Suffolk caravan park planning improvements

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by Gemma Roskell

A caravan park in Suffolk is planning to replace key facilities for both its static caravan residents and its touring caravan visitors.

According to the Bury Free Press, Starglade Parks, owner of Stonham Barns Caravan and Camping Park in Stonham Aspal, has applied to Mid Suffolk District Council for permission to make the improvements.

As well as adding another 47 static caravans, in addition to the nine already on site, it also wants to replace the existing toilet and shower building.

Stonham Barns covers 1.7 hectares and has planning permission for 60 touring caravan pitches with both hard and grass standings. All are serviced with electric and water points.

In a statement accompanying its plans, Starglade Parks said: “The holiday accommodation at Stonham Barns is ideally suited to take advantage of the increase in domestic holidays driven by the recession, a poor sterling exchange rate and the trend for greener holidays.”

Caravan holidaymakers challenged to spot Bownessie in the Lake District

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by Gemma Roskell

Caravanners heading to the Lake District should make sure they have their cameras at the ready in case they spot Bownessie.

A pair of tourists kayaking on Lake Windermere claim to have made a recent sighting of the mythical creature, which is said to be a relative of the fabled Loch Ness Monster.

According to the News and Star newspaper, theirs is the eighth sighting of the humpbacked beast in the last five years.

However, Nigel Wilkinson, managing director of Windermere Lake Cruises, said he is not convinced the creature exists.

“We carry more than a million passengers on our boats each year and we’ve not witnessed a Bownessie spotting as yet,” he remarked.

The company is therefore offering anyone who captures a photograph of the beast from one of its boats a year’s free cruises.

“We’re not yet convinced that Bownessie exists but our passengers will certainly enjoy a great day out trying to find him,” Mr Wilkinson added.

‘Caravan holidays for the disabled’ charity forced to close its doors

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by Gemma Roskell

The founders of a charity set up to provide disabled people with enjoyable caravan holidays have said they are sad to see the end of their initiative.

North Staffordshire and South Cheshire Holidays was established 15 years ago with the purchase of a specially converted caravan in Wales.

However, the trustees Alan Barlow and Jake Plant have had no choice but to wind up the charity because of old age and ill health, the Sentinel newspaper reports.

Over the years, thousands of local people have used the trust’s disabled-friendly caravan at Greenacres Holiday Park in Porthmadog to enjoy a holiday by the sea at a dramatically reduced cost.

Mr Barlow, aged 73, said he and his friend decided to set up the charity after hearing that a local council was closing down a holiday home for the disabled in Llandudno.

Explaining their reasons for bringing the initiative to an end, he said: “One of us had to go to the site every month to do general housekeeping duties and sadly it has now got to the stage where we just can’t do it anymore.”

Mr Plant also said he was sad to see the charity closed down and insisted there have not been many weekends when the caravan has sat empty.

100 years of International Womens Day: A guide to towing…for ladies

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Today marks 100 years of International Women’s Day, which brings awareness of injustices faced by women around the world. Here at Caravan Times we marked the day by asking whether enough women participate in a key part of caravanning: towing. Here’s Yvonne Turley with her guide to towing for ladies.

Click here to have your say in our forum topic

by Yvonne Turley

One of my favourite aspects of caravanning is the gender role each of us adopts so naturally. Don’t get me wrong, sexual equality is important – but in the caravanning community we get it right. Sometimes it feels like natural order has been restored on a caravanning holiday.

We never need to assign tasks to our spouses, or they to us. It’s often the case that men do their thing and women do theirs. And we love it. It is a place where the word feminism has been left at the gate and chivalry still exists.

While men are busy levelling the caravan, parking the car exactly parallel, hooking up the gas and wrestling with the awning they insist they can put up themselves…the women will be putting on the kettle and checking out the toilet and shower blocks.

Men are the hunter gatherers, fetching water and emptying chemical toilets. Women are the home makers and meal preparers. Unless it is a barbecue, in which case you will (without exception) find a man equipped with a pair of tongs at the coals. It is all rather primitive and rugged. Some of us like our men to be men.And the beauty is that this is the case with all age groups.

