Auto trail arapaho

What do you mean by 'suitable'? Tell us what size the Arapaho is and we might be able to help. I always caution against buying a big MH as the size becomes a liability.

I'm assuming you're a caravanner which would mean you know what sites are like. If you see MHs on site, that'll tell you something. 

8.73 Long 2.33 wide and 3.2 high. It's a big brute.

You would have to choose your sites carefully with that size of motor home. I recommend not going above 8 meters.

peedee

...and 5 tonnes and tag axled......its a heavy brute, too

large vans have their advantages, plenty of room inside, masses of storage space and generally a good payload to support all this....

but, as is apparent from your questioning post and the responses youve had already, there are other things to consider....the main one (once you have found a site) will be how to get about....

you will probably be faced with three choices....

using public transport.....(extra checking to do when vetting a site)

using your own secondary transport...(towed car or electric bikes, towed (a-framed) cars arent allowed in most european countries and trailers take up room and are pain to manoevre), also, as this van hasnt fot a garage, fullsized bikes will be stored on a rear rack, adding another 75cm at least to the total length, putting you now at 9.5m.....that's a lot of van to move about.

using the van itself to visit places....(large vans OK perhaps for NT or EH properties with large car parks but parking up 'in town', even in Sainsburys, might be a challenge)

the other issue is the cost of tolls/ferries due to length/weight and any implications on your license further down the line as you bet towards 70 (no idea of age now or current license groups)

just a few things to consider, not mentioned to 'put you off' but to raise awareness of some issues that a caravannerer might not have thought of.

good luck.

As alluded to already, particularly in BB's comprehensive reply, the pleasure for us in the motorhome as opposed to car/caravan combo we had when the kids holidayed with us is it is small enough (6.4m Autotrail) to go off exploring for the day, particularly up in Scotland, and we've got the cooker, fridge and loo etc with us making us more or less self contained for a day out....

I would say buy the smallest motorhome you can manage with if you are going to be active in it.  Obviously if you're going to spend the winter in it in Spain then bigger may be better....