Motorhome newbies....

[Young at Heart]

Hi, We are selling up our property and moving and will have a gap period! Time to downsize. But we have several dogs and no-one wants us!! So we have decided to buy a Motorhome and travel around until we find the ideal place and property, hopefully it won't take too long. But this Motorhome idea seems quite good so we might well keep it and become enthusiasts ha ha..... There are two of us, getting on a bit now, and seven small dogs. Do you think we are brave or complete idiots? No idea yet what type of Motorhome to buy, or to splash out on a new one or get a used one. One thing we have to have is Broadband access as we move around so any advice here would be gratefully received - right now it seems we should not depend on the Parks and so a Virgin Media dongle looks to be the way to go, unless it is a new model which probably has built in wifi. Lets hope it doesn't stretch too far into the winter as no idea if we will end up freezing to death stuck in the Motorhome lol...... The thought of having no fixed address is quite scary. We are looking for a small coastal community with a beach and great dog walks, maybe Devon, who knows. Hopefully it will be fun! Anyway that's our Intro. Hi!

 

[jollyrodger]

&

 

[tonka]

Welcome..
One thing to consider... IF you wanted to use campsites you may not be able to due to the number of dogs, while many welcome dogs, 7 is pushing it a bit. So check that out first.

 

[Carol]

Hello Welcome to Motorhome Fun, quite a lot of questions there so a few answers to ponder on
1. With several small dogs take time to choose a Motorhome where the dogs will have their own dedicated space and get them used to it.
2. I would not recommend a new one to much depreciation and plenty to choose on the second hand market, make sure you have plenty of pay load for you and your dogs to be comfortable.
3. Research your broad band options carefully you have lots of options.
4. If there is a possibility of you being in the van through the winter make sure it is fully winterised, there is a difference.
5. You have a lot of reaserch to do so I would start with £15 full membership of Motorhome fun, that way you can ask as many questions as you want otherwise you will only have 5 free posts
Welcome to Fun.

 

[Janine]

Hello and welcome to the Fun!

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[Mickey1]

Mickey

 

[TerryL]

​

You could do worse than become a full member - it'll be the best £15 you will ever spend motorhoming - then download a copy of Jim's book "The Motorhome Buyers Guide". That'll tell you almost everything you need to know about choosing a van. Then you can ask away to your hearts content on other subjects like where to park, wifi (don't think you can get broadband wifi though), insurance etc. etc. There's already lots and lots of info, just need to use the search facility a bit. In particular the "Full Timing" section will be of particular use.

I would strongly suggest you go for an older m/h to start with, there's plenty of very nice vans around and. as you've got quite a few pets, you'll be able to go for something a little bigger - if it's your "home" as well you'll appreciate the space. An older model won't depreciate anything like as much as a new van so if you find you've made the wrong choice you'll probably not lose an awful lot.

As for the winter, why not just follow the sun like many many of us do?

Good luck with your plans!

 

[Young at Heart]

Yes, thanks for that comment. We have already discovered that. We are resolving that by joining the Caravan Club whose sites are all dog friendly - they said there are no dog restrictions and we checked with two sites - one was the very established Hunters Moon in Wareham and they confirmed that. Totally agree of course that 7 is pushing it but they are only small Maltesers - two big dogs are bigger!! Thank you!!

 

[suavecarve]

Welcome, in terms of a motorhome to buy, and with all those dogs, from the point of view of a non dog owner, i would consider getting one with a garage which has access into the main living quarters and let them have that as their communal kennel.

But thats just me with no idea about dogs

 

[davidbaldam]

Hi and welcome to FUN.

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[WynandJean]

Hello and welcome from West Midlands.


Wyn

 

[The Dudess]

and to the doggies

 

[55149]

Hi from another newbie! Posted here in error so that’s my first mistake. Steep learning curve ahead!

 

[poki]

and

 

[icantremember]

My initial thought is regarding insurance .. as full timers with no fixed abode you may encounter problems.

