Caravan Cruise Winter 2012 by Orla Sweeney

• Show Reports • Caravan Park Reviews • Waterways • Book Reviews

www.caravancruise.ie

IRELAND’S ONLY MOBILE LEISURE & HOLIDAY MAGAZINE Volume 3. Number 3. Winter 2012 €4.00 inc.V.A.T.

STG £3.20

RAPIDO V53 INSIDE:

French Elegance meets Italian Style TEST DRIVE:

Life on board the Swift Balero

REVIEW:

Dromquinna Manor Resort

LONG TERM TEST:

Ford Mondeo & Bailey Orion

GLAMPING SPECIAL: Four Glamorous Camping Resorts visited BUYERS' GUIDE 2013: Latest Models for the New Season

Contents Winter 2012 4 Editorial Foreword by Cathal Doyle, Editor

30 Glamping Kathy Mangan visits a number of glamorous Camping Sites

6 News • Wildlife photo award winner • 15m Aqua Rolls • Manchester Show • Knaus Tabbart sets standards • Suspense in Suffolk! • Honours for Discovery4 • All aboard Seatruck Ferries • Offers from Stena and Celtic Link

35 Tow Car Test Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCi pulls the Bailey Orion 36 Winter Storage John Stanley offers valuable advice 38 Motorhoming II Made for two – Swift Balero 630PR

9 Shows/Competition Diary Dates Q1 2013 and Caption Competition

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40 Waterways III • Waterways Ireland launches Education • programme • Irish Water Safety Award Winners • Lateboat.com

10 Waterways 1 The Dublin Tall Ship Races Festival 2012 12 Experiences Story on a Hymer Camp GT Mobile Dog Kennel

42 Park Review I Ireland’s newest Resort at Dromquinna 44 Travel Abroad Touring Germany with Terry Owen (CWG)

14 Motorhoming I Trialling the Rapido V53

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17 Caravan Cruise • Buyer’s Guide 2013 A-Z of new products from Caravan and Motorhome brands

46 Festival Visiting the Westport Festival by Mary Clare O’Donnell 47 Park Review II Staying at Lavelles, Dugort, Achill

24 Pin Pictures • Bailey supports • VW Caddy Tramper • Caravan owners elevated

P 30 Caravan Cruise Ireland, Fleet Publications, D’Alton Street, Claremorris, Co. Mayo, Ireland. Tel: +353 (0)94 9372826/ 9372827 Fax: +353 (0)94 9373571 Email: info@caravancruise.ie Managing Editor: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie Editor: Cathal Doyle - cathal@fleet.ie Contributors: Cathal Doyle, Howard Knott, Paul White, John Stanley, Kathy Mangan, Gerry Lane, Terry Owen Photography: Jarlath Sweeney, Cathal Doyle, Howard Knott, Paul White, John Stanley, Kathy Mangan, Gerry Lane, Terry Owen Administration: Orla Sweeney, Denise Vahey Advertising: Gerry Lane, Orla Sweeney info@caravancruise.ie Design: Eamon Wynne Caravan Cruise Ireland is published by JJDS Publications Ltd. Registered Office: D’Alton Street, Claremorris, Co. Mayo. Co. Reg. 368767 Directors: Jarlath Sweeney, Sean Murtagh.

www.caravancruise.ie

25 Review Motorhome & Caravan Show 2012, NEC, Birmingham 29 Waterways II Celtic Horizon – a pleasant journey

48 Tow Car Awards Top honours goes to Volkswagen … again! 50 Book Reviews • Motorhomes – A first time buyer’s guide • Build your own dream Campervan

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Post Code: Tel: Fax: 2 ways to pay:Cheque made payable to Caravan Cruise Ireland Please charge my debit/credit card to the amount of € ………… • Laser • Mastercard • Visa • Electron • Maestro – please tick Card No: ………………………………………… Expiry Date: …………… CVV No: ………… Signature: ………………………………………………. Date: …………… Rates: Ireland €6 (includes post/packaging) UK/EU €8 (includes post/packaging) US/Asia €12 (includes post/packaging) Send completed form to Caravan Cruise Ireland, c/o Fleet Publications, D’Alton Street, Claremorris, Co. Mayo, Ireland. Fax: +353 94 9373571 CCI12.12 Disclaimer: Caravan Cruise Ireland management can accept no responsibility for the accuracy of contributed articles or statements appearing in this magazine and any views or opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Caravan Cruise Ireland management, save where otherwise indicated. No responsibility for loss or distress occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by the authors, contributors, Editors or publishers. The Editorial team reserves the right to make publishing decisions on any advertisements or editorial article submitted to the magazine and to refuse publication or to edit any editorial material as seems appropriate to him. Professional legal advice should always be sought in relation to any specific matter.

CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Fáilte!

013 is going to be the year of ‘The Gathering’, when Ireland will open its arms to friends and family from all over the world, inviting them home to locally organised events in villages, towns and cities. It promises to be a huge opportunity for our overall tourism industry, and everybody involved in the sector will be doing their utmost to maximise the potential of this unique happening.

Within the mobile leisure sector also, ‘The Gathering’ will hopefully bring an influx of visitors to our shores, and provide a much needed boost to our campsites and caravan parks around the country. Already

one ferry company, Celtic Link Ferries, has announced a special offer to transport holidaymakers, including those driving motorhomes, from Cherbourg to Rosslare on March 17th for the princely sum of €1. If the purpose of ‘The Gathering’ is to encourage visitors to Ireland, whether of Irish origins or not, this has to be the perfect incentive, and hopefully will help put Ireland on the map for overseas camping and caravanning enthusiasts to holiday here in 2013. This is the time of year of course when most of us are dreaming of the months ahead, thinking about and planning our holidays, trips and excursions. For some at least, that will include considering the purchase of a new motorhome or caravan.

Our Buyers’ Guide 2013 section will hopefully give some pointers on what’s on offer in this regard, and where to buy, while our review of the Motorhome & Caravan Show in Birmingham showcases some of the latest new products that have just been launched. We’ve also undertaken test drive reviews of two popular motorhomes, Rapido’s V53 van conversion, and Swift’s low profile coachbuilt Bolero 630PR, and checked out what Ford’s Mondeo has to offer as a tow-car. If you haven’t yet put your motorhome or caravan away for the winter, John Stanley has some useful tips in his article on off-season storage, while on the ‘Park’ scene we take a look at what is on offer in Ireland’s burgeoning glamping scene with a review of four sites. In addition we revisit Dromquinna Manor in Kenmare to check on progress at this exciting resort, and check out Dugort Caravan Park in Achill. With lots of other news, features and reviews, there’s should be something for everyone in this edition of Caravan Cruise Ireland as we gear up for the season ahead. Cathal Doyle Editor Caraavan Cruise Ireland

4 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

We are a one stop shop for motorhomes and provide the following: • Motorhomes for Hire • Motorhome Accessories • Leaking Repairs, Repairs re Boiler/Fridge etc. • Agents for Truma, Movera, Reimo We are a family business established since 1989; run with our ‘family principles’ of quality, integrity, commitment and service. Our founding motto is “no sale is better than a bad sale” and we work to that ethos today so you can be confident that you will receive the highest quality products, service and customer care.

• Annual habitation check and service. • Accessory supply and fitting/repair. • Fully equipped workshop.

News 1

Winner of the 2012 Irish Wildlife Photography Award Announced

ristan Wilkinson was announced as the overall winner of the inaugural Irish Wildlife Photography Award held by the Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT) in association with Canon. His amazing picture appears on the cover of the latest issue of ‘Irish Wildlife’ – the quarterly award-winning magazine of the IWT. He is also the winner of a fantastic Canon EOS 7D digital SLR. What the judges said: “I just love this image. Not only does this mage tell a story of snow

against the bright snow gives the image great contrast and a very pleasing aesthetic.”

and the lack of food, but the bird has been forced to extract the remains of some grass seeds. The colours of the yellowhammer

Aqua Rolls – a 15 meter private retreat

qua-Rolls ‘Centurion’ is one of a kind; a mini retreat at sea. This Vripack design really ticks all the boxes when it comes to luxury comfort with a gyro stabilizer, a double air conditioning system and its own drinking water supply system. The Aqua Rolls ‘Centurion’ is built with a high-tech carbon fiber hull. It has a ‘sandwich’ construction of 10 mm carbon fiber, 15 mm balsa wood and 6 mm carbon fiber, results in a hull with an extraordinary strength and thus a smooth yet strong drive. The effects of lateral waves are being neutralized by the gyro stabilizer. This

provides the Aqua Rolls with optimal driving comfort. The stabilizer offers an anti-roll solution for waves up to a height of 3,5 meters. Comfort and safety go hand in hand so most of the technical installations have been double installed. In case of a break down, the backup installation takes over immediately. The hydraulic gangway is custom designed

“For me, winning images should be a blend of both art and science. The yellowhammer image does this beautifully. It shows great photographic technique in both exposure and sharpness along with wonderful composition and use of colour creating a truly artistic image. And finally it tells a story at the same time. A truly excellent image all round.”

for the Aqua Rolls ‘Centurion’. Doubling its function as a hydraulic crane with a loading capacity of over 1.000 kg. This enables the gangway to lift a RIB out of the water and onto the swimming platform. Two bunks, a closable shower area, a large built-in wardrobe and a spacious cupboard are located in the forward section of the Aqua Rolls. The guest cabin is located in the mid section below the central seating area and offers enough room for two berths. The spacious seating area offering plenty of room for 6 persons. On starboard side the Aqua Rolls features a well-equipped L- shape galley with Corian worktop. The mahogany wardrobes together with the teak flooring and the stainless steel hinges and locks give the interior of this classy ship a chic and contemporary look.

