Table of contents for December 2022 in Practical Caravan

Swiss Luxx low-wattage toaster Don't have a grill in your caravan? Never fear, this handy toaster uses just 750W of energy and is surprisingly compact in size. Price £26.69 Web bigwhitebox.co.uk Fiamma Omni Stop Holder Simple but effective, this self-adhesive holder attaches to the inside of your kitchen locker, to stop your plates sliding around in transit. Price £9 Web primaleisure.com Sling storage net Bits and bobs ending up all over the place when you're on tour? Hang this storage pouch in your awning or van and keep everything in its place! Price £11.99 Web decathlon.co.uk Bike storage tent Avoid a soggy seat with this nifty store for two bikes. The sturdy, waterproof tent features ventilation panels and a sewn-in groundsheet. Price £74.95 Web caveinnovations.com PICK OF THE MONTH QUECHUA…

Crummock Water What makes it special? Surrounded by fells, waterfalls and woods frequented by red squirrels, Crummock Water is an oasis for nature lovers. Over aeons of time, material carried by surrounding streams separated the lake from its neighbour, Buttermere, rendering Crummock Water a stunning lake in its own right. It lies between the peaks of Mellbreak and Grasmoor, with Red Pike and High Stile to the south. April and May are the best times to visit, when a blanket of bluebells covers the valley of the nearby Rannerdale Knotts. What to do Walking and rambling If you don't feel like trekking up the fells, there are some great rambles to enjoy on trails around the lake itself. The 14km circular route beginning and ending at Lanthwaite car park takes…

TRAVEL 48 HOURS IN… ‘The elegant cathedral city is just brimming with fascinating legends and history’ CASTLES, CATHEDRALS and coastline - Durham has it all. The elegant cathedral city can be traced all the way back to the 12th century and is just brimming with fascinating legends and history. The lively local community is bolstered by some 20,000 students at Durham University and the centre is full of vibrant independent bars, restaurants, cafés and shops. With the dramatic sandflats of Seaham Beach to the east and the rolling countryside of the North Pennines to the west, Durham is perfectly placed for exploring the north-east. HOUR BY HOUR DAY 1 9am Cathedral city Steeped in history, Durham is studded with interesting heritage sites. A great way to start your trip is…

When to go We were touring the Rhine in early May, when it was wetter and cooler than we'd expected, and on the return leg, we stayed in Austria and Germany, on the Danube, in June, when it was very hot. The weather varies from year to year, so it's pretty much pot luck. Early May in Germany was out of season, but it was busier in June. Way to go We took the overnight ferry from Hull to Rotterdam and drove directly to Camping Sonnenstrand at Bacharach. After two weeks there, we stopped near Augsburg in Germany, then at a campsite in Austria, before reaching Croatia. We returned via Slovenia, staying in Austria for a week, then we stayed at Grein briefly, followed by Regensburg for a week. We…

“We started off as campers,” explains Linda. “Our children loved camping holidays and so did we. We carried on camping once the children were grown, but after one holiday in Devon, where the air-bed let us down, and our friends having already purchased a small touring caravan, I told Trevor that our weekends away as we had known them were over unless we got a caravan! He must have known that I meant it, because he went out and bought our very first, new-to-us, little tourer; we absolutely loved it.” Permanent pitching “After upgrading our caravan three times in the first few years, we then bought a van with a fixed island bed. “Getting the caravan in and out of storage was a chore and we found we were visiting…

Practical Caravan AWARDS 2023 Back for the second year in their current new form, the Practical Caravan Awards feature the best caravans, tow cars and accessories available on the market today. With 21 awards overall, we've included 10 caravan awards that cover a range of budgets, sizes and types. All shortlisted entries must be new or revised for the 2023 season. We also have categories featuring tow cars, awnings, covers, bike racks, sat navs and other gadgets helping you kit out your caravan. This year sees the inclusion of a special new category - the Practical Caravan Anniversary Award, In honour of our 55th birthday, this award recognises a brand, person or innovation that's had a lasting beneficial impact on caravanning. Read on to find out who the winners are,…

FIRST LOOK SHOWROOM Price £30,850 Berths 4 MiRO 1430kg MTPLM 1585kg FASHIONS IN caravan design come and go. Only a few years ago, central washrooms were thought most fashionable if they had a central basin, particularly if it was against the pillar at the foot of an inline island bed. Now, though, that layout seems to have faded from favour a little, and Coachman's 545 has a newly redesigned washroom. Pitch and set-up It's not just the washroom that has changed. This season, all Acadias sport silver-grey sides and diamond-cut black alloys. A locker door on the nearside gives you access to a clear storage area under the seat - perfect for stowing outdoor furniture. If you use an awning, there is an external barbecue point and mains socket on this…