Having said all that, sometimes this perfectly tuned routine can suffer an unexpected blow.

When roles are reversed

Let me paint you a picture which is more Pollock than Monet. Once upon a time, a happy family were on holiday in the south of France when my husband the hunter gatherer put his back out. As in can’t-stand-up-never-mind-drive. This posed a predicament previously unknown to this experienced caravanning family. Namely, who was going to be driving this huge caravan hundreds of miles home?

There was of course only one option – that the homemaker drives the family home. Imagine how daunting this must have been for someone who has become used to only one aspect of caravan life. Towing a caravan isn’t the most difficult of tasks, but can be frightening if you haven’t done it before. Sure I am happy to tow…but there are things to bear in mind.

Tips for towing

One of the first things i found alarming was what it feels like braking with all that weight behind you.You feel like you are being forced ahead when you are wanting to stop and I can only advise all you ladies who have never done it before to try it out somewhere quiet and safe. If you have packed the caravan to the rafters it will be heavier still.


As if that wasn’t bad enough there are other drivers. What can I say? You will experience the frustrated tailgater whose ire increases with the gradient of hill you are crawling up. My best advice? Ignore them. Don’t give in to bullying, you can only drive as quickly as you feel comfortable. The only way is to remain at a speed where you feel totally in control.

The urge to speed up because you are holding six cars up on a bendy country lane on the hottest day of the year will overcome you. Ignore that urge and forget about the guilt. If you are going too fast you aren’t in control and that makes you a danger on the roads. You don’t want to be the caravan on the traffic report that is upturned on the M4.

Also worth getting used to is not having a rear view mirror. You will be relying entirely on wing mirrors which feels strange at the beginning. And if you are parking in a car park with a height restriction check you fit under before rather than after.

Furthermore, know your route and next pit stop. Motorway petrol stations are big so you have plenty of room to manoeuvre (or abandon as the case may be) and recharge your batteries.

The perils of reversing


By far the most difficult thing about towing is the reversing. It is the offside rule of caravanning. The back-to-front steering wheel turning is an art form when performed well is akin to perfectly executed choreography. When performed badly, it can only be described as hilarious.

Personally I am a bit of a left handed back to front person and it has taken me literally years to crack it but at least I know if push came to shove I can reverse the thing. All caravanners are glad to help anyone who becomes unstuck because we have all been there so ask anyone for a hand and help will rally round.

So be prepared but remember, emergencies by their nature are not commonplace. So sit back in the passenger seat, relax and let him drive, because all too soon you will be making the tea and orchestrating the barbecue from behind the scenes.

After all…only you know where everything is packed.

Are you a lady who enjoys towing, or is it something you avoid at all costs? Click here to have your say in our forum topic.

Introducing the EDGE: a slide-out touring caravan from Heartlands RV

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by Holly Tribe

Until quite recently, caravans with a slide out section were relatively unheard of in the UK. Yet within the space of a month, we’ve come across two new ranges that feature this innovative design.

Both were unveiled at Boat & Caravan 2011; the first came in the shape of Inos, built by the Welsh Fifth Wheel Co., and the second hails from the other side of the pond. The name of the range is EDGE, built by US specialists Heartlands RV and sold by Exeter based 1-RV (the UK’s sole importers).

Heartland RV is an American company who specialise in building big, full fat caravans for big American tastes. Like the Fifth Wheel Company, its forte is fifth wheelers, but the firm has also diversified into the touring caravan market. Interestingly, the Edge is marketed as an ‘ultra lightweight trailer’ in the US – despite having an MTPLM of well in excess of 1,900kgs.

Full fat caravans

What’s clear from the outset is that these caravans come from an American stable – they’re loaded with kit and share similar design elements with larger recreational vehicles (pictured). For instance there are onboard fresh and waste water tanks, an electrically operated awning, air conditioning and exterior speakers. Though you may run the risk of infuriating park wardens if you crank these up full blast!

The UK imports have been made fully EU compliant by replacing the electric brakes with the European cable system, modifying the front and rear lights and converting the electrics to run on the domestic 12v system.