The Caravan & Motorhome Show returns to Manchester’s EventCity

he Caravan & Motorhome Show, which takes place from 17-20 January 2013, will be the biggest ever held in Britain's North West, following the huge success of last year. Returning to EventCity, Manchester, the event will showcase the latest caravans, motorhomes and accessories from over 200 exhibitors and expects to attract visitors exceeding last year’s numbers, when 31,489 attended over the four days. The show is the best place for caravanners to start their new season with a host of parks and campsites offering special discounts as will top UK attractions and tourist boards who will also be on hand to encourage visitors to discover the best Britain has to offer. For those who like to travel more widely for their caravanning and motorhoming adventures, tourist boards and travel companies will be sharing ideas and expert advice on holidaying in France, Spain, Greece,

Cyprus, Ireland and beyond. Visitors looking to check out the latest caravan and motorhome models will not be disappointed with a huge choice from the leading brands. Discover and compare the new products from Swift, Bailey, Elddis, Lunar, Coachman, Eterniti, Autocruise, AutoTrail, Hymer, Burstner, Romahome and Volkswagen. Sam North, Clarion Show Director said, “We’re really looking forward to the 2013

6 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

show and building on the phenomenal success of 2012. Visitors can look forward to a huge choice of holiday inspiration, both UK and overseas, along with the latest models from leading manufacturers. Over 40 of our exhibitors are participating for the first time ensuring a strong offering of new products and ideas for visitors to enjoy. We are investing heavily in the show to take advantage of last year’s record attendance figures and to deliver strong profits for our partners”. Advance day tickets cost just £7.50, saving £1.50 compared to on the day prices, and kids go free (aged 16 and under). Tickets can be booked online at www.caravanshows.com or on the ticket hotline number 0044 844 873 7349, by quoting PRR1. Located next to the Trafford Centre, EventCity is the second largest exhibition space outside London and is easily accessible by car, with over 3,000 free parking spaces.

News 2

New camper van production of Knaus Tabbert sets standards

n contrast to the decreasing registration figures of motorhomes and caravans in Europe, campervans are constantly becoming more and more popular. In line with this trend Knaus Tabbert GmbH, a leading manufacturer of recreational vehicles in Europe, has modernised its Hungarian plant in Nagyoroszi for more than €1million. In a construction period of only 7 weeks a unique, continuously conveying assembly line was developed that in the future is expected to process up to 2,500 vehicles per year. In combination with the simultaneously implemented Knaus Tabbert Production System (KTPS) the new camper van

implemented measures”, emphasised Michael Tregner, Managing Director of Knaus Tabbert GmbH, at the opening ceremony.

production plant, which at the end of October was officially opened with the complete staff attending, will reach a two-digit productivity increase already this year. “We are proud to set standards in European camper van production with these

The consistent improvement of products, processes, and systems is the central objective of the newdeveloped KTPS. This provides the necessary framework conditions for trouble-free, transparent, high-quality, and employee-oriented production. The results are products of more-thancompetitive quality that can be produced under attractive cost structures in order to meet individual customer requirements. In the near future the new system also will be introduced at the other group plants in Jandelsbrunn, Mottgers and Obermeitingen.

The Balancing Barn! you access to the garden on the level below. The decor is simple, inspired by Dutch themes married with the occasional native Suffolk reference; the wall hangings pay homage to the works of John Constable and Thomas Gainsborough, both of whom famously lived in the county.

• Suspension of disbelief in Suffolk holiday home

ind yourself suspended over the Suffolk countryside in The Balancing Barn, a unique holiday home designed to create a feeling of weightlessness and submersion in the surrounding natural environment. Visually striking, the property (sleeps 8) is clad in a reflective silver ‘membrane’ to mirror the surrounding valley, and the cantilever structure exploits the split level of the ground beneath. The Balancing Barn has four bedrooms, a spacious kitchen and

dining room and a striking lounge with a large picture window giving unrivalled views over the adjacent valley, which is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. For those who appreciate quirky luxuries, two of the bedrooms have ‘in room’ baths and there’s a semi concealed door which gives

The property is located in Thorington, which is a few miles inland from the popular Suffolk coastal towns of Aldeburgh and Walberswick. Prices start from £810 for a 4 night mid-week break, £880 for a 3 night weekend and £1555 for a 7 night break.

Land Rover Discovery 4 Claims Top Towcar Award

he Land Rover Discovery 4 has proved itself the people’s choice in winning the Best Towcar title in the first Caravan Talk reader awards, announced at the recent Motorhome and Caravan Show at the NEC, Birmingham. Land Rover’s pre-eminence in towing was further reinforced by Freelander 2 being included among the five finalists. The nominations and winners were determined by votes from members of the Caravan Talk on-line community (caravantalk.co.uk) and the opinions they expressed provide an impressive real-world judgement on the qualities of the latest generation of Land Rover vehicles.

Similar praise was posted for Freelander 2: “an excellent towcar”; “tows wonderfully”; and “… towed our last three caravans with consummate ease and is a dream to drive solo”.

Comments about Discovery 4 included: “… my vote is for the new eight-speed automatic Discovery 4 – smooth and effortless is an understatement, it’s like towing in an armchair”; “best tow in the world bar none”; and “just awesome, you have to try it to believe it”.

Across the board there was praise for the Land Rovers’ technical capabilities, with references to the excellent power and torque, high nose weight, self-levelling suspension and the smooth performance of the automatic transmissions. Ben Feltwell, Caravan Talk Marketing Manager, said: “Despite the excellent competition, the Land Rover Discovery 4 proved itself once again to be king of the towcars in the eyes of the public. www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

News 3

Ship by Freight Ferry

eatruck Ferries has announced a new deal shipping passenger cars and motorhomes on board its Irish Sea freight Ferries. Cars and motorhomes with up to two passengers, 12 years old and up, can now be shipped on the line’s morning sailings on the Dublin-Liverpool and Warrenpoint- Heysham routes. Travel is aboard freight ferries that the liner cautions have steep stairways to and from the accommodation and may not be suitable for all. Accommodation on board is very limited and should be booked well in advance with the Seatruck office at the planned Port of departure. The rate one way for car and two passengers is €99 and for motorhome with two passengers, it is €149. Included in these rates are a cabin and a meal. The Line will not accept caravans and due to the longer crossing

times which are up to nine hours, pets are not permitted aboard the ferries.

Route Dept Arr Days Dublin - Liverpool 09.00 17.45 Monday - Friday Liverpool - Dublin 09.00 17.30 Tuesday - Friday Warrenpoint - Heysham 08.00 17.30 Tuesday - Friday Heysham - Warrenpoint 08.30 16.30 Tuesday - Friday Seatruck contact points: Dublin: +353 1 823 0492 Liverpool: +44 151 933 3660 Warrenpoint: +44 28 4175 4400 Heysham: +44 152 485 3512.

In launching its first passenger service, Seatruck said that the line is able to offer fantastic savings compared to more traditional

routes to Scotland and Wales. The current schedule of sailings on which the service is available is:-

Extra sailing over Christmas on Holyhead routes

o ll ow i n g h ar d o n th e announcement by Stena Line of the re-introduction of the HSS Stena Explorer on the Dun Laoghaire/ Holyhead route over Christmas 2012, Irish Ferries has added sailings on its route from Holyhead into Dublin Port.

Motorhomes to Ireland for €1!

