Caravan to Motohome

I would suggest going as compact as you can, but still giving yourself what is essential to you as well. You have already told us that you want to tour more, rather than stay a long time on a single site, so think differently to using the caravan, don’t carry as much as it will aid the easy set up/depart each time.
It is different touring in a PVC/MH, and you need to make the most of that difference, but still have the comfort and ease if away for a long time. We have done weeks away in our small 5.5m MH, and use it off site most days, so it is our mobile cafe, loo, weather shelter, rest station, bird hide, beach hut etc…..wherever we go. We don’t rely upon public transport, we don’t hire cars, our bikes go because we love cycling, not to get us from A to B, and above all, we can choose from thousands of different locations to spend a night in because we can get most places easily. We are into year 9 with our MH, the only one we looked at, the only one we fancied. It all depends on exactly how you want to use your choice, and where you want to spend the majority of your time away. We can do here and overseas, having all we need for weeks away.

Only you can decide if hiring a MH will be a good idea, but I think you might want to look at a few key issues. Bathroom will be one, size, will you use it, or will you rely upon using sites with facilities? (We have a small bathroom, but the shower is excellent, and it only takes 5 minutes to dry down after use, we don’t spend hours in it per day, so why lug around a big bathroom) Sleeping……can you put up a bed ok, or do you want to have something down permanently? This will greatly affect your choices in terms of size and therefore expense. Do a lot of research around any known issues with designs, you don’t want to be back and forth trying to get problems resolved and their are some serious tales of woe with some MHs, just like caravans.

We have been very lucky with our choice, it suits us down to the ground, it’s easy to use for days out, or long weeks away, and has been very reliable. No longer on sale, so no use telling you what. If we had to choose again? A PVC, around 6 metres, no more, complete with roll out awning, and dual use bike carrier/storage box carrier on rear as we have now. 

I think that provides the best of both worlds, a day van and a caravan. If the OP likes the Lakes it's ideal, small roads and country lanes place limits on larger vans.

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Lots of people love their small campervans (they are a very popular) so it's an individual choice in the end, some love their leviathans! 

I don’t really get this idea of a pvc being a problem in bad weather. Having had a number of different caravans, a coach built Moho and now a pvc I don’t know what a caravan would provide in bad weather that our pvc doesn’t provide.

Space to stretch out or do your own thing without interfering with what your partner wants to do.

peedee

We kept our caravan, still got it, it’s an ongoing resto project. 

With respect to AD and Mikey, I sort of understand what you are thinking, but I can assure you the reality of owning and using a small MH is one that you can adapt to and get on with well, but it is world’s away from using a largish caravan, and having the warmth, comfort, shelter, cup of tea and above all sheer freedom of stopping where you want, when you want. It works best if you can (and want to) ditch the caravan mentality, and think differently. Trying to replicate what you have/had in a caravan is often the first mistake some folks make, and unless you can (and want) to compromise, then it might not be best choice.

Some of our stopping locations, all legal I might add. Some are sites, some are where we walked, cycled or went swimming, all from comfort and ease of our MH. It’s a different experience with a small MH.🙂

Our 6m PVC provided this, PD.

We tour in Europe for up to 8 weeks at a time in a VW campervan, two adults and a dog, mostly fine weather but sometimes not. No drive away awning. Nothing wrong with a 5m van, never felt crowded or that I wanted more space, just brilliant to have the flexibility and freedom. I think it depends on what you're used to and what you want to do when you're away, how much you want to take with you and how you spend your days. We don't watch TV for example so there's never a question of one person wanting to find a space away from the TV. 

I think if you'll sometimes be accompanied by teenagers then you need more space inside and also for the packing of tents etc so a bigger van might make sense, or a smaller conversion and keep the caravan for those occasions when the kids want to join you maybe. 

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