom, which we reviewed in the December 2020 issue. The new campervan also has lightweight, modular kitchen units, enhanced insulation for more efficient climate control, an induction hob, phone and tablet charging stations, an elevating roof and optional WiFi system. The vehicle is also fitted with 1,000W solar panels that can charge while driving,…

British buyers can choose from a comprehensive line-up of Pilote campervans with the range consisting of ‘V’ (for 'Van')models, including the V630LG, which has a rear lounge layout that has been developed specifically for the British market. The V630LG is exclusive to our market and features twin facing sofas in the rear, which convert into a large double bed at night. Centrally located is the galley with a three-burner gas hob, oven, an 85-litre fridge/freezer and stainless-steel sink. Opposite is the washroom fitted with a Thetford cassette loo and a shower large enough to rival those found in some coachbuilt motorhomes. Because of its appeal to British buyers, Pilote expects this model, as well as the shorter two-berth V540G, which has a rear fixed transverse double bed in a campervan…

Campervanners of the month Here are some photos taken from our recent visit to Belgium. We stayed on the coast at Camping Duinezwin, Bredene. It’s a great area for walking and biking. We parked the campervan on site and used our bikes, the tram and train to visit Brugge, Zeebrugge and Oostende. It was a lovely break with wonderful sunny spring weather and we would totally recommend a visit. Andrew & Glenna, email Out and about Here’s my VW campervan set-up, camping at Tumut. James Smith, Twitter Spotted! To the Editor: This made me think of your old VW T25 campervan as I walked along the seafront at Scarborough. I particularly liked the sticker on the front – it made me smile, so thought I would share it. Claire, email…

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Tonks, my VW T5, is actually my second campervan to bear that name. The first was a tiny black Romahome R10 I owned before, which showed me that, yes, I would use a campervan a lot, and it was well worth the expense of buying and owning one. I’d planned to upsize from Tonks 1.0 a  er a couple of years of ownership but, as so often happens, I started looking about six months before my planned change date. I saw a few nice campervans, but none really grabbed my attention. Then, the day before I was going away on a trip, I was browsing and wham! – a bright red VW camper appeared on my screen. It looked perfect, even though it was the total opposite of the discreet…

Back in September, the Government proposed changes to licensing requirements with regards to towing trailers, meaning car drivers will have ‘BE’ codes added to their driving licence. This law came into effect on 16 December, meaning that, if you passed your test from 1 January 1997, you can now tow a trailer weighing up to 3,500kg. Fitting a towbar A towbar is one of the most flexible additions you can bolt to your campervan and it allows you to increase storage space, add a bike rack, reduce your campervan’s weight with a trailer, or even tow a vehicle. The majority of campervans can have a towbar fitted, but the type you need depends on when your ’van was registered. If it was registered before April 2012 (it has a registration…

On sale 19 May 2022 In next month's issue All contents subject to change Subscribe at outandaboutlive.co.uk 01778 392019 subscriptions@warnersgroup.co.uk Digital Campervan offers To enjoy access to a fully searchable digital archive of all issues of Campervan since it was launched, visit motorhome.ma/cpvnexact For extra photos, videos, interactive adverts, live web links and additional web-based articles, head to motorhome.ma/cpvnpocketmags…

The Caravan and Motorhome Club is planting trees on its campsites this year as part of an initiative that’s been created to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) is asking people from across the UK to ‘plant a tree for the Jubilee’. The Club is planning to plant 2022 trees across its 200plus campsites. All trees will be native species from ‘Plant Healthy’ certified suppliers and include green beech, field maple, common alder, common oak, rowan, hornbeam and bird cherry, wild cherry and silver birch. Over 1,200 trees have already been planted over the winter season. Caravan and Motorhome Club Director General, Nick Lomas, said, “We are proud to pledge our support to The Queen’s Green Canopy. Tree planting is one of the most engaging and…

Back in late 2016, we were struck by the VW T6 Transporter-based Expo from the then relatively young and less well-known Cornish firm, Ecowagon. Since then, Kenny Green, who signs his emails The Big Cheese, has been beavering away near Redruth, refining and improving his campervans. The company offers a range of models, from the DayVan Camper through to the Combo, Slim 5/6, Classic and Expo, and the flagship Expo+, which now accounts for around 19 out of every 20 sales. With this model, Ecowagon seems to have found its niche, building truly top-of-the-range campervans for those who probably don’t have to worry too much about the price. If you’re going to build the ultimate VW camper, of course, you’ll want to start with an exceptional base vehicle. So, this…

Ten weeks in that?!’ my neighbour said, incredulously. I only nodded and smiled, amused by his disbelief, the eyebrows raised. To be fair to my neighbour, he’d never toured in anything smaller than the 2017 Bailey Autograph currently parked up on his drive, so I could understand his reaction. ‘Well, good luck with that!’ were his final words, as he le. me to finish packing my VW pop-top camper for my forthcoming trip. Admittedly, I’d occasionally wondered myself if 10 weeks would be too much. I’d done a six-week trip a few months before, but did have to question if an extra four weeks would be pushing even my own tolerance and patience levels to the limit. As with everything else in life, there was often only one way to…

Yorkshire Pics / Alamy Stock Photo Choices, choices! Where to start with what beautiful North Yorkshire has to offer campervanners? If you like the outdoor lifestyle, you’ve the North York Moors National Park and the Yorkshire Dales National Park to explore, as well as several lovely Areas of Outstanding National Beauty, like Nidderdale and Howardian Hills. All of these places offer miles of walking and cycling routes, as well as a wide range of activities, and there are tonnes of campsites around, too. To see the sea, you can’t go far wrong with a trip to Dracula’s resident town of Whitby, or indulge in fish and chips at Scarborough or Robin Hood’s Bay, perhaps. For culture vultures, historic places like the city of York and the spa towns of Harrogate…

My first camping holiday was in a Bedford CA Dormobile and, as a kid, I loved it. My parents then moved to caravans. I very nearly bought an Auto-Sleeper Duetto in 2000 for windsurfing, but ended up with an estate car. Our first motorhome was a Trigano Tribute 665 Sport, which we bought in 2010 for windsurfing trips and weekends away. Soon, the windsurfing became less frequent and we found ourselves having more holidays in it. A trip to the NEC motorhome show in 2013 had us looking for a ’van with a bit more lounge space and without travel seats, which we never used. Having read a review of the Auto-Sleeper Kingham, we thought it would fit the bill, but it was soon dismissed due to the storage space…

Once you’ve bought a campervan, you will need to invest in a whole array of camping accessories, from cups and cutlery to an electric hook-up lead and levelling blocks. However, the most expensive thing you’ll buy will probably be an awning, so it’s important to get it right. There’s a lot to consider, so let’s take a look at some of the basics… Firstly, you need to think about how you’re going to use it. Like campervans, they come in many sizes and layouts, ranging from basic touring canopies that simply offer shade for a couple of chairs through to awnings the size of a bungalow that provide space to seat an army as well as sleeping pods for them all. Whilst the temptation may be to opt for the…