The Stena Explorer will operate twelve elve round trips over the Christmas and New Year period. She will add 800 lane ane 500 metres, capacity for 375 cars and 1500 passengers daily in each direction to eltic Link Ferries, the Rosslare based ferry company has piled into the huge Tourism Ireland “The Gathering” project for 2013 with a special one Stena Line’s capacity on its Centrall euro deal. Operated in conjunction with Rosslare Europort, Celtic Link will Corridor routes. transport passengers from Cherbourg to Rosslare on their sailing from the French Port on March 15th, 2013. Irish Ferries will switch the Isle of Inishmore from its Rosslare/ The deal will include the passengers’ cars, campervans and motorcycles and the Line is Pembroke route to the Dublin/ also throwing in overnight cabins free of charge. Holyhead service for five sailings. Herr Rory McCall of Celtic link Ferries informed “Caravan Cruise” that the Company ute sailings on the Southern corridor route is determined to support Irish tourism right throughout the special year lde. will be taken the cruise ferry Oscar Wilde. that will be 2013 and feels that this special one euro offer will set 200 The Isle of Inishmore accommodates 2200 off “The Gathering” at a good pace. ane passengers, 856 cars and has 2200 lane metres car/truck deck space.

8 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Text: Howard Knott - howard@fleet.ie

Shows/Competition

What To See in January / February 2013

nce Christmas and the New Year are out of the way, thoughts quickly turn to longer days, and the chance to dust down the motorhome or caravan and hit the road again. Before that though, a number of shows and events are taking place in January and February showcasing all that is new in the mobile leisure sector. It’s a great way to whet the appetite for the season ahead. Leading the way are the two annual Holiday World Shows organized on behalf of the Irish Travel Agents Association. Both will once again feature special Caravan & Motorhome Show within the main events.

First up is the Belfast Telegraph Holiday World Show in the Kings Hall, Belfast from Friday 18th to Sunday 20th January 2013. Already a sizeable number of dealers, distributers and clubs have signed up to exhibit, representing many of the major caravan and motorhome manufacturers from Europe and the UK. Hot on its heels is sister event The Holiday World Show at the RDS in Dublin, which takes place one week later from Friday 25th to Sunday 27th January. Also worth making a note in the diary for is an Exhibition Weekend held by Charles Camping in Blessington, Co. Wicklow.

Taking place from January 27th to 29th, it will feature the latest ranges of Elddis and Swift caravans, as well as new product launches, special offers, and a huge range of accessories. Looking overseas, two major shows take place in January and February. The Clarion Events organized Caravan & Motorhome Show takes place at

Manchester’s EventCity from January 17th to 20th, while the organizer of the major October Motorhome & Caravan Show, NCC Events, is holding The Spring Caravan & Camping Show at the NEC Birmingham from February 19th to 24th. Both shows promise a huge selection of the latest camping, caravan, motorhome and mobile home products.

Take a look at this photo taken at a Truck Stop somewhere in The Netherlands and come up with the funniest caption. Please send your wittiest words to suit this picture and the winner will receive a ‘Goodie Bag’ of items from the Caravan Cruise store! One of our scribes has suggested the following to get the ball rolling: “Is this the evolution of the Irish snail ....... to be sure, to be sure?” Caravan Cruise Photo Caption Compt., Fleet Publications, D’Alton Street, Claremorris, Co.Mayo, Ireland. Entries close 31 January 2013 www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Waterways 1 Amerigo Vespucci

The Dublin Tall Ships Races Festival 2012.

he Dublin Tall Ships Races Festival Committee had it all planned out that the forty plus sail training vessels participating in the final leg of the 2012 races would complete the planned 10 day voyage and enter the Liffey on Thursday 23rd August. The Weather Gods planned things otherwise, south westerly gales with wind speeds topping 60 miles per hour picked up the fleet shortly after it left La Coruna and hurtled the fleet across the Bay of Biscay with the first vessel reaching the race finish at the Tuskar Rock four days ahead of schedule. By first light on the festival opening day the Dublin Quays right up to the Samuel Beckett Bridge was a forest of spars, a sight that must have resembled those Quays maybe, 150 years ago and all was set for the arrival of the iconic Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian naval training vessel that has been at the heart of these races since their inception.

Over a million visitors thronged the Quays over the next three days to look at the vessels large and small and to soak up the free entertainment along the riverside and in the Grand Canal Dock. The Port, together with the Poolbeg Yacht Club and Marina, facilitated boat owners, not only from locations around Dublin Bay but also those that had travelled the length of the Grand Canal to participate by opening the East Link Bridge and leading them into see the fleet up close.

boats on the bay ranging from canoes, through dinghies, to canal barges to large motor cruisers. Overhead, one of the Naval Casa planes circled, as did the Air Sea rescue helicopter, while the Port pilot boat was busy taking pilots off the vessels as they cleared the navigation Channel. On the “Guyas” and the even larger “Cuauhtemoc” astern of her, samba bands played as the vessels heeled to the breeze and sails were unfurled. The sights and sounds were unforgettable.

Many of those boat owners and their families were also privileged to be able to head out into Dublin Bay on a beautiful Sunday morning to see the splendid three masted “Guyas” flying her massive Ecuadorian flag. Tucked in close behind the L.E. Emer, they lead the fleet out of the Port for a parade headed first for Dun Laoghaire, where the massive crowds on the Pier were near-deafened by a twenty-one gun salute. The fleet then turned north, by then sails filling in a freshening breeze, to pass close by Howth. No one had ever seen so many

However, the Weather Gods had another trick up their sleeves. As Sunday afternoon went on and all of the local fleet went back to harbour, the wind piped up again and was forecast to reach gale force as darkness fell. The Tall Ships Races organisers decided to cancel what would have been the inaugural Dublin to Liverpool race planned for that night, and the fleet dispersed, some braving the gales and heading to new destinations, others staying in Irish Ports and enjoying more hospitality.

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Waterways 1 Cuauhtemoc

Dublin Port Pilot with Tall Ship

Guayas in bay

Text: Howard Knott - howard@fleet.ie

Danmark

Fryderyk Chopin

Lord Nelson off Howth

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Experiences

Have kennel, will travel

hen retired teacher Wendy Stephens bought her 2003 Hymer Camp GT Mobile Dog Kennel two years ago it was the final step in a long process. She’s delighted she finally made the decision. The story began in 2003 when Wendy acquired her two delightful crossbreed dogs, sisters Honey and Heidi. Whenever she went away over the next few years she put them into kennels – and invariably they were unwell on her return. So in 2006 she began to consider other options. Initially she was attracted to micro-motorhomes made by the Isle of Wight manufacturer Romahome. What particularly appealed was the notion that she would have one small vehicle to go on holiday in, bringing the dogs with her, which could also be used for day-to-day travelling. With this in mind, in 2008 she went to a

dog friendly hotel in Bristol with a friend and “the girls”. At a large dealership there she test drove a number of vans, including Citroen-based Romahomes. But she had to concede that they really did feel cramped, especially with the dogs. A closer look at the associated costs also made her think twice. On top of import duty and 14% VRT she found that using the van as her sole vehicle would still leave her with an insurance bill of €640 and a hefty bill for road tax. So it was back to basics over the following six months, browsing the many options on e-bay and camper van web sites, looking at prices and teasing out ideas in her head. Helpful brother She was particularly fortunate, she freely admits, to have the help of her brother, Rory. He has a boat on the Shannon, which he maintains himself, and he is also a motorsport enthusiast (first place in the Irish Hillclimb Class 3B in 2012 with

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nine wins in ten outings). So he knows his way around mechanicals, electricals and the like, and has plenty of friends with motorhomes. He willingly joined her in the hunt. They found two she thought looked promising at East Coast Campers in Inch, County Wexford, not that far from her home in Delgany. One, priced at €16,000, was right within her target budget. But on close inspection Rory questioned just how loved it had been and he also had serious reservations about its age – built in 1992. “Potentially good money after bad,” he cautioned. However, East Coast Campers did have a van coming in in the near future which they thought might suit. It was actually coming from an owner in Delgany who, it turned out, Rory knew well. He was the Hymer’s second owner and had bought it in 2005. Rory knew the van had been meticulously maintained, including reupholstering.

Experiences There was only one snag: the price was €26,000. Some serious recalculations, some haggling and the securing of some short-term financial assistance from a much loved aunt followed and the deal was done. “I got a good motorhome through patience,” Wendy now reflects. Having a knowledgeable brother willing to help her reject the many all-too-tempting “nearly right” vans was also a huge advantage and Rory remains a highly valued member of her “Camp GT supporters club”.

