Buying a second hand touring caravan
We are very excited because Big Bertha has finally joined the family. She is a twelve year old, 5-berth, Coachman touring caravan with peach soft furnishings a small shower/loo and a great kitchenette.
A while back we started wondering whether we should get a ‘van as we love taking the children away but did not want the expense or hassle of going abroad. Bealers loves surfing, the kids and I love playing on the beach and so the hunt was on for something that would fit all of us in relative comfort, was clean and tidy inside and was within our budget of under £5k.
Amazingly for us we did not have to search very far as the local caravan dealer had Bertha on the forecourt back in February. To our untrained eye she looked in very fine condition (I was quite sure the shower room or toilet has not been used much if at all as it was spotlessly clean) - the seats were reupholstered in modern(ish) beige floral chintz, it had a rear ‘dinette’ which converted into a single bunk bed and a double bed WITH a sliding door to contain the children after their bedtime, a wee fridge, an actual gas oven, a grill, a three hob burner, gas fire with extra blowers, a fold down shelf to park a tv on, plenty of cupboard space and even a wardrobe.
We were smitten and paid a deposit of £200. She also came with a 12 month warranty from the dealer and went off for her inspection & fixing of anything which needed fixing soon after (a cupboard catch was broken, the sliding door of the kids’ bedroom was coming off the rails).
Bealers attended the Camping & Caravanning Club’s one day ‘Manoeuvering Course’ which gave him loads of practice of reversing a van round steep corners.
Collection day was scheduled for Friday which meant a full 90 minute handover by the caravan technician. He asked us what level of knowledge and experience we had about touring caravans and we admitted it was absolutely zero other than the crumb of knowledge we had picked up from pouring over my father in-law’s caravan magazines. He showed us where to attached the fresh water tank next to the caravan and how to put the pump in, how to let the water taps in both the kitchen and bathroom run to expel any air bubbles, how to attach gas bottles, the electricty supply (or battery), how the fridge locks when travelling and how it can run on both gas or electricity.
I made copious notes and got very excited about the prospect of pitching up at endless scenic places with our buckets and spades (and surfboard) this summer and with a bit of luck for many more in future years.
Our first trip is planned for next weekend when we are travelling about 20 minutes away from here into the Forest of Dean where we have a pitch reserved by the River Wye at Symmonds Yat. Apparently it is very lovely which is great but we are really just using the weekend as a training exercise to practice putting the awning up, attaching all the pipes and hoses to the right orrifice and making sure our caravanning essentials checklist has everything on it we need and not too much more as travelling with minimum weight is of major importance when towing a caravan.
The cost of Bertha should be negated when we’ve taken approximately three week-long holidays and several weekends away instead of spending money on hotels and aeroplanes.
May 13th, 2007 at 10:22 pm
ooo I am dead jealous about your caravan. I really want one. At the mo we make do with a very very big tent. Btw, THe observer today and the guardian yesterday had camping//caravan pull outs.
September 4th, 2008 at 12:35 am
We purchased our first caravan around 6 years ago. It was a little french job with the door on the wrong side. We loved it and soon moved onto our current van and ACE. Just remember that caravans are the best as you can park it up and leave it in a mess without anything dropping on your head as you go round a corner.
Happy Caravanning.