Affordable caravan becoming increasingly luxurious

Waking up with a stiff back, making coffee with a kettle or laboriously converting your bed into a seating area: that's history, as a tour of the camping shops shows. The affordable caravan has also come of age.

After years of malaise, the caravan is making a comeback, and how. Even the most basic models now have beds with slatted bases and comfort mattresses, a kitchen with three automatic gas burners, boiler, refrigerator and heating. The toilet, introduced in the 80s, has also become an indispensable part of the mobile holiday home - there is no longer a caravan for sale without its own sanitary facilities. Some models are even equipped with a shower: camping is no longer a hassle.

Entry-level models

While the average caravan costs around 20 grand, the established brands are introducing more and more models with a starting price of just over 11 thousand euros. Still a lot of money, but in terms of luxury they are hardly inferior to their more expensive brothers and sisters, equipped with lots of bling bling. For the price of a second-hand caravan you can also buy a new, affordable caravan.

Some brands, including Knaus, even introduced a separate brand with budget-friendly caravans: Weinsberg. That brand supplies the CaraOne caravan that is pushed out of the showroom with a bow on it for just 11 grand. But brands such as Adria, Dethleffs, Bürstner and the French brands Sterckeman and Caravelair are also in the same price range.

Family with two children

For that money you get a caravan that is equipped with heating, kitchen, refrigerator and a fixed double bed with comfortable mattresses. The seating area can also be converted into a second double bed, creating a total of four sleeping places: perfect for a family with two growing children. There are also versions with a separate bunk bed for the little ones, such as the compact Adria Aviva 360DK.

Last winter, the German brands Bürstner and Dethleffs introduced two newly developed entry-level caravans for families: the Premio Life and the C'joy, which have a luxurious appearance due to the chosen wood colors for the furniture and mocca-colored upholstery variants.

Luxury packages

What you should pay attention to when purchasing an affordable caravan is the standard equipment of the 'entry-level' caravans: for example, a spare wheel is often not included - order that separately because you don't want to be stranded with a flat tire on the French coast. Peage. Another thing to pay attention to is the length of the bed, especially if you are a bit taller. Some caravan beds stop at 189 cm, while other beds reach two meters; sufficient for the average basketball player. Costs for making it roadworthy have now been included in the price; additional costs include gas bottles and an awning or awning.

And if you want your affordable caravan upgrade, then all manufacturers offer luxury packages in which, for example, an anti-sway clutch, a screen door, panoramic roof hatch and a larger refrigerator are offered at an interesting collector's price. Not necessary, but nice. Maybe for when the holiday pay is transferred in May!

Just with your B driving license

Due to relaxed legislation, you can also tow a caravan with the normal B driving license since 2013. As long as the maximum weight of the car plus the maximum weight of the caravan (curb weight plus loading capacity) remains below 3.500 kg. The only restriction is what your car can tow: that so-called maximum trailer weight can be found on the car's registration certificate, or you can simply enter your license plate number www.rdw.nl.

Large range of caravans

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