Caravan Storage Expansion at Salop

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By William Coleman

A lot of caravan and motorhome owners, or any leisure vehicle for that matter, may not have the space at home to store the home away from home. Some do but simply want a safer place to store the van while it is not in use. One of the UK’s leading caravan and motorhome dealerships has started work on expanding its secure storage facility in Shrewsbury to cater for customer demand.

Eight years ago Salop Leisure opened their original storage facility, which has since achieved a gold award from the Caravan Storage Site Owners’ Association (CaSSOA), is full with 250 touring caravans and motorhomes.

The new extended storage facility will be monitored by CCTV surveillance, an alarmed fence line security beams and be governed by an electronic entry system.

The site, which has an early November open date, will offer customers the opportunity to store their vehicles on dedicated pitches with improved services for existing customers, daylight hours access, on-site servicing of touring caravans and motorhomes and power washing, tyre repair and pressure checking and waste disposal point services.

“We are aiming to offer the most modern, secure storage facility for touring caravans and motorhomes in the UK,” said Mark Bebb, Salop Leisure’s managing director. “Our existing storage facility is full and we are having to expand it to keep up with demand.

“We provide a one stop shop for caravan and motorhome owners. By storing their touring caravans and motorhomes at Salop Leisure, owners can have them serviced on-site and use the award-winning facilities at our Love2Stay resort.

“Increasingly popular is ‘store and tow’ whereby we are able to tow a touring caravan to the neighbouring Love2Stay resort when the owners wish to stay there overnight.

“Owners can come and go as they wish in the knowledge that their caravan will be safe and secure when not in use. The storage facility is conveniently located alongside Shrewsbury bypass and there is an accessory shop onsite just in case owners need anything.”

I would not wait around as early booking numbers indicate that the facility will soon fill up due to the growing demand for touring caravans and motorhomes from British staycationers who no longer travel abroad for holidays.

Mr Bebb believes this year’s hot summer weather persuaded many people to staycation. With predictions of more hot summers to follow in the future due to climate change, he expects demand for caravans and motorhomes to increase.

“We have seen 25 per cent more first-time buyers this year because owning a caravan and motorhome is now considered to be cool,” he added.

Extended Easi Slide Exterior Sockets From Whale

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By William Coleman

Last week at the NEC the product launches were the highlight of the show, for many people it is the sole reason for visiting the Motorhome and Caravan Show. Whale made a big splash at the show by announcing their new Easi-Slide Mains Electric In Exterior Utilities Socket.

This new handy mains electric in socks allows holiday makers to safely hook up 230V/16amp mains power to their caravan, motorhome or campervan while on site. So this should stop the kids bickering over who’s charging what and when and also allows a lot more choice of what electrical good you can use outside the van. TV in the sun anyone?

All nine sockets in the range incorporate the unique Whale Easi-Slide Lid with its streamlined design. The use of a sliding lid guarantees no more lid flapping noise or damage to your vehicle. Comfortable to use, the sockets provide a smooth easy slide open and close motion with a secure click feature to protect the internal parts when the socket is not in use. As well as being UV stabilised to prevent damage from the sun, all sockets are waterproof and rated to IP45 and IP55.

Mark Walmsley, RV Commercial Director for Whale, said: “We are really pleased with this new addition to the Easi-Slide range. It means we now have one of the widest range of utilities sockets in the industry. Manufacturers love the improvement to vehicle aesthetics, providing uniformity to exterior walls, and end users prefer the sliding lid instead of the more traditional hinged lid.”

CaravanTimes Judge The Caravan Design & Lightweight Leisure Awards

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By William Coleman

This year the has been a year of highlights for the CaravanTimes team. We travelled to 21 countries in 21 days with Bailey Of Bristol on the #Bristanbul trip, we took part as a judge in the Caravan and Motorhome Club Towcar of the Year awards and then we were asked to judge the Caravan Design & Lightweight Leisure Awards at the NEC October show.

To be asked to judge two of The Club’s most prestigious awards really does mean a lot, you could go as far to say we were genuinely honours to even be offered the gig. Little did we know just how much work goes into the event before we even stepped inside a van at the NEC.