ANY SECURITY IS BETTER than none, but an experienced thief can remove a budget lock in seconds, so it pays to buy wisely. Follow our guide to the top 10 security measures for your caravan, and you will be making life as difficult as possible for any intruders when you put your van into storage over the winter. 1 WHEEL LOCKS Wheel locks come in all shapes and sizes, but the one that some insurance companies appear to favour is the Al-Ko Secure wheel lock. This device is smaller and lighter than most other wheel locks on the market, so it's easier to transport. The receiver is also fixed to the caravan chassis, making it a more secure option. Some caravans are sold with the entire locking mechanism supplied, but many…

SHOWROOM TOW CAR TEST TOW CAR TEST Price £38,045 Kerbweight 1701kg Towing limit 1600kg What's new? We've towed with the Kuga already, but in plug-in hybrid form. When we drove that vehicle, it was somewhat hampered by the 1200kg towing limit, although that has now been upgraded to 1500kg. The full hybrid is lighter and cheaper, but has a 1600kg limit. It has a much smaller battery that recharges without being plugged in, using energy that would otherwise be lost in coasting or braking. We've been driving the high-spec ST-Line X Edition, with a list price of £38,045. What are we looking for? Ford offers petrol, plug-in hybrid and full-hybrid powertrains to Kuga buyers. Is the full hybrid the pick of the bunch? And how well does the Ford compare…

AUTOMOTIVE SUSPENSION systems actually remained quite static throughout most of the development of the car. In fact, the humble leaf spring is still being used today on the rear axle of almost all the latest ‘lifestyle’ 4WD pick-ups. This is simply the best tool for the job: strong, able to withstand large differences in loading and easy to repair in the field, because despite their chrome faces and leather interiors, these are developing-world market vehicles underneath. The coil spring has been around since before World War II, mainly in high-performance or high-priced passenger cars, but its use still saw it mounted, predominantly on a rigid axle, at the rear of the car at least. For the caravanner, this was potentially the best recipe throughout most of the 20th century: the…

THE BIG SHOT LAKE DISTRICT Where are we? Duke of Portland Boathouse, Ullswater, Lake District Why tour here? The whole area is a caravanner's dream, with magnificent countryside all around. The lakes and fells are hugely impressive and make for wonderful hikes. Find out more about the Lakes on p22. Don't miss… Once owned by 18th-century prime minister, the third Duke of Portland, this beautiful boathouse is now a holiday cottage offering views to die for over Ullswater. Photograph Andrew Findlay, Alamy Stock Photo The Lake is rumoured to be the inspiration for Wordsworth's poem I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud’…

RHS seasonal light shows return to gardens across the UK – here's a selection: ■ RHS Bridgewater, Manchester 16 November - 30 December rhs.org.uk/bridgewaterglow Enjoy a family discovery trail with colour-changing stars, projections across garden walls and a musical fountain. ■ RHS Rosemoor, Devon 17 November - 30 December rhs.org.uk/rosemoorglow Rosemoor's longest route yet, with a galaxy of giant stars and a tunnel of lights. ■ RHS Harlow Carr, Harrogate 17 November - 30 December rhs.org.uk/harlowcarrglow The glittering trail features ambient sounds (new for 2022) and a ‘pixel lawn’ of synchronised dancing lights. Practical Caravan The next issue goes on sale on 25 November – have your copy delivered direct! See p108 for details.…

TRAVEL GETAWAY IT WAS A DIFFICULT DECISION. Should we spend what we guessed would be the last warm, sunny trip of the year exploring a city - so much more enjoyable when you can stroll around the sights in the sunshine, without being bogged down by coats and umbrellas - or walking on the coast, relaxing on the beach and enjoying great views? As I often do when faced with such choices, I turned to my map. Discovering that York is just over an hour from the white cliffs of the East Yorkshire coast (Kent, it seems, doesn't have a monopoly on white cliffs!) we realised that we could visit both city and beach on the same trip - the best of both worlds. Cathedral city Just a week or…

HAYNES MOTOR MUSEUM haynesmuseum.org This family-friendly Somerset museum hosts 17 exhibition areas of veteran, vintage and classic cars and motorcycles. The outdoor play area for children has mini-diggers, an interactive garage and ride-on cars. If you have your own classic car to show off, or you just want to chat to fellow fans, Haynes runs a Breakfast Club every month, where enthusiasts can get together and share their interest over a breakfast bap. Stay at Halfway Caravan & Camping Park halfwaycaravanpark.com SILVERSTONE silverstonemuseum.co.uk You don't have to wait for F1 to start to have a reason to visit Silverstone! The iconic site is home to a museum packed with exciting exhibits. Interactive displays draw you into the famous track's history, revealing who built it and how the corners got their…