Increased torque Rory gets a fair bit of use from the van himself. He re-chipped the engine to increase torque, primarily to improve fuel consumption while towing his competition car to meets. The 'van has been all over Ireland with him as well as to France for competition. In return, Wendy has the reassurance of knowing that anything that needs attention gets it and it’s always delivered back spotlessly clean, ready for her own next outing. Over the past two years Wendy has enjoyed a total of eight holidays of varying lengths in the van, accompanied by friends and her dogs. The furthest so far has been a 10 day trip to Wales and there have

been a number of long and extra long weekends to places in Ireland like Kilkenny and Battlebridge, beside the Shannon in County Leitrim. While Wendy loves the freedom that the 'van gives her she is not blind to the challenges of a motorhome, especially as a dog owner. On the plus side, she appreciates the low cost of insurance, €380 a year, road tax under €100 and of only having to pay car rates on toll roads and bridges. She also values the skylights, which allow her dogs to have fresh air without compromising security when they are left on their own in the 'van. On the other hand, getting ready for any trip involves stocking up the 'van, and that usually takes the best part of a day, she says. Fuel costs are reasonably heavy and overnight on a camp site for two people, including electricity hook-up, will still cost around €25 a night Wendy has also had two or three visits to the garage so far this year. To date a new leisure battery has been required, a problem with getting the fridge to work on gas has been sorted out under warranty, a broken glass hob lid has been replaced (cost around €150) and a problem with the bathroom door fixed. “Things happen

with a motorhome, that’s just how it is,” she says pragmatically. Because of the dogs, Wendy is always looking for a parking spot in the shade. That can be difficult to find, and sometimes even impossible, on a hot summer afternoon in a busy tourist centre. “You simply cannot bring your campervan everywhere,” Wendy says, “and you just have to get used to that.” In her case it also means rethinking some of her more ambitious plans. The onerous requirements and expense involved in getting dog passports (€250 each) and the worry about how they would cope with the heat of summer in France, deters her from bringing the dogs there. As a result they may well end up taking a holiday with Wendy’s generous relatives while she and a friend make the big adventure onto mainland Europe. Did Wendy make a good choice in taking on the challenge of a motorhome? “Most definitely, one of my better decisions,” she says. On behalf of the girls, Honey nods with approval. “As kennels go, we think this one meets our requirements very nicely,” she adds.

Wendy Stephens relaxes on the steps of Hymer motorhome with Heidi (left) and Honey. Text & Photos: John Stanley

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Motorhoming 1

Rapido’s V53 Could be the Answer include a 2.3 litre with power outputs of 130 hp or 150 hp. However our test unit came with the optional common rail 2.3 litre JTD engine rated at 130 hp (96 kW) and is a strong yet flexible engine. With 320 Nm of torque on tap at 1,800 rpm, it gives it the capacity to pull well, and for this application should prove reliable and economical. The standard 6-speed manual transmission fitted across the range has a positive change and is nicely spaced to get the best performance from the 130 hp unit. If preferred there is an automated 6-speed available, though only with the larger 150 hp version.

he trend towards van conversions appears to be gaining momentum, and from our first look at the new V53 from the French company Rapido it is easy to see why. The Rapido V series has a friendly profile and appears from the outside to be a neat package, with the silver grey paintwork adding to the elegant appearance. In this class, Rapido offers two versions based on the Fiat Ducato, the V56, and our test model the V53. External dimensions are the same for both models with an overall length of 5.99 metres, and a width of 2.05 metres, so there is nothing to

choose regarding overall size. However the way the space is manages differs somewhat, and is really a matter of personal preference. One big advantage with Rapido’s V series is that it is easy to manage for the tight spots. At 2.05 wide, it is not much larger than most standard family saloons. So car-parks and most facilities are readily accessible without any real concern, once we allow for the height of 2.55 metres. Fiat Professional’s multi-award winning Ducato van, is a well proven base for the Rapido V53, and the standard engine is a 2.0 litre (115Hp) diesel. Other options

The driver's cockpit is well finished, controls and switchgear are suitably placed with tasteful wood inlays lending a quality feel to the driving experience. All of which removes any sense that you are behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle. Driver and passenger swivel seats are comfortable with ample adjustment and trimmed in a neutral cream colour. Although the colour will no doubt attract some marks, the covers easily zip off, and are washable, and both seats come with two armrests. The cream colour of the front area is carried through to the living quarters, and matches well with the light honey coloured wood trimmed furnishings, creating an affluent sense of space, and making good use of the incoming daylight. This will also ensure a pleasant relaxed atmosphere during the dark hours. Rapido states that the V53 offers sleeping accommodation for four adults, though realistically it caters well for two adults and up to two children. This is because when the dining table is converted into the second bed, it will only in truth sleep one adult or two children in comfort. Nevertheless there is ample space for four to sit and dine with ease. An internal height of 1.88 metres (6’2”) may be a slight compromise for some, but should not prove to be a major problem. Moving through into the kitchen, the stainless steel two ring hob and sink are relatively close together, and there is no oven or grill. Worktop space is provided

14 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Motorhoming 1 x 1.32 metres. The bed sits on top of a storage area suitable for two bicycles, and rests on the gas cylinder housing unit, which is large enough for two cylinders. If preferred the V56 offers the bed positioned lengthways along the nearside sidewall. Though with this layout the bed measures 1.90 x 1.19 metres. What certainly impresses with Rapido is the build quality. The V53 is well put together, with fixtures and fittings suitably strong and robust, and should remain trouble free over the lifetime of the vehicle. Rapidoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 50 year experience is evident in the functional design and practicality of the V53 which exhibits some thoughtful touches. One example is the electric entry step, while it's not really

by a flip up table to the left, and while the worktop is a reasonable size the support bracket could really be stronger. Situated to the right of the sink is a good sized 80 litre fridge, with a similar sized hanging wardrobe above. Centrally located on the right is the toilet and shower, and considering the overall dimensions, the facility is more than adequate, and again well finished. A small corner handbasin with shower hose, and a removable tank camping toilet, provide the necessary equipment. Correct use of the shower curtain should keep water from drenching the room and directs excess water to the drainage channels. In the master bedroom, occupants sleep across the rear of the van, which allows for a generous size bed measuring 1.92

necessary, it is a useful addition. Clever use of the space has created a serious alternative to the larger coach built, and arguably for many people, less practical motorhomes. It delivers an ability to just â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;get in and goâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; if the occasion allows, without the need to plan for a major expedition. This ability should attract interest from people who like the idea of a motorhome, but have reservations as to the use they may get from the investment. Its size means it will fit into most regular driveways and could be used as a second family transport vehicle, so increasing its overall usefulness. In business since 1989, Cara Motor Homes www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Motorhoming 1

Aoife Lenihan of Cara Motor Homes

of Ballywilliam, Rathkeale, County Limerick is well qualified to assess the pros and cons of motor homes available on the market. The company has provided a sales and service outlet for a number of top brands in the motor home sector since it was formed, and has earned a respected reputation with it’s loyal customer base. In 2008 Cara was appointed main importers and distributors for Rapido in Ireland. “What encouraged Cara to become agents for Rapido was the quality and finish,” explained Cara’s Aoife Lenihan. “This has been supported with comments from customers, and people who have viewed the products at various events where the Rapido models have been on show,” she added. From our first look at the new V53 we feel that for either the first time motor home buyer, or the experienced spontaneous voyager, Rapido’s V53 could provide a high quality and practical means of taking to the open road.

Tel: +353 (0)69 64400 Email: info@caramotorhomes.ie Web: www.caramotorhomes.ie

SPEC CHECK Make / Model

Rapido V53

Base Vehicle

Fiat Ducato

Engine

FPT 2.3 litre JTD

Power

130 hp (96 kW) @ 3,600 rpm

Torque

320 Nm @1,800 rpm

Transmission

6 Speed Manual

Dimensions

(L-5.99) (W-2.05) (H-2.55) Mts

Internal Height

1.88 Metres

Water Capacity

(95 Litres Fresh) (90 Litres Waste)

Fuel Capacity

90 Litres

Standard Equipment

ABS, Cruise Control, Air Con, Driver & Passenger Airbags, Electric Entrance Step, Heated Mirrors, Central Locking, Combined Air/Water Heating.

14 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Text & Photos: Paul White - paul@fleet.ie

www.caravancruise.ie

Compiled by Cathal Doyle - cathal@fleet.ie

hether you are an experienced buyer, or are dipping your toe in the market for the first time, choosing your perfect motorhome or caravan can be a fraught experience. Firstly there’s the sheer number of manufacturers – literally hundreds if you include all the niche industry players that produce specialist conversions or makeovers. Then there’s the matter of deciding what style of mobile leisure vehicle to go for. When that choice ranges from van conversions as small as Fiat’s Fiorino up to mammoth American style RV’s, there certainly is a lot to choose from. And even when you narrow your selection down to a particular style of vehicle, or even a particular range within a brand, there can still be literally dozens of different layouts available.