Before the judges are picked the team behind the scenes carefully curate a list of caravan entries for the assessment at the Motorhome and Caravan Show in Birmingham. The time and effort that goes into selecting entries that are going to be at the NEC and then hand selecting the judges is enough to make your hairs go grey, but they managed to pull it off.

The selected judges have to asses and roughly 130 different caravans, trailer tents and pop ups over a 6 day period. On the Sunday and Monday the process of assessing the van was quicker as there were not tens of thousands of visitors strolling around the NEC. As soon as the visitors started to arrive getting into each caravan became a job all in itself. So if you become a judge be prepared for a long week where you will walk quite a few miles a day.

But who are the judges? Well Dan Cartwright from CaravanTimes was one of them. Not only is Dan a caravan and motorhome journalist he is also a lifelong user of leisure vehicles of all different shapes and sizes. The other judges included chef extraordinaire Martin Dorey and the Airstream towing Andrew Ditton to name a few.

The reason for picking leisure journalists is to ensure that each vehicle is looked at through unbiased eyes who can constructively scrutinise each vehicle to give the most honest feedback as possible. These awards are for the consumer, not the manufacturer.

That being said there is a lot that a manufacturer can learn from the results and feedback given by each of the judges. A van may score very high for it’s exterior marks but could fail on the inside assessment, thus losing the award win.

Every single aspect of a van is checked out and scored accordingly. The exterior hook up points, shape, size, layout, features, living areas, kitchen, bathroom, storage and many others aspects that a normal user may not even consider when looking at a new tourer.

Although this is hard work there is a lot of fun to be had. I mean afterall you get to go to the show a day or two earlier than the general public and have free reign of the entire show. Being able to bob in and out of each van and have a nose around of what you do and do not like. It is like one giant press launch all to yourself. You also get to see the evolution of the industry in a very unique way and get the first look at a lot of new innovations manufacturers add to help change the industry for the better.

Each judge soon becomes pressed for time as each van takes around 20-30 minutes to judge, now add the public to that and you can double your time. By day 3 the rush is really on as all the figures need to be in by the Thursday afternoon to then be correlated and then displayed Friday evening at the awards, so its all hands on deck from Sunday to Friday at the NEC.

It was estimated that the average judge would cover 15-20 miles during the week at the NEC, which deserves a well earned pint at the end of the week.

Scottish Parks Labelled Essential To Tourism

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By William Coleman

Every country in the UK has a whole list of hidden gems which are a big part of the local economy and a massive contributor to the funds brought in by tourism. A Scottish tourism minister has named holiday park as one of the most important to Scottish tourism.

The minister was the principal guest speaker at the event organised by the British Holiday & Home Parks Association (Scotland), and held at the city’s Our Dynamic Earth.

In attendance were the owners and managers of many of Scotland’s 200-plus park businesses which generate around £700m of visitor spending each year in the country.

Fiona Hyslop, who is cabinet secretary for culture, tourism and external affairs, was welcomed to conference by the chairman of BH&HPA (Scotland) Elspeth Sutton.

Ms Sutton, who manages Sandgreen Caravan Park in Gatehouse of Fleet, Gatehouse of Fleet, said that the association had long worked closely with the Scottish Government across a wide range of subjects.

The industry, said Ms Sutton, accounts for 8% of all the revenue produced by Scotland’s tourism economy, and allows the Scottish park sector to support more than 5,600 full-time equivalent jobs.

In her address to delegates, Fiona Hyslop said that her department recognises the important role played by parks in producing visitor income and sustaining employment:

“With the number of overseas visitors to Scotland increasing, and the total overnight spend by both domestic and overseas tourists rising to over £5 billion last year, tourism is one of Scotland’s most important, vibrant and successful sectors.

“The Scottish Government recognises the hard work that the holiday parks sector plays in providing excellent accommodation for all types of visitors.

“Whether it’s families on a staycation or overseas visitors coming for an authentic Scottish experience, holiday parks play an essential role in the success of Scottish tourism,” said Fiona Hyslop.