TRAVEL SEASONAL PITCH ONE OF THE JOYS of caravanning is that you can tow to a different destination on every trip, and when the weather's looking good for the weekend, you can up sticks to explore that place you always fancied visiting at (almost) a moment's notice. However, if for some reason you can't drive, don't enjoy the towing, or just like the idea of exploring one region for a whole year, then seasonal pitching could be right up your street. A few years ago, I met a chap who did exactly that on a site in Yorkshire. At the water tap, he asked where I'd toured that year and I told him France, Bath, Sussex and now Yorkshire. I batted the question back: “Oh, just here,” he replied, “There's…

KNOW-HOW // WINTERISE YOUR VAN WINTERISING YOUR CARAVAN KNOW-HOW SERIES CUT OUT AND KEEP GUIDE! MANY CARAVANNERS ONLY use their tourer for three seasons in the UK, and will often park them up over the winter period. While you'd think that not using a caravan would be straightforward, it can actually create problems in spring if you don't lay it up correctly. Simply pitching up your caravan and leaving it from October until March is a surefire way to give yourself potential headaches. So how can you prevent this? Use it all year Resting a caravan over winter never does it a huge amount of good - the vehicle's rubber components, including the tyres, sit in one position, which can result in problems such as flat spots. Happily, there's an easy…

Insulation For starters, it really helps if you have the right caravan. Those hardy folk who have decided to head out on tour in the worst weather conditions will benefit from a caravan boasting Grade 3 insulation. This is the official accreditation for four-season use, otherwise known as BS EN 1645-1 accreditation. The NCC manages this accreditation, and all accredited caravans are embossed with a special ‘Approved’ badge. It makes hundreds of British and EU standard compliance checks on leisure vehicles. One section of BS EN 1645-1 accreditation covers the level of thermal insulation. Each model is chilled to −15°C in a cold chamber. The doors and windows are then closed and the caravan heating turned on. All heating vents are opened to allow the heat from the boiler to…

USED VANS SHOWROOM USED VAN BUYER THE SWIFT GROUP has grown a great deal over the years. From 1989, they began acquiring a number of other brands, including Sprite Leisure. Swift developed these brands and introduced new ones to connect to established names. Sterling was one example, which soon became well liked among caravanners. In 2014, Swift launched its new Smart Construction, using it on the Swift Elegance and the Sterling Continental, both of which were luxury ranges. The construction system saw new floors, GRP protection and no timber being used. It was expensive, but these models looked absolutely stunning. The Continentals offered a good spec, including Alde heating, an alarm, a barbecue point and more. They were no lightweights, so if you're looking at one, you will need a hefty…

IF YOU WERE bitten by the caravanning bug last summer, or decided to buy your first van at the NEC show, welcome to touring - and towing. For some, towing is a necessary evil at either end of the fun bit. For others, it is a satisfying skill and all part of the experience. Towing safely doesn't happen by chance. It's not something you learn about while you are practising three-point turns in your teens - you have to get to grips with some new guidelines and principles to make towing enjoyable and stress-free. This isn't a complete list, but these are some of the most important things any tow car driver should know. 1 The tail should never wag the dog You might have heard of the ‘85% rule’.…

THE CARVER CASCADE water heater was a revelation when it was first introduced back in the 1980s. Efficient and neat, this gas-powered unit was mounted under a seat or bunk. Rather than having unsightly ‘on demand’ wall-mounted heaters, which generally only supplied hot water to the sink where they were installed, the Carver Cascade could supply hot water to the kitchen sink, the washroom handbasin and even the shower. Electric element Several years later, the Carver Cascade GE was launched, which incorporated an electric element as well as the gas heating. This was in response to the growing number of sites with electric hook-ups. Carver was eventually bought out by Truma and production of the Cascade GE ceased. It has been out of production for years now, but many leisure…

EURO ESCAPE TRAVEL RHINE & DANUBE Our next tour beckoned, so Joe and I had treated ourselves to a pair of ebikes, as we are keen to continue cycling, despite our protesting joints. But where to go? We had a vague idea about Germany, toying with visiting the northern region, but then we remembered that there are plenty of excellent cycle paths along the Rhine. Decision made! Not long after that, we were disembarking the ferry at Rotterdam and having shared the driving, arrived at Camping Sonnenstrand in the late afternoon. The campsite lies on the west bank of the Rhine and is within walking (or cycling) distance of Bacharach. This attractive town is situated between Koblenz and Bingen on the Romantic Rhine, so called because of the many fairytale castles…