Now we’re not pretending that our Buyers' Guide 2013 is going to answer all questions you may have, but hopefully for someone thinking of making an investment for the 2013 season, this may at least give you some idea of what brands are out there, and where to find them. We have focused on the manufacturers that market directly in Ireland – i.e. that have an Irish distributor or dealer where you can go along and check out motorhomes or caravans before making a purchase decision. Twenty seven brands are listed here, and include virtually all of the major European and UK manufacturers. So unless you’re after a very specific niche product, you should be able to find something to meet your needs within these shores.

We’re focusing on new models in this Buyers' Guide but nearly all the dealers listed here also carry an extensive range of second hand stock, another good reason to pay them a visit to see what is on offer. While many people like to look abroad when purchasing, indications from people that regularly compare prices are that at present there are no real financial gains to be made by buying outside Ireland. Indeed with the Irish Custom’s extremely convoluted and, many would say, random approach to calculating VRT, it can be a stressful – and expensive - process to bring a vehicle into the country. Another good reason to buy locally, where at least you know the final price before agreeing to a deal.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Buyers' Guide ADRIA-MOBIL www.adria-mobil.com Slovenian manufacturer Adria-Mobil manufactures motorhomes ranging from van conversions up to luxury A-Class motorhomes, as well as single and double axle caravans. 2013 sees the launch of a new LWB high-top Twin SLX van conversion. The entry level coachbuilt Sport range has a new five berth overcab model, the 571SP. There are now three ranges in the Matrix coachbuilt family including the all-new Axess, and the A-class Sonic range

AUTOCRUISE www.autocruise.co.uk Part of the Swift group since 2007, Autocruise concentrates on the manufacture of high quality van conversions based on the Fiat Ducato and Peugeot Boxer. For 2013, there are two new models â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the Rhythm Compact and the larger four berth Forte, as well as new styling and improved equipment levels.

now comprises three models. There are new new layouts to the Altea, Adora and Astella caravan ranges. WHERE TO BUY Adria Motorhomes: Pat Horan Motorhomes, Borrisokane, Co. Tipperary. www.pathoranmotors.com Adria Caravans: Abbey Caravans & Leisure, 285 - 291 Shore Road, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim BT37 9RW www.abbey-caravans.com

WHERE TO BUY Donaghey Motorhomes, Drumnahoe, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal. www.irishmotorhomes.com

www.auto-sleepers.co.uk

the Broadway range. There are also two new long wheel base models in the Mercedes-Benz based coachbuilt range.

Auto-Sleepers produces a range of van conversions and coachbuilts, as well as a caravan range under the AS Caravans brand. The Symbol, a Peugeot van conversion has been redesigned for 2013, while the Neuvo and Broadway Peugeot based coachbuilts have been updated and include two new models in

WHERE TO BUY Saville Motorhomes, 67 Moira Road, Hillsborough, Co Down, BT26 6DX www.savillemotorhomes.com

AUTO-SLEEPERS

AUTO-TRAIL www.auto-trail.co.uk

get a host of detail changes including new exterior body shapes.

Grimbsy based Auto-Trail has a strong reputation for premium quality motorhomes, building low profile and high roof coachbuilts under three ranges, Tracker, Apache and Frontier. The entry level Tracker range gets an additional model in 2013 with the traverse island bed model Tracker RB, while all models

WHERE TO BUY Saville Motorhomes, 67 Moira Road, Hillsborough, Co Down, BT26 6DX www.savillemotorhomes.com

BAILEY

pitch use. Also new is the second generation flagship Unicorn touring caravan.

www.bailey-caravans.co.uk Bailey is well established as the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading caravan manufacturer, accounting for nearly one in three new caravan sales, but the Bristol manufacturer is now also making inroads into the motorhome market with its Aproach SE range of low profile and high-rise coachbuilts first introduced in 2011. In the past year, Bailey has introduced the new Retreat Leisure Home, a larger sized caravan designed for seasonal 18 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

WHERE TO BUY Caravans: DorVic Caravans, 201 Hillhead Road, Ballyclare, County Antrim BT39 9LP www.dorviccaravans.com Motorhomes: Hagans Motorhomes, 184 Templepatrick Road, Ballyclare, County Antrim, BT39 0RA www.hagansmotorhomes.com

Buyers' Guide BAVARIA www.bavaria-camping-car.com/en/ French manufacturer Bavaria, part of the Pilote group (not to be confused with the German Knaus Tabbert brand Bavaria Camp) produces a range of price attractive motorhomes under four model ranges - Artic (van conversions, low profiles, overcabs and A-Class), Baltic (low profiles and A-Class), Fjord (low profiles and A-Class) and Fjord Nordic Edition (A-Class).

WHERE TO BUY Vanderlust Unit 62, Doora Industrial Estate, Ennis, Co. Clare.

streamlined design, higher specifications and additional engine options.

BESSACARR www.swiftgroup.co.uk/motorhomes/ bessacarr Part of the Swift Group, Bessacarr produces two ranges of low profile and high rise motorhomes. The E400 family comprises eight models, while there are seven layout options in the more expensive E500. Three new models have been added to the E400 range for 2013, while the E500 has a more

WHERE TO BUY Saville Motorhomes 67 Moira Road, Hillsborough, Co. Down, BT26 6DX www.savillemotorhomes.com

huge panoramic windscreen that stretches over the entire cab.

BÜRSTNER www.buerstner.com German brand Bürstner is part of the Hymer Group, producing a full range of motorhomes from low profiles to A-Class. It was the first manufacturer to introduce the concept of a drop-down bed low profile model with the popular Ixeo model. A new entry level range, the Brevio, has been launched for 2013 featuring an interesting rear tailgate, while at the other end of the market, the new flagship A-class model Grand Panorama comes with a

WHERE TO BUY Anchor Point Motorhomes Ltd., Shannonside Business Park, Killaloe Road, Birdhill, Co. Tipperary www.anchorpointmotorhomes.com/

CARADO

WHERE TO BUY Motorhomes: Donaghey Motorhomes, Drumnahoe, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal. www.irishmotorhomes.com

www.carado.de/en Hymer Group owned Carado is one of the fastest growing brands in Europe, with an attractive range of well-built motorhomes and caravans at competitive prices. Carado presently offers three high-roof / alcove models and nine low-profile models in its motorhome range, and a choice of six caravan layouts.

CARAVELAIR www.caravelair-caravans.com Celebrating its Golden Jubliee of manufacturing caravans in 2012, Caravelair is part of the Trigano VDL Group. The company offers four caravan lines – Antares Luxe, Allegra, Venicia Premium and Serenity, with the focus on light weight and value for money. Among the updates for 2013 is a supersized 150 litre XL

Cyril Johnston & Co. Ltd., Ballynahinch Road, Carryduff, Belfast BT8 8DJ www.cyriljohnston.co.uk/

Freeze refrigerator with two energy sources (220V, 12V) with an innovative design built into the kitchen cabinet. It’s available on some Venicia Premium models – ideal for those extended travel trips! WHERE TO BUY Charles Camping, Blessington, Co. Wicklow. www.charlescamping.com

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Buyers' Guide CARTHAGO www.carthago.com/en German manufacturer Carthago produces a range of high quality semi-integrated and A-class coachbuilt models. There are three main product lines – C-Tourer, Chic and Liner De Luxe, within which there are nine distinct models based on Fiat Ducato, Iveco Daily and MAN TGL chassis. New for 2013 are Yachting and Linerclass versions of the Chic e-line.

CHAUSSON www.chausson-motorhomes.com/

WHERE TO BUY Anchor Point Motorhomes Ltd., Shannonside Business Park, Killaloe Road, Birdhill, Co. Tipperary. www.anchorpointmotorhomes.com/

model, the Exaltis, expected to be sold in left hand drive only.