The three models currently available include the M18, M21 and M22.

Click here for more pictures, prices weights and layouts.

Swift Caravans register strong sales at Boat and Caravan 2011

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by Marcus Dubois

Swift Caravans has revealed it saw continued sales success across its product ranges at Boat and Caravan 2011 last month.

Despite the hardening economic climate and the rising cost of petrol, Swift said sales of the company’s new products remain “encouraging”. The four new models introduced last year proved especially popular, with the Swift Challenger and Swift Conqueror continuing to perform well. The revamped Sterling Eccles and Sterling Elite ranges were similarly popular with show visitors.

Yet the main winner for the Swift Group appears to be its most cost effective range. A Swift insider revealed to Caravan Times earlier this year that sales of Sprite Caravans are up by 40% as caravanners look to save money when buying new.

“A hardening market”

The newly-appointed CEO of Swift Group appeared confident that UK holidaymakers will continue to choose Britain this year.

James Buckley commented “The market is showing definite signs of hardening but people are still keen to buy style and value for money, two areas in which Swift have a reputation for excelling. With foreign travel both proving more expensive this year due to rising oil prices, and political uncertainty in various parts of the world, we will continue to benefit from more people choosing to holiday in the UK this year”.

Mr Buckley also took time to praise the efforts of Swift’s staff in continuing their run of results.

“A large part of this result is due to the fantastic effort put in by our dealers and our sales and customer services staff, whose efforts turned what could have been a difficult show into a great success – for which I thank them.”

Lost Enid Blyton novel tells tales of magical caravan

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by Gemma Roskell

A fantasy novel telling the tale of a magical caravan has been discovered in an archive of Enid Blyton’s work.

Mr Tumpy’s Caravan has never been published and fans of the late children’s author never knew it existed.

The 180-page manuscript was included in a collection of Blyton’s fables that was sold to Seven Stories Children’s book centre in Newcastle for £40,000.

It was not recognised as a new work at first, as its name is similar to another book published by the writer in 1949 called Tumpy and His Caravan.

However, the newly discovered story seems to be quite different from the published version and focuses on a totally different type of caravan.

Hannah Green, archivist at Seven Stories, told the BBC that this novel tells the story of a caravan on legs that takes its occupants off on exciting trips.

The main characters in the book are Mr Tumpy and his friends Muffin and Puffin.

“They live in this caravan and go off on adventures,” Ms Green explained.

“They don’t really control it – it decides where it’s going to go and when it’s going to stay somewhere.”

Enid Blyton is most commonly known for her Noddy books, as well as the Famous Five and Secret Seven series of novels.

Alan Rogers offers cheaper caravan holidays in France

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by Gemma Roskell

The new 2011 brochure from Alan Rogers includes more than 100 French and Spanish family campsites, with pitches for touring caravans.

Locations in the brochure include beachside sites and large family holiday parks, with restaurants, outdoor swimming pools and slides.

Many European campsites charge a £25 booking fee, but when you book through Alan Rogers, the flat fee of £45 covers an unlimited number of sites, making it cheaper to string together a multi-site holiday.

Prices for a May half-term break at Camping Bretignolles in the Vendee Region of France start at £330 per family, based on four sharing a car and caravan.

Alternatively, you can book a seven-night break in a mobile home for just £510 per family of four, and all Alan Rogers prices include return Dover-Dunkirk ferry crossings.

Alan Rogers offers a range of six hobby-specific camping guides from £6.99 each, and the free 2011 brochure can be ordered online now from www.alanrogers.com.

Lightweight Caravans Week: Ariva & Clubman SB models from Lunar Caravans

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by Holly Tribe

This year the threat of rising fuel prices has been ever-present, driving up the cost of living for many. And here at Caravan Times we’ve heard from readers who are concerned that high fuel prices will put them off taking caravan holidays.

With this in mind we launched Lightweight Caravans Week, where we’ve been exploring those compact caravans currently on sale which save fuel and are easy to tow. And ‘lightweight luxury’ champions Lunar Caravans offer examples of where light weight doesn’t have to mean small interior space or less equipment.