Store & Stay is similar to seasonal pitching, providing a kind of ‘lite’ version of it. This service is offered by many sites that have storage facilities attached, and can be more cost-effective than seasonal pitching, because you only pay campsite fees when your caravan is on a pitch – the rest of the time, you pay the lower storage fees (typically £5 to £10 a week). When you want a caravan break, you simply ring up the site where your tourer is stored, book your favourite pitch (advance booking is recommended), then, when you arrive, your van will be waiting for you on its pitch. Some campsites might make a small charge for your caravan to be positioned, levelled and connected, but this will vary from site to site.…

CARAVAN MANUFACTURERS facing rising supply chain costs appear to be passing them on to customers, if the latest announced prices are anything to go by. Erwin Hymer UK has raised prices for its unchanged models by at least 17% for the 2023 season. The increase by the County Durham firm is noteworthy because, unlike many of its competitors, it makes a point of not raising prices mid-season. So new prices first revealed last autumn will have remained the same until this summer. But new 2023 prices, introduced following the company's season launch in September, mean that, for example, an Elddis Avanté 454 that cost £21,699 in the middle of this year is now priced at £25,799. All Avanté and Affinity models, along with Compass Casita and Capiro, Xplore and Buccaneer,…

FIRST LOOK SHOWROOM Price £35,895 Berths 4 MiRO 1530kg MTPLM 1686kg SWIFT RELAUNCHED the Conqueror last year, with a more contemporary interior, which quickly found favour with buyers. For the 2023 season, the range's new exterior makes this one of the smartest tourer profiles on the market. The line-up has been slimmed down, now offering three layouts to choose from. Here we are looking at the crowd-pleasing 580, a four-berth with a transverse fixed bed and an end washroom. This is a consistently popular layout for touring couples, but will it hold its own in this hotly contested market? Pitch and set-up Built on an Al-Ko chassis, the Conqueror has instant kerb appeal, with its fine new profile that raises the bar in styling. The new GRP front and rear panels…

YOUR CARAVAN SHOULD be a place for making wonderful memories, but keeping your eyes peeled for signs of damp will be a key part of extending the longevity of your tourer. Moist air in a caravan can be created by a number of different factors, such as condensation - caused by cooking and showering - and water ingress, where rain can get in through gaps. Knowing what to look for is important here, whether you're checking your own van or looking to buy a pre-owned one. Moisture traps Shane Malpass from We Buy Any Motorcaravan explains: “Dampness is what happens when moist air gets trapped in a small or confined space. As caravans are confined living spaces by nature, they are the perfect trap for moist air. The UK and…

USED TOW CAR SHOWROOM USED TOW CAR WORK HARD, PLAY HARD. Admittedly, that could be a mantra that applies very well to most pick-up trucks, but it certainly does so when you consider taking a look at the SsangYong Musso. But if everything's hard, does that mean that the Musso gets a bit of a hard life? And if it does, will that mean you'll have a bit of a hard time keeping it on the road? It's a specialist market sector, so when you're thinking about a pick-up to use as a tow car, it's time for some hard decisions. What's it like inside? Actually, we should start with the outside, because the SsangYong Musso measures more than five metres from tip to tail. This means that even though it…

MANY CAMPSITES now offer guests a boosted TV signal for caravans and motorhomes. You simply plug one end of the coaxial cable into the socket on the site's hook-up bollard and the other into… the back of the TV set. That's all very well in warmer weather, but in winter, when we perhaps watch a bit more TV, it means leaving a window open so the lead can be fed through, or missing out on later shows so you can unplug the lead and close the window. It also means you might have coaxial cable trailing through the whole caravan before it reaches the TV. And these days, many tourers, especially those with fixed beds, have more than one TV point - and therefore might have more than one TV.…

Featuring the latest 2023 models! FIND THE PERFECT FLOORPLAN FOR YOUR NEEDS Please check model details with the manufacturer or dealer before travellingto view or buy There are a wide range of caravan layouts to choose from (pictured below), all with their own pros and cons. When you're trying to settle on the arrangement that will suit you, there are some points to think about that can help you decide. Here, we take a look at a few of the most popular floorplans out there, and what they can offer you. B TRANSVERSE ISLAND BED, REAR WASHROOM Island beds are a surprisingly recent addition to caravans, and were really introduced from the world of motorhomes. Caravans are usually a bit wider than motorhomes, though, so it is far more common…