Fiona Hyslop was speaking at the start of the park conference’s busy day-long agenda which also included talks from a range of tourism and other industry specialists.

Delegates heard an update on a survey currently being undertaken by independent analysts on the economic impact of holiday parks across Scotland and the rest of the UK.

It was delivered by Bob Hill of the Economic Impact Review Group, and Dr Suzanne Hamilton who is associate director of Frontline Consultants, both of whom are helping to lead the study.

Although the full survey has yet to be concluded, the conference was told, it is likely to present an upbeat picture of an industry maintaining its popularity and continuing to develop.

Other speakers addressed a range of matters from further enhancing the customer service provided to consumers to how parks can best protect their businesses from cyber-attacks.

Director General of BH&HPA, Ros Pritchard, outlined some of ways in which the association engages with politicians to help frame laws and regulations affecting park businesses.

National BH&HPA chairman Paul Searle also gave his perspective as a holiday park owner on how the association helps its members develop their businesses and meet customer expectations.

Running parallel to the conference was an exhibition featuring the suppliers of goods and services to Scottish parks, the majority of which are family owned and managed.

Closing the conference, Elspeth Sutton said the industry was delighted with the support it receives from the Scottish Government, and thanked tourism minister Fiona Hyslop for her attendance.

The Caravan Design & Lightweight Leisure Awards 2019

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William Coleman

When it comes to buying high ticket items such as vehicles, homes or a combo of the two like caravans you really do not want to rush is. Once upon a time I was guilty of seeing the most attractive looking thing with a price tag and then throwing my money at it. As I grew I started to see the value in doing the research and listening to the experts. With that in mind we bring to you the 2019 Caravan Design Awards from the Caravan and Motorhome Club.

Each year on the Friday of the October NEC Motorhome and Caravan show the Caravan and Motorhome Club host their annual award ceremony to highlight and congratulate the work and effort that goes into producing some of the best caravans the UK market can buy. And we were in attendance for the event!

The purpose of the Awards is to provide guidance for Club members who are looking to change their current caravan or trailer tent. The Club’s Award results are always eagerly anticipated for this very reason. The Caravan Design and Lightweight Leisure Awards offer fair, independent and objective assessments of the vehicles submitted for scrutiny. All caravan and lightweight trailer manufacturers, importers and dealers are invited to submit entries.

The panel of independent Judges for the Caravan Design Awards follow rigorous scoring checklists. Judges assess everything from sitting comfort, standing headroom, kitchen design, storage, switches, wiring, security, repair and warranty arrangements to general safety.

There were some surprises at this year’s awards which had attendants from major manufacturers from all across the UK such as: Bailey, Swift, Coachman, Elddis and many more. In attendance were dealers such as Lowdhams and Broadlanes to name a few who had their eye and taking home Dealer Special category wins.

Also being recognised and awarded at this year’s event were Lightweight Leisure vehicles such as trailer tents, pop tops and folding campers. With the rise of the caravan holiday getting bigger each year we are seeing a real boost in sales for the lightweight touring home.

The show was opened by Caravan and Motorhome Club Director General and hosted by Grenville Chamberlain, The Club’s Chairman, who was delighted to hand the awards to the winners of each category.

So without further adieu here are this year’s winners of the Caravan Design and the Lightweight Leisure Awards 2019:

Now onto the leisure vehicles who’s rise in popularity seems to know no bounds, the lightweight leisure category. As I mentioned before these vehicles seem to be a good getaway vehicle to get into the world of caravan and motorhome holidays. From the sites I have visited, and festivals, the lightweight leisure vehicle seems to be very popular amongst the younger holiday makers.

Swift Exceed Expectations At NEC

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By William Coleman

It may be no surprise that the October NEC Caravan and Motorhome show brings tens of millions of pounds to the UK leisure industry. The show is a hotbed of purchases, holiday bookings, down payments and deposits on holiday homes and leisure vehicles. The Swift Group have announced that last week’s show was a swooping success for their sales figures.

2017 was a bumper year for caravan and motorhome purchases but it seemed to take a slight slump in early 2018 with a lot of dealers and manufacturers having older stock left to shift. This may have been an inevitability due to the amount of new caravans and motorhomes that were recently purchased. Now it seems like the winds of change are upon us and the sales numbers are starting sore once again.

Swift took the initiative and had quite the display at the NEC. Not only did they have a full line up of holiday homes, caravan and motorhomes, they also had their best package of event deals and offers. Early figures suggest that the company’s show success has captured a notable market share.

Nick Page, Swift Commercial Director, said: “We are thrilled by the results of the Motorhome & Caravan Show, where sales have exceeded expectations even though we have been running our event offers since September.

“In addition to recent triumphs at exhibitions across Europe and Scandinavia, this outcome has
reinforced our commercial confidence. We are therefore delighted to announce that we will be
resuming 5-day production weeks immediately after our annual shutdown in early November, while also increasing production volume of touring caravans.

“It also demonstrates that, despite uncertainty surrounding the impact of ‘the Brexit affect’, the
company continues to go from strength to strength with well-founded optimism for the coming year. We are pleased to share this positive trajectory with both our dealer network and the wider industry.”

Another tool used by Swift at the Caravan and Motorhome show was the launch of their all new leisure vehicle finance and insurance initiatives, Swift Advance and Supersure Insurance, which we will cover in detail in the next few days. These 2 new products would have certainly been a contributing factor to the high sales numbers.

The top performing Swift models at the show were the all-new Elegance Grande and Eccles 100th anniversary edition touring caravans, while the 2019 Elegance Grande 655 received significant attention thanks to its novel layout, including a pull-down bed.

Swift motorhome sales saw the brand new 2019 Escape Compact fare well alongside the Swift Select panel van range, with their nimble, versatile offering appealing to a wide range of visitors and securing a number of hire fleet orders. As always the top notch Kon-Tiki dominated the motorhome sales.

Aside from the their touring homes Swift also saw success with their holiday home range. With the rise in popularity of the static caravans Swift secured brand new orders for the innovative S-Pod 6, whose clever layout and mezzanine level proved immensely popular.

Our Week At The NEC Motorhome And Caravan Show

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By William Coleman

Each year leading up to the October Motorhome and Caravan Show at the NEC myself and the CaravanTimes team find ourselves totally snowed under with the amount of prep work that goes into making sure we bring our readers the best content. So once all that hard work is done comes to real work, filming at the NEC and getting as much done in the limited time we have. This year was no exception as it was all hands on deck at the UK’s largest leisure event.

Very rarely do I get to go to the NEC shows as just a visitor, despite spending more time at the show than your average attendee. As the camera team dive in and out of each hall I only seem to get a glimpse of the vehicles and innovations on display. This year I made it my mission to see more of what was on offer and take in all the great things the show has to offer.

As always the team head up a day before the official opening of the show to have a quick look round at where everything is so we can strategically maneuver ourselves around the show without being a nuisance.

A mixture of the team stayed up pretty much the whole week. One member did Sunday-Saturday as they were asked to judge the Caravan and Motorhome Caravan Design Awards, but that is an article for another time.

This year’s October show to me seemed to be far busier than last year’s show, which I think is due to the impressive models that manufacturers announced during their press released across the the past few months. This year there was stand out caravan models such as the Coachman VIP and, for me, the stand out Lazer.

On top of that this was the first time the majority of the public got to see new 2019 models on display. The all new Bailey Phoenix, which has reimagined the “entry level” caravan, their game changing 8ft wide Pegasus and the show exclusive Alliance motorhome, which we were lucky enough to get hands on with this before the NEC and we loved it. Very soon we will have a full review for you so watch this space.

Other than the waves of vans, motorhomes, trailer tents and other portable homes there was also every accessory known to the touring world, as well as some brand new ones, there to buy. One of the best things about choosing the show for your purchases is the amount of deals available to the public, always a good excuse to freshen up the set up.

Even if you are not in the market for new kit there are plenty of chances to win awnings, bbqs as well as free holidays all week at the show. I took full advantage of this and got myself a Prima Deluxe Air Awning from Prima, gone are the days of the long winded awning set up.

At the show there is something for everyone and things you may never knew you needed. Insurance, dealer specials, the Caravan and Motorhome Club, new vehicles, tow cars, games, activities. So if you did not manage to make this show the February one is just round the corner.

As I am sure you already know, we did a series of video interviews with certain exhibitors so we can help guide you through the show and make sure you have a pleasant time navigating through the hundreds of exhibitors throughout the many halls of the NEC.

On the off chance you missed the interviews here they all are:
Touring Essentials with Prima Leisure

A Catch Up With Kampa

Camplify Turn 1

Compact Living From Roller Team

Alde’s Future Tech

Meeting The Truma Team

Luxury Leisure From Travelworld

Oyster Sat Tech At The NEC

Levelling Solution At The NEC

Our Guide To The NEC

Winter Escapes With The Caravan And Motorhome Club

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William Colman

As a child most of my caravan trips were actually taken during the winter months, mainly because as a family the October half term was the only opportunity the whole family could get the same time off, so I have adapted to caravan and motorhome videos in winter quite well. Embracing the trend of more holiday makers using the cold for an excuse to take the caravan out the Caravan and Motorhome announce some key locations to visit this winter.

The winter season is here, or Christmas if you look at the shelves in Tesco, and the opportunities for getaways and weekends away seems to grow and grow each year. From the rolling hills of the Kent countryside to the traditional German markets, the Caravan and Motorhome Club has something for everyone to try this winter.

With over 50 sites on the UK network open all year round and multiple overseas locations. Sites with heated washrooms, hot showers and electric hook ups at most sites, stay warm and enjoy the great outdoors even when the air is cooler!

The Caravan And Motorhome Club Worldwide Tours

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By William Coleman

Every year the Caravan and Motorhome Club announce their latest overseas trips for the forthcoming year. These trips are designed to be an experience of a lifetime and allow you enjoy far flung places in your way – by caravan or motorhome.

From new trips in Australia and New Zealand to Southern Africa or even the Canadian Rockies there are some incredible holiday opportunities coming up for 2019. CaravanTimes have yet to take a caravan as far or America or Africa but people who have taken these Club holidays have said it was one of the very best trips they had ever been on.

New Destinations For 2019

New to the worldwide collection is the exciting opportunity to travel Southern Africa with the
Caravan and Motorhome Club. This is the first of its kind in Africa to be offered to members with two escorted tours and two independent tours.

The ‘Roads of the Rainbow Nation’ is a 38-day escorted tour from Johannesburg to Cape Town.
The tour offers the best of South Africa with a drive along the scenic Panorama Route, on to Kruger to try and spot the Big 5, Swaziland for its culture, Hluhluwe for more big game opportunities and an included Hippo and Croc cruise.

This tour also includes the Battlefields of KwaZulu Natal, the scenic landscapes of the Drakensberg, Addo Elephant Park, the stunning Garden Route, Oudtshoorn
which is famous for its ostriches, Montagu and its wineries and finally on to Cape Town where the trip finishes with a 14-course farewell dinner along with interactive drumming!

A new 23-day tour to/from Cape Town featuring the Garden Route will also launch as part of the
Southern Africa independent tours collection. Suggested stops on this tour include Cape Columbine Nature Reserve, Oudtshoorn famous for its ostriches and the wine route, Camdeboo National Park in the beautiful Karoo and Addo Elephant Park to see the Big 5.

New Tours In Australia

From the green of the rain forest to a paradise for wine lovers, there is nothing like Australia. Head to the outback in 2019 and enjoy one of the new Australian tours from the Caravan and Motorhome Club. Four new tours, two escorted and two independent, will be available to members offering the best of this panoramic landscape.

Uncover the real Australia on a 36-day escorted ‘Outback Australia Tour’. Starting in Australia’s
fourth largest city of Adelaide, this tour visits Clare Valley, South Australia’s largest mountain range of Flinders Ranges, Port Augusta, Coober Pedy, Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kings Canyon before hitting Alice Springs in central Australia. From here, the tour continues north towards Tennant Creek, Daly Waters, Mataranka, Katherine Gorge, Kakadu National Park and Litchfield National Park before arriving in the final destination of Darwin, along the north coast.

New Tours In New Zealand

From snow-capped mountains and volcanoes to stunning coastlines and the unique Maori culture, New Zealand boasts a diverse landscape that makes it perfect for travelling around by caravan or motorhome. New for 2019, the 36-day independent ‘Grand New Zealand Caravan Tour’ offers the best of this stunning region of the world.

Starting in Christchurch, this tour also visits Lake Tekapo, Lake Wanaka and Queenstown in the south before heading up to the majestic Fox Glacier of Franz Josef, Greymouth, Abel Tasman National Park and Picton.

From here it is on to New Zealand’s north island and visiting Whanganui, New Plymouth, Waitomo Caves and Auckland before heading on to Hobbiton, Rotorua, Taupo and Wellington. For the final leg of the journey, head back to Kraikoura and down to Christchurch to complete the trip.

If you are in the market for a caravan holiday with a bit of an exotic flair that you may not be able to find on the sunny isles of the UK then you may want have a look into The Club’s Worldwide Tours. Don’t let it be the best holiday you never took.

Lock n Level At The NEC

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By William Coleman

The CaravanTimes team recently came across a caravan levelling system that will not only save you a ton of time pitching up but will also eliminate the need to spend an age fiddling with locking wheel nuts and reversing back and forth to find that perfect medium of being level and finding the perfect locking wheel position.

On site we sometimes see some very “creative” ways of levelling their vans, using steadies as a weight bearing method has to be the most irresponsible method I have seen used. Is levelling the caravan that hard, or is there just a lack of handy methods out there.

I have used chocks to level before which usually ends up taking many attempts and some bickering with the other half, so they are no longer something I use. There has to be a product out there which will eliminate all this stress?

Look no further than the Lock’n’Level! This handy bit of kit is hand made here in the UK and is by far one of the most simplest, yet super effective, methods of caravan levelling I have seen.

The Lock’n’Level team have not had a moment to stop at this year’s NEC Motorhome and Caravan Show. Make sure you visit these guys because this bit of tech is well worth your time.

We Meet Kampa at The NEC

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By William Coleman

Having recently invested in an air awning, gone are the days where I want to use any other method for awning erection, I can safely say I wish I bought one years ago. Now that I have one I want to look into buying a larger one that can be used all year round and has multiple functions. Motorhome and Caravan Show will surely have what I am looking for.

At the NEC this October Kampa have a stand out display with so many different types of awning and their brand new windbreakers. Imagine doubling the size of set up with ease and extending your living space to the size of a studio apartment.

Kampa have been around for a relatively short amount of time, around 10 or so years, during that time they have grown to become one of Europe’s most recognised outdoor living brands. After seeing their set up at the NEC it’s easy to see why. The materials used for all their outdoor living products are state of the art and can handle pretty much every weather type you can throw at them.

At first glance I thought I was looking at their range of tents, due to multiple rooms within the awnings, but I then realised that these are just top notch awnings that provide a massive amount of space outside of your caravan.

No matter what touring vehicle you have Kampa will have a an awning for you. They have all shapes and sizes to match any and all needs. At this year’s show there a several brand new products on display for you to feast your eyes on.

The Caravan And Motorhome Club Announce Huge Investments

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By William Coleman

If there is one thing the Caravan and Motorhome Club do extremely well it’s keeping their clean and modern. I have never been to a Club site that has been in need of repair. This is no surprise following the recent news of a £14,000,000 investment into site development.

As part of its £14 million investment in sites during 2018, the Caravan and Motorhome Club unveils its most recent renovations on three of the most popular sites on its network. The three sites located in Derbyshire, Cumbria and Yorkshire have been closed for redevelopments and reopened their doors to holidaymakers throughout August and September 2018.