French motorhome manufacturer Chausson is a brand of the Trigano Group, producing high roof and low profile motorhomes under the ranges Flash, Welcome and Suite on Ford and Fiat chassis, and the Twist range of van conversions. There are two new models, the 49 and 49EB, in the entry level Flash range for 2013, while the Welcome family gets new additions 69 and 99. There’s also a new A-Class

WHERE TO BUY Fort Motors Ltd., Cromwellsfort Road, Dublin 12 www.fortmotors.ie

COACHMAN

the family for 2013, replacing the Amara 550/5 and Pastiche 470/2.

www.coachman.co.uk

Cyril Johnston & Co. Ltd., Ballynahinch Road, Carryduff, Belfast BT8 8DJ www.cyriljohnston.co.uk/

Based in Hull, Coachman is a well-established manufacturer of relatively expensive and heavy, but high quality, solidly built caravans that stand the test of time. Its present lineup consists of four model ranges – Amara, Pastiche, VIP and Laser. Two new models, the Amara 580/5 and Pastiche 525/4 are added to

WHERE TO BUY DorVic Caravans, 201 Hillhead Road, Ballyclare, County Antrim BT39 9LP www.dorviccaravans.com

DETHLEFFS

are now all built on AL-KO chassis, while there are four new Esprit models.

www.dethleffs.de One of Europe’s leading motorhome and caravan manufacturers, Dethleffs offers an extensive range of products. With ten distinct models in its motorhome family they include everything from compact low coachbuilts up to the luxury Premium Liner. Among new products for 2013 are two new models in the budget Globe S range, the Advantage family

WHERE TO BUY Donaghey Motorhomes, Drumnahoe, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal. www.irishmotorhomes.com

ELDDIS

WHERE TO BUY Motorhomes: Pat Horan Motorhomes, Borrisokane, Co. Tipperary. www.pathoranmotors.com Cyril Johnston & Co. Ltd., Ballynahinch Road, Carryduff, Belfast BT8 8DJ www.cyriljohnston.co.uk/

www.elddis.co.uk One of the UK’s leading manufacturers, Elddis produces motorhomes under the Autoquest and Aspire brands, while its caravan models are Xplore, Avanté, Odyssey and Crusader. The big news from the company for 2013 is the adoption of a new construction method called SoLiD across its entire range, which Elddis says makes its products the first fully bonded touring caravans and coachbuilt motorhomes.

20 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Cara Motohomes, Ballywilliam, Rathkeale, Co. Limerick www.caramotorhomes.ie

Caravans: Downshire Caravans, 12, Newry Road, Banbridge, Co. Down BT32 3HN www.downshirecaravans.com Charles Camping, Blessington, Co. Wicklow. www.charlescamping.com

Buyers' Guide HOBBY www.hobby-caravan.de/en/ Hobby is the world’s biggest manufacturer of caravans, as well as offering a range of low-profile and high-roof motorhomes noted for their eye-catching designs and styling. For 2013 the company has introduced two new motorhomes, the Renault Master based Premium Van and Premium Drive on Fiat Ducato chassis. For caravans, there are new Premium models with bunk beds, and new interiors on the Excellent range.

HYMER German company Hymer is a familiar sight on our roads, producing a broad range of motorhomes from the Hymer Car van conversion and four semi-integrated models to a range of six A-class type models. New for 2013 is a narrow bodied A-class called the Compact with rear tailgate opening, a new Mercedes-Benz based range called B-Starlight, and a number of additional models to the low profile T-CL range.

WHERE TO BUY Anchor Point Motorhomes Ltd., Shannonside Business Park, Killaloe Road, Birdhill, Co. Tipperary www.anchorpointmotorhomes.com/ Downshire Caravans, 12, Newry Road, Banbridge, Co. Down BT32 3HN www.downshirecaravans.com Thompson Leisure Ltd., 21 Rowantree Road, Dromore, Co. Down BT25 1NN www.thompsonleisure.com

WHERE TO BUY Donaghey Motorhomes, Drumnahoe, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal. www.irishmotorhomes.com

with one piece roofs from front to back, and a redesigned front.

LUNAR CARAVANS www.lunarcaravans.com The third largest of the UK’s caravan manufacturers, Lunar specializes in the production of lightweight caravans, with three main ranges – Ariva / Quasar, Stellar / Lexon and Clubman / Delta in its 21 model line-up. In 2012 Lunar launched a new standalone budget brand called Venus which has proved very successful. For 2013 the Cubman, Delta and Lexon ranges get a new bodyshell

WHERE TO BUY LPC Caravans, 5B Balloo Way, Bangor, Co. Down, BT19 7QZ www.lpccaravans.co.uk/

RAPIDO www.rapido-motorhome.ie

bed low-profile 7FF range gets a new model, while the 90dF A-class family gets two new additions.

French motorhome manufacturer Rapido counts no fewer than 44 models in its line-up spread between van conversions, low profiles and A-class vehicles. For 2013 attention is focused on a new entry level A-Class range, the Serie 8M/8F comprising five models. There’s also a new range of low-profiles with double floors called the Serie 7dF, the drop-down

WHERE TO BUY Cara Motohomes, Ballywilliam, Rathkeale, Co. Limerick www.caramotorhomes.ie

SPRITE www.swiftgroup.co.uk/caravans/sprite A famous caravan name from days gone by, Sprite is now part of the Swift Group, focusing on the entry-level, lightweight segment of the market, with seven models ranging from two to six berths. New for 2013 is the Major 4 FB four berth fixed bed model, while the Sprite Lite and Musketeer EB have been discontinued. WHERE TO BUY

Cookstown Caravans, 1A Ardcumber Road, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone, BT80 9AQ www.cookstowncaravans.com/

Cookstown Caravans, 1A Ardcumber Road, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone, BT80 9AQ www.cookstowncaravans.com/ LPC Caravans, 5B Balloo Way, Bangor, Co. Down, BT19 7QZ www.lpccaravans.co.uk/

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Buyers' Guide STERCKEMAN www.sterckeman-caravans.co.uk Part of the Trigano family, Sterckeman has over sixty year’s experience in the caravan market, with products aimed at the more affordable side of the market. There are three ranges in the Sterckeman line-up – the lightweight Starlett comprising 13 models, the mid-range Alizé with nine different layouts, and the spacious new three model Espace.

STERLING www.swiftgroup.co.uk/caravans/sterling

WHERE TO BUY Charles Camping, Blessington, Co. Wicklow. www.charlescamping.com

of the range Elite family with six models to choose from.

Along with Swift and Sprite, Sterling is the third caravan brand under the extensive Swift Group, differentiating itself with a more contemporary style than its sister brands. Three ranges are offered, the ten model Eccles Sport, the ten model Eccles SE – the SE designation is new for 2013 indicating improved specification compared to 2012 models – and the top

WHERE TO BUY Cookstown Caravans, 1A Ardcumber Road, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone, BT80 9AQ www.cookstowncaravans.com/

SUNLIGHT

WHERE TO BUY Saville Motorhomes, 67 Moira Road, Hillsborough, Co Down, BT26 6DX www.savillemotorhomes.com

www.sunlight-caravaning.de/gb Sunlight is an offshoot of German manufacturer Dethleffs targeting the budget end of the market, but with high build quality and without compromising on specifications. The company offers a selection of nine low-profile and three overcab coachbuilt models, using Fiat Ducato chassis

SWIFT www.swiftgroup.co.uk The Swift brand, part of the large Swift Group, encompasses both motorhomes and caravans. The motorhome family consists of three ranges, Sundance, Bolero and Kon-Tiki, while the Challenger Sport, Challenger SE and Conqueror ranges make up the caravan offerings. The Sundance motorhomes get new exterior looks and interior upgrades for 2013, while the Challenger SE caravans are significantly upgraded.

TRIBUTE www.tributemotorhomes.co.uk Tribute is a brand of the Trigano Group producing value for money motorhomes, The 2013 range consists of one high-top van conversion and six coachbuilt motorhomes. Coachbuilt models are designed and assembled at Auto-Trail’s manufacturing facility in North Lincolnshire using a Ford Transit chassis, while the Tribute 669 Fiat Ducato derived 22 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

LPC Caravans, 5B Balloo Way, Bangor, Co. Down, BT19 7QZ www.lpccaravans.co.uk/

WHERE TO BUY Motorhomes: Donaghey Motorhomes, Drumnahoe, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal. www.irishmotorhomes.com Caravans: Cookstown Caravans, 1A Ardcumber Road, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone, BT80 9AQ www.cookstowncaravans.com/ LPC Caravans, 5B Balloo Way, Bangor, Co. Down, BT19 7QZ www.lpccaravans.co.uk/ Charles Camping, Blessington, Co. Wicklow. www.charlescamping.com

van conversion is built at the Trigano Group’s dedicated van conversion factory in Italy. WHERE TO BUY Abbey Caravans & Leisure, 285 - 291 Shore Road, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim BT37 9RW www.abbey-caravans.com

Buyers' Guide VOLKSWAGEN www.vwcommercials.ie While the original VW Type 2 campervan defined a whole category of mobile leisure vehicle; Volkswagen offers a full in-house modern version, the California, based on the Transporter T5. The California is now offered directly in Ireland through Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Ireland.

HYUNDAI / WELLHOUSE LEISURE http://www.wellhouseleisure.com UK conversion specialist Wellhouse Leisure produces a manufacturer approved and award winning compact campervan based on Hyundaiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s i800, and is currently in the process of establishing Irish dealers to bring the vehicle to market here.

WHERE TO BUY Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Ireland Block C Liffey Valley Office Campus Liffey Valley, Dublin 22.

WHERE TO BUY Wellhouse Leisure Sovereign Business Park, Barnsley Road, Shepley, Huddersfield, HD8 8BL United Kingdom.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Pin Pictures Bailey supports Sir Ranulph Fiennes in quest to complete p plet The Coldest Journey On Earth

ailey of Bristol is sponsoring veteran polar explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes in taking on one of the last remaining polar challenges by attempting to cross Antarctica in winter for the first time.

The Coldest Journey expedition departed for the Antarctic from London on the 6 December 2012 - the centenary year of Captain Scott’s death in 1912 - in the South African ice-strengthened research ship ‘SA Agulhas’. Then on 21st March 2013, six team

across the Continent something which has never been attempted before at this time of year.

on Howard, nes with Sim ns. n ie F h lp u n Sir Ra Carava ger, Bailey Sales Mana

e During this period the el expedition team will travel s, nearly 4,000 kilometres, ss mostly in complete darkness in temperatures as low as ve -90°C. The team will have ent to be entirely self-sufficient on this crossing as there will be no search and rescue facility available, because aircraft cannot penetrate inland during winter, due to darkness and risk of fuel freezing. In addition to conquering this final frontier of exploration the specified aim of this venture is to raise $ 10 million for Seeing is Believing, a global charitable initiative to fight avoidable blindness.

members, including Sir Ranulph, will begin a six month journey

this attempt to complete l t greatt polar l challenges” h ll ”h one off last he added. Ford provided a Transit minibus in February this year to transport the team 1,800 miles to Arjeplog in northern Sweden to take part in an extreme-weather training exercise where the team was finalised and much of the kit for the expedition was tested.

Bailey Managing Director Nick Howard said “The Coldest Journey was something we really wanted to be involved in and we are consequently very proud to become one of the sponsors of

Tramper Brings More Life to Volkswagen Caddy Life!

mong the many interesting exhibits outside of the main halls of the IAA Commercial Vehicles Show in Hanover, Germany last September was the special version of the Volkswagen Caddy Maxi Life.

markets, its fittings inside includes two seats and a table, a fold out awning that is packaged within the rear tailgate, a bed that is made by folding down the seats measures 1.10 m x 2.0 m, also curtains are standard for privacy, options include a 7 litre cool box.

Called the Tramper or Camper in certain

Caravan Owners lose ‘most hated road user’ Top Spot

aravan Owners Rejoice As Poll Knocks Them Off ‘most hated road user’ Top Spot.

Owners of caravans are celebrating after a recent poll shows that they are no longer the most hated people on the road. After several years holding this dubious and unwanted distinction, they’ve been dislodged by farmers driving their tractors, that most unwelcome of sights on a country road.

With caravan owners having an undeserved reputation as slow and overcautious drivers, it’s no wonder that other road users have shown their prejudice in previous votes. But with this type of holiday becoming more popular in recent years, and the camp site once again coming back into fashion, the positive public image of caravans has grown amongst the motoring public. According to the Caravaninsurance. com survey results, the Top Five Most

24 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Hated Road Users are: 1. Tractor drivers 2. Caravan owners 3. Sunday drivers 4. Learner drivers 5. Cyclists Text: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie

Review

Motorhome & Caravan Show 2012

- a resounding success

he Motorhome & Caravan Show which took place at the NEC in Birmingham from October 16 to 21 once again showcased the latest products from all the major British motorhome and caravan producers, as well as many European manufacturers. The show attracted record attendances, with over ninety eight thousand visitors excluding press and exhibitors passing through the doors over the six days of the show. Eleven halls, a footprint increase of 13% over 2011, were filled. Feedback from exhibitors was exceedingly positive, with many reporting strong results, leading to optimism of continued growth in the mobile leisure sector for 2013 and beyond. Consensus was that while certainly people were coming to the stands to do business, there was a definite trend towards downsizing, with increasing focus on fuel consumption and running costs. Of course some stands were attracting more interest than others, with new or innovative products. Two developments stood out in this regard, the adoption of a new construction method by industry giant Elddis, and the advent of slide-out caravans with products from Fifth Wheel Company and newcomer Eterniti. ELDDIS

New Inos interior

Elddis Autoquest 175

Elddis is the first to unveil its solution, which it has rolled out across all of its 2013 motorhome and caravan products. Called SoLiD, Elddis worked with structural bonding specialists Henkel to create what it says is the first fully bonded coachbuilt motorhome, using a construction system used to bond wings to aeroplanes. Elddis says SoLiD gives its motorhomes and caravans more structural integrity and rigidity, is lighter than conventional construction methods, and is impervious to water – a claim the company backs up with a 10 Year Water Ingress Warranty.

ETERNITI

Elddis' new SoLiD construction technique

The new Eternity Genisis

The arrival of the caravan….. FIFTH WHEEL COMPANY

slide-out

Elddis Affinity 540

Since Bailey adopted its AluTech method of construction a few years ago, it has been clear that other manufacturers have been under pressure to come up with new manufacturing techniques to reduce or eliminate the age old problem of water ingress, while making body structures stronger and lighter.

based caravans that attach to modified pick-up trucks). Last year, Fifth Wheel Company showed the Inos, its first conventionally hooked caravan with a slide out compartment built on a double axle chassis This time around the company unveiled a second Inos model, but on a single axle. With a MTPLM of 1800 Kg, it is towable by a much broader range of vehicles than the twin axle version. The slide out section gives an extra 14 square metres of area, transforming the caravan into a spacious living space.

Not to be outdone, a brand new company also offering slide-out compartments on a range of models launched to much fanfare at the NEC Show. Eterniti Caravans is offering a range of two twin axle and four single axle upmarket caravans, all featuring slide out compartments. MTPLM’s range from 1550 Kg for the single axle Chronicle models to 1999 Kg for the Genisis twin-axle.

Fift h Wheel Company's new single axle Inos

Although the idea of creating a slideout section on a motorhome or caravan is not new – American RV’s have been doing it for decades, cost and weight factors have prevented it being adopted on smaller European sized products (with the exception of larger fifth wheel

The slide-out concept provides spacious living.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Review TRIPBUDDY One of the more quirky but interesting launches at the show was by a new

company called Tripbuddy. Taking styling cues from products as diverse as 1960’s campers and modern day yachts, the company is hoping to change the face of caravans forever with this one piece monocoque moulding and a one piece rear opening door. The chassis / floor is designed as an integral component to the body. The interior of the show vehicle also took styling cues from luxury yachts. The Union flag by the way is optional… www.tripbuddy.co.uk

A round-up of what else was at The Motorhome & Caravan Show 2012

ADRIA This is Adria’s new long wheel base Twin SLX model.

AIRSTREAM The iconic American brand showed a 684 model with an interchangeable rear end bed or office.

AUTOCRUISE The van conversion specialists showed this new Fiat Ducato based four berth Forte model.

BAILEY The star attraction on the Bailey stand was the new second generation Unicorn, this one the Barcelona model.

CARA MOTOR HOMES On the Dethleffs stand were representatives from Cara Motor Homes in Limerick. Left to right are John Lenihan, Olesja Silkina – Dethleffs, Aoife Lenihan, and Christian Striebel – Dethleffs Sales Manager, UK & Ireland

CHAUSSON Chausson’s Flash 10 model was the overall winner of the 2012 Practical Motorhome of the Year Award as well as the Best Budget Buy.

26 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Review

COACHMAN Coachman showed this new addition to the entry level Amara range of caravans, the 565/4.

DETHLEFFS The Globebus from Dethleffs has a redesigned front end and more interior space.

DFSK Chinese manufacturer DFSK produces diminutive vans and is now branching in the motorhome sector.

FIAT Fiatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ducato is the base vehicle of choice for motorhome manufacturers, and the company showed this chassis cab with a new extra-long wheelbase.

FRANKIA German brand Frankia was exhibiting at the NEC show for the first time. This is its I740 OD model.

HOBBY Hobby showed off its new Premium Van and Premium Drive motorhome models. This is the futuristic looking Premium Drive.

HYMER The German manufacturer premiered its new Compact model featuring a rear opening door.

HYUNDAI/WELLHOUSE LEISURE Wellhouse Leisure showed a special edition 'Nero' version of the Hyundai i800 campervan including full leather interior, Vohringer piano black gloss wood and colour coded Reimo roof. www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Review

LUNAR Lunar has fitted a new bodyshell with one piece roofs from front to back, on a number of its models for 2013.

ROLLER TEAM Roller Team from Trigano had its new 746 high roof model at the NEC.

SPRITE Sprite showed this new Major 4 FB with a fixed bed layout.

SSANGYONG Ssangyong has a strong tow car tradition and the Korean manufacturer showed off its latest Korando at the show.

SWIFT New exterior styling and interior designs for the entry level Sundance model on the Swift stand.

T@B The quirky German caravan is now imported into the UK through Airsteam

VENUS Lunar Caravans brand Venus has proven to be very popular since its launch earlier in 2012.

VOLKSWAGEN Volkswagen was unsurprisingly cock of the hoop after winning the Caravan Club Tow Car of the Year for the second successive year with the Jetta. See pages 52and 53 for the full story.

28 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Text & Photos: Cathal Doyle & Jarlath Sweeney

Waterways 2

Celtic Horizon, “a very pleasant experience”

s a regular traveller to the Continent, it was encouraging to hear the news last year that Celtic Link Ferries was introducing a new ferry on the popular Rosslare – Cherbourg route. More competition is always welcome from a consumer’s point of view, and it was to see how the new ship shaped up in this regard that I travelled to France this summer with my motorhome on board the company’s new flagship vehicle, Celtic Horizon.

Initial findings were all positive - boarding commenced two hours before departure, ran very smoothly, and we were sailing at the appointed time. Onboard, the cabin was very modern, clean and comfortable, while there is more than enough choice of activities and dining options to keep customers happy. The Anchorage Restaurant opened for business shortly after sailing and offered a good choice of food which was reasonably priced. Breakfast is served from 8am to 10am, while lunch commences at 12.30pm. The Rosslare Bar was bright and cheerful,

with live music during the summer months, while the onboard cinema had a choice of evening movies and a kids matinee. The crossing was very smooth and peaceful and we arrived in Cherbourg right on schedule, feeling refreshed and ready to start the next stage of our holiday. My overall experience on board the Celtic Horizon was excellent and I would highly recommend this service. The onboard staff were very friendly and helpful. All the ship's facilities were top class.

About Celtic Link Ferries Celtic Link Ferries is an Irish-owned low fares ferry company.

he company was established in 2005 as a new ferry operation to meet the growing demand for a regular and reliable transport service for cars, motorhomes, caravans, freight and passengers between Rosslare and Cherbourg. Service and pricing has been designed to provide a low fares, value for money service. The schedule runs all year round with three crossings per week leaving Rosslare every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday while departing Cherbourg every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

Celtic Link Ferries is located in Rosslare Harbour and is now taking for bookings for next year. Telephone 00353 (0) 53 9162688 www.celticlinkferries.com

CELTIC HORIZON The Celtic Horizon has capacity for up to 1000 passengers, 200 cars and up to 120 freight vehicles. On board facilities include 110 cabins, bars, restaurant, lounges, cinema and a shop. Celtic Horizon is the newest and fastest vessel sailing between Rosslare and Cherbourg, France. The state-of-the-art vessel boasts fantastic amenities which include The Rosslare Bar and Cherbourg Cafe -Deli, The Anchorage Restaurant, a cinema, a duty free shop, computer zone and kid’s recreational

room, Wifi, while The Tuskar and The Harbour lounges provide reserved seating and relaxation area. The ship’s living quarters are one and a half times larger than its predecessor and has a fantastic choice of cabins which include 2 berth outside, 4 berth inside and outside cabins and for the first time Celtic Link Ferries now provide a choice of six berth inside or outside cabins. There is also a choice of the magnificent suites available on board.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION: Builder: Cantiere Navala Visentini, Portoviro, Italia Year of Build: 2006, Newest ship on the Ireland to France route Overall Length: 186.5 metres, Biggest ship on the Ireland to France route Dead Weight: 7300 tonnes, Cargo capacity Total Output: 21600 KW Service Speed: 22.9 knots Lane Metres: 2.25 kilometres Capacity: Cargo: 200 cars and up to 120 freight vehicles Passenger: 1000 Text: Gerry Lane - gerry@fleet.ie

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Glamping

Glamping Taking the Country by Storm Experienced American travel writer Kathy Mangan spent the summer of 2012 exploring Ireland's Glamping sites. Here is her review.

a soft nest with feather pillows, down pods or shepherd’s huts nicely appointed duvet and fine linens. I had a hot water with beds,, chairs bottle under the covers for extra and other afe haven I cosiness. In my safe Battlebridge nds and listened to the winds Caravan and Camping Park here is a new type of camping rain, demanding and Location: Leitrim Village, ng experience taking the country relentless, reaching Carrick On Shannon, County Leitrim by storm, one that is especially a high-pitched Season: Pods year-round appreciated during a storm, or crescendo Bell tents Easter through September even when the weather turns “soft” or before receding Units: 4 pods sleeping 4 chilly. Glamping, or luxury camping, to a calmer 4 bell tents sleeping 4-5 allows you to stay snug, warm and comfy tone. When Fee: Pods and tents €180 for 2 nights • €220 for 3 nights • €350/week while still experiencing the pure energy the storm’s DOGS WELCOME and sheer awe of the outdoors. fury was spent, Glamping/Boating Week Package: I drifted back €200 per person for 4 nights glamping I found to and 3 nights on a cruiser Dromquinna Tel: 071-965-0824 Manor Web: www.battlebridgecaravanandcamping.ie Location: Kenmare, County Kerry Season: May to early September Units: 7 double safari tents sleeping 2 5 family tents sleeping 4 sleep, amenities. Fee: Double tent €150 per night June-August have a n d b y Some €130 per night May and September morning all was calm, electric lights, insulation Family tent an additional €15 t sun was sparkling, the and a source of heat. All have separate Tel: 064-66-42888 Web: www.dromquinnamanor.com an I headed up the hill and bathrooms and hot showers. h cappuccino and a for a hot cro fresh croissant. Extra site offerings might include an on-site this out in pub, restaurant, spa, marina, shared kitchen dramatic fashion In a hotel I’d only hear raindrops on the or playground. when a severe storm hit Dromquinna Manor window panes, completely separated on Kenmare Bay while I was overnighting in from the true experience. Yet in my tent, People are keen to try glamping as an a safari tent. White-crested waves crashed I got weather galore while luxuriating in a alternative to boring, same-everywhere against the sea wall, 20 mile-per-hour winds glorious bed. And best of all, I didn’t have hotel rooms. Romantic couples love the buffeted my tent while the lash-down to dry out gear and pack up the next day privacy and the dreamy effect of candles ropes strained, and the rains attempted since everything, including linens, towels dancing across canvas. Parents love letting p , was provided for me. to shred the and shampoo, their children run free in a safe setting canvas making as much noise as they want, as well Glamp Glamping is well established as cooking their kids’ favorite meals in the Boutique Camping in th the UK, but this year the kitchen. And girlfriend groups love it for Location: Castletown Geoghegan, co concept took hold here and birthday celebrations and hen parties, as County Westmeath q quickly gained popularity. it’s like a grown-up slumber party. Everyone Season: Year-round John Brennan, owner of loves the convenience and comfort. Units: 20 yurts sleeping 4 Dromquinna Manor, says 3 shepherd’s huts sleeping 2 his 12 safari tents were I visited four glamping sites and found each Fee: €100 per night for yurts and shepherd’s huts oked solid for booked offers its own PETS WELCOME Tel: 044-922-6679 or 087-987-5277 t the season, appeal. Web: www.boutiquecamping.ie Teapot Lane an other and Luxury Camp glam g glamping Location: Tawley, County Leitrim owne walls. site owners Season: March through October simila When the report similar Units: 4 yurts sleeping up to 6 pounding din got results. Fee: €200 for 2 nights weekends; even louder, I peered out the door flap to €160 for 2 nights midweek; see hail stones pelting down and bouncing The specifics of €550/week; DOGS WELCOME off the wooden deck. glamping vary Tel: 087-934-0341 from site to site, but Web: www.teapotlaneluxurycamp.com Wow, the storm was in full fury, and I was essentially camperss loving it! can arrive with zero gear nd sleep other than a torch, and I snