New to caravanning- Advice needed on first outing

Sarah - have a look at Moor Edge farm CL near Matlock. Might just fit the bill! 

Thank you, I will take a look.

Thank you, I will take a look.

Choose  a  site  close  to  home  for  a  week end  to  start  with  Sarah  if  you  can,  then  you're  close  to  home  for  those  little  things  you  have  forgotten. Have  you  got  your  'van  yet?  The  seller  or  dealer  may  well  have  passed  over  some  bits  like  the  EHU ( orange  25 metre  )  electric  cable  and  aquaroll  or  similar fresh  water  container  with  a  grey  i.e. used  water  container.  Other  bits  you  can  'borrow'  from  home  and  only  buy  when  you  are  certain  of  what  fits  YOUR  needs,  not  what  others  SAY  you  need.

Have  fun  out  there  &  remember  to ask  any  questions  on  this  old  forum  but  scouring  around  here  you'll  find  lots  of  answers  to  questions  you'd  never  dream  of  ??

Many  of  us  have  made the  mistake  of  buying  what  we  thought  we  needed,  and  have  the  well  filled  sheds,  garages  &  spare  rooms  to  prove  it    .

Google Earth is good for getting an idea of what is around near any given site. Going down to Street View enables you to get an idea of what the site entrance looks like as well.

We did just that - about twenty miles from home and we were glad we did when we found out that whoever had installed our hook-up socket had fitted the wrong connection to the caravan!  That meant we had no electrics.................. and nowhere to plug in our fridge.  Fortunately the site owner took the fridge and plugged it in for us, and then OH nipped out to get the right socket, bring more of his tools, and fitted the right one.  There were several things we'd forgotten, too, so he was able to pick those up and bring them back with him!

I would look for somewhere for just a weekend and try it out - find what you've got, what you need, what you would like, and then acquire the 'needs' before your next outing, and the 'would likes' gradually!

Hi sarahph.  Welcome to Club Together.  I agree with ABM.  For the first outing I would stay quite close to home, both from the point of view of not being an experienced at towing a caravan, and so that you are close to home should you have forgotten something.  If you are within a short distance of a caravan accessory shop, then that is an added advantage.

It may be worth checking out the route first, either by using Google maps or by driving there first, to make sure the roads are good for towing.

Do let us know how you get on.

Best wishes

David

Hi Sarah, here's another "yes" to the advice above about starting near home for just a night or two to see how it all works.

We're fairly new to it ourselves, and  found that doing just that, this time last year, was vital. My wife discovered that the bed set-up didn't suit her back, for example, and we were able to sort that before going on a proper trip. While it was a pleasant but unspectacular area, we were too busy enjoying living in  the caravan to worry about that!

If you post on this thread what part of the country you're in, more experienced people may perhaps offer suggestions of good sites in that area for a trial run.

Have fun

Hi All Thank you all for the excellent advice on this forum. I have purchased a caravan from a friend so I know the history of it and it comes with a few bits and bobs, but as you say we really aren't completely sure we will have everything until we have a night away. Staying quite local for a trial run is a very sensible idea.

Sounds good. I don't know if you're new to towing too. If so, I recommend the advice we received & followed of taking it on a quiet Sunday morning to an empty car park, industrial estate, whatever, and just playing at manoeuvring. We took some empty white plastic bottles as harmless bollards to try reversing round, and also to practise the role of the person watching and guiding too. It really helped, and was easier than we feared!