On production line Easter week ! (1 Viewer)

New2Mh2012

Free Member
Mar 11, 2012
3
1
West Sussex
Funster No
20,120
MH
Hi top
Exp
New after 17yrs caravanning
Hi to you all,
We've been caravanning for 17years and never thought we'd realise our dream of owning a new Motorhome, well it gets built early April and our last caravanning hol is coming up this weekend. Both my wife and my own Mother died 4 weeks apart last Nov/Dec leaving us this potential MH legacy.
I'm looking for guidance on what the practicalities of parking for shopping or visiting towns with a 23ft MH, finding a site quickly late in the day. Indeed those of you who used to caravan whats the change been like ?
How rigourously are overnight stops in parking bays enforced ?
So many questions, are you ready to kindly give me some answers?
We're acclimatising in this country this year , so I'm talking about the UK.
Thankyou, thankyou for sharing the benefit of your experience.:whatthe:
 

Jim

Ringleader
Jul 19, 2007
36,191
128,630
Sutton on Sea, UK
Funster No
1
MH
Adria Panel Van.
Exp
Since 1988
Hi, I'm sure you will enjoy the freedom a motorhome brings, over-nighting is policed differently in different areas and can depend on the time of year. There are more places where its legal to park than not but finding them is the key. It won't be long before you have a list of favourite places to stay. Meanwhile, welcome to the fun:thumb:

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scotjimland

LIFE MEMBER
Jul 25, 2007
2,084
9,015
Suffolk Coastal District, UK
Funster No
15
MH
Timberland
I'm looking for guidance on what the practicalities of parking for shopping or visiting towns with a 23ft MH, finding a site quickly late in the day. Indeed those of you who used to caravan whats the change been like

Welcome to the forum..

and congratulations on your purchase.. adventure beckons !

As in my signature, you are moving out of your comfort zone.. as you have already realised, you can't easily park a large van in a town centre.. in fact it's nigh on impossible so you have to think of other means of transport when wishing to sightsee..

* Public transport.. look for sites/Cls on a bus route.
* Bicycles .. full size, folding or electric.
* Small scooter carried on special carrier (depends on pay load and max rear axle weight)
* Tow Car either on trailer, or towed with an A frame ( Q. Bob :winky: )
* Walking
* Park and Ride.. possible, if no height barrier and they have large bays.

Main shopping isn't too bad, you can generally find space at the back of the supermarket car parks.. or take up two bays, but be wary of parking regulations.. many are now privately managed and have strict rules about size and length of stay. Best to visit off-peak.. very early or late at night when there are plenty of spaces and you won't get jammed in by cars.

As you have already realised, it's a different type of vehicle, ideally suited to touring and short stays .. and the UK is probably the most anti motorhoming country in Europe.

I appreciate you asked specifically about the UK, but go over the channel and it's a whole new world, geared up for motorhomes, plenty of free or very cheap Aires in France and Germany .. You could tour both these countries and never need to be on a site ..

good luck..

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Last edited:
Apr 18, 2009
3,569
3,367
Englishman in Mid Wales
Funster No
6,340
MH
Hymer B584, A Class
Exp
Not long enough!
Hi and welcome to fun and don't forget to wave:welcome: to us fellow motorhomers on your travels, why don't you come to one of the fun meets, plenty of friendly like minded people to chat to:thumb:
 

callumwa

Free Member
Jan 16, 2011
4,110
4,480
Tyne & Wear, sometimes..
Funster No
14,968
MH
Coachbuilt
Exp
4 yrs +, 30+ yrs motorbike touring
Welcome to FUN.....:thumb:

You have found the right place to ask questions and get answers, you may get some cheeky replies and a bit of banter sometimes, but that's what makes this forum the best, it's all in a good FUN spirit.

If you just follow the threads for a few weeks and months, you will soon pick up so much useful info, and just ask whenever you want..... you will soon find your motorhome feet....

All the best and here's to happy motorhoming....:thumb:

Callum
 

haganap

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 5, 2007
12,711
25,974
planet earth
Funster No
974
MH
Carthago C Tourer
Exp
I'm an oldbie MH number 9
My advice is, dont think your buying another caravan.

A motorhome used as a motorhome is deffinitely different.
You adapt the way you use it, you visit places on the way to your destination as opposed to getting to your destination and choosing to go out.

You can do many things with a motorhome that you would with a caravan. You can park up on a site for a week, put an awning up, get the bikes off and enjoy yourself.

But,
What you can do with a motorhome which you find a little more difficult in a caravan, is tour. You can pull up, make a brew and watch the waves roll in at some beach for a few hours before moving on to some destination that you don't know yet exists.

I find no problems in town centre;s myself, but, mailny due to using the wonderful networks of Morrisons and Asda's with their great car parks just out of town and of course abiding by the parking rules but allowing for the fact you will need at least two spaces but I like 4 :RollEyes:

When we switched from a caravan to a motorhome, I will be honest and say for a few months I thought we had made a mistake, however, once you glean the knowledge of how to get the best from it, you wont look back.

Good luck and welcome to fun.:thumb:
 
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OP
N

New2Mh2012

Free Member
Mar 11, 2012
3
1
West Sussex
Funster No
20,120
MH
Hi top
Exp
New after 17yrs caravanning
Reply From New2Mh2012

Many thanks to your welcomes and especially to those ex caravanners who described the differences so we know better what to expect, its been really useful. We guessed some but no substitute for your actual experience. Thanks for the comment "better to stay quiet than remove all doubt...." I don't care if I've removed all doubt by saying I've got to learn how to use the tools on this site as some terms are foreign to me and if I ever met you I will not introduce myself as New2Mh2012 ....!!!!!!!!!!

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