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[greyman1]

not to mention the potential hostility problems you could encounter from some of the other caravaners and the jobsworth wardens that can be found on some caravan club sites when 7 peeing,poohing, yapping little dogs emerge from your van . also be aware that [although allowing dogs]some sites actually charge per animal per day irrespective of size. in your case this could prove to be rather costly. best of luck . regards garry

 

[Young at Heart]

​

You could do worse than become a full member - it'll be the best £15 you will ever spend motorhoming - then download a copy of Jim's book "The Motorhome Buyers Guide". That'll tell you almost everything you need to know about choosing a van. Then you can ask away to your hearts content on other subjects like where to park, wifi (don't think you can get broadband wifi though), insurance etc. etc. There's already lots and lots of info, just need to use the search facility a bit. In particular the "Full Timing" section will be of particular use.

I would strongly suggest you go for an older m/h to start with, there's plenty of very nice vans around and. as you've got quite a few pets, you'll be able to go for something a little bigger - if it's your "home" as well you'll appreciate the space. An older model won't depreciate anything like as much as a new van so if you find you've made the wrong choice you'll probably not lose an awful lot.

As for the winter, why not just follow the sun like many many of us do?

Good luck with your plans!

Hi from another newbie! Posted here in error so that’s my first mistake. Steep learning curve ahead!

Ha Ha....... There is certainly a lot of things to find out about!!

 

[buttons]

Hi and Welcome.....

 

[Young at Heart]

My initial thought is regarding insurance .. as full timers with no fixed abode you may encounter problems.

You’ve lost me there..... do you mean motor home insurance?

not to mention the potential hostility problems you could encounter from some of the other caravaners and the jobsworth wardens that can be found on some caravan club sites when 7 peeing,poohing, yapping little dogs emerge from your van . also be aware that [although allowing dogs]some sites actually charge per animal per day irrespective of size. in your case this could prove to be rather costly. best of luck . regards garry

Hi, The Caravan Club sites do not charge extra for dogs. Take your point about others but they are all trained and well behaved. Thanks.

 

[mike mcglynn]

We were on a campsite in Devon and it was very early morning maybe 05.45hrs and a dog was barking, I got up and had a coffee sitting in the open and then I noticed a couple of pitches up from us there was an old couple who had a pvc with the side door wide open they had five dogs with them where they all fitted I don't know.

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[Young at Heart]

We were on a campsite in Devon and it was very early morning maybe 05.45hrs and a dog was barking, I got up and had a coffee sitting in the open and then I noticed a couple of pitches up from us there was an old couple who had a pvc with the side door wide open they had five dogs with them where they all fitted I don't know.

I guess we might have to get used to early mornings! First up can wake everyone else then, ummmm

 

[icantremember]

You’ve lost me there..... do you mean motor home insurance?

Yes, but I'm no expert on the subject so I hope a Funster with full timing experience can throw more light on it for you.

Edit; It would seem you have used all your free post and will need to subscribe £15 to continue .. I'm sure you will get more back in advice and discounts.

 

[ambulancekidd]

 

[Young at Heart]

Brief update on the search for Motorhome!! First to say it's not easy, is it! Gone a bit gagga looking at layouts and images.... Seems to be coming down to a decision between a fixed rear bedroom with double bed OR a U shaped rear lounge - and it seems a shame to sacrifice that splendid looking lounge with three sided large windows so perfect for lounging in just for a blinking bed!! But then the worry is converted or in some way contrived double beds are almost certainly going to lack comfort. So whether to stick with the fixed bed or twist to the u shaped lounge has to be decided. Also quite like the 4 seater/belted dinettes but that seems to shoot them over the 3,500 weight..... Time yet to keep looking. Any views on the Rear Bedroom v Rear U shaped lounge (This is where the big mistake could easily be made ha ha) ?

 

[TerryL]

We prefer a French bed (fixed, in the corner at the back as it were) rather than the rear lounge - one of our prerequisites was not having to make up the bed every night. As wifey occasionally likes her head down for an hour in the afternoons this works well. Unless we can park it outside, the dogs cage is stored on it during the day.
That said we don't like the dinette setup either and instead have parallel facing benches as our lounge which we feel gives us a more open feel. Plenty of room for dogs too.
There are a number of vans around with our setup and some are at 3500kgs with a still adequate payload. Swift Escape comes to mind (but watch for damp, they had a problem with floors although I would think it's been sorted now).

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