Well known in the industry for building class leading layouts at competitive prices, below we take a closer look at two of Lunar’s key lightweight models.

Ariva and Clubman series

From a portfolio of 23 caravans the Lunar Ariva is the smallest and lightest of the bunch. The front twin berth and roomy rear end washroom makes it a joy for couples, and with an MRO of just 886kg it’s unlikely you’d have to switch up to a larger towcar. It also has the narrowest body in Lunar’s catalogue – so if you’re looking for a tourer that’s easy to manoeuvre and store, it’s an excellent option.

Moving up the scale, we get to Lunar’s mid level offering, the Clubman series. Since its release last year the Clubman SB has taken centre stage for Lunar. According to the firm, its ‘two-bedroom style’ layout has proved popular with customers and it is by far the lightest offering on the market with this unique floorplan.

The Crusader Supercyclone from Elddis Caravans and the 2011 Swift Challenger 565 have similar layouts, but are both in excess of 100kgs heavier. If you value lighter towing weights over extensive kit lists the Clubman SB could well join your shopping list.

Lunar Ariva

  • Berth: 2
  • Overall length: 5.18m
  • Overall width: 2.02m
  • Overall height: 2.6m
  • MTPLM: 999kg
  • MRO: 886kg

Lunar Clubman SB

  • Berth: 4
  • Overall length: 5.79m
  • Overall width: 2.28m
  • Overall height: 2.65m
  • MTPLM: 1,485kg
  • MRO: 1,330kg

VIDEO: Eastenders star Shaun Williamson talks about his caravanning experiences

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by Marcus Dubois

Best known for playing hapless car dealer Barry Evans in Eastenders, actor Shaun Williamson is also an accomplished singer and comedian. Last year he toured the UK in the theatre adaptation of classic TV comedy Porridge, and regularly appears on stage singing classic material.

And at Boat and Caravan 2011 he performed as a guest of the Caravan Club, entertaining a packed audience with his wry anecdotes and singing. A keen caravanner and member of the Caravan Club, Marcus Dubois caught up with Shaun to talk about his touring experiences.

Hear about Shaun’s favourite caravan sites in the UK, and how some people still find it hard to separate the actor from the character. And find out whether he thinks dogs should be allowed on caravan sites…

Camping and Caravanning Club offers 44-day holiday adventure tour through Argentina

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by Gemma Roskell

The Camping and Caravanning Club has launched a new tour of Argentina, which takes in the capital city of Buenos Aires and includes a hotel stay by the Iguazu Falls.

This 44-day trip will depart from the UK on September 15th, and includes extensive travel in the Northern Argentinean countryside, which boasts flocks of flamingos and scenic sugar cane fields.

The climax of the tour is a flight to the Iguazu Falls on the border with Brazil and Paraguay.

Guests will then be treated to three nights’ hotel accommodation, giving plenty of time to explore the 275 waterfalls in this region.

Furthermore, the tour starts and finishes in the vibrant capital city of Buenos Aires, home of the Tango.

The total cost of this six-week tour is £5,950 per person, inclusive of return flights, basic motorhome hire, hotel accommodation at Iguazu Falls, campsite fees and several excursions. Motorhome upgrades can be arranged at an extra cost.

Boat & Caravan Show sees 4% increase in visitors

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by Gemma Roskell

The caravan industry appears to be booming in 2011, as the 50th annual National Boat & Caravan Show has reported a four per cent increase in visitors.

A total of 86,988 outdoor enthusiasts visited the Birmingham NEC for this year’s event, which took place last week.

Furthermore, 25 per cent of show exhibitors have already rebooked for the 2012 event, reflecting a broad confidence in the industry’s future.

Last week also saw the launch of the Outdoor Leisure Show, which ran alongside the Boat & Caravan Show and attracted 35,240 visitors.

Event director Andy Gibb said: “These visitor figures are a major boost for all those within the industry including manufacturers, dealers, retailers and leading associations.”

This recent boom in the caravan industry appears to have coincided with the end of the recession, as the latest figures from the National Caravan Council show that this type of holiday was 24 per cent more popular in 2009 than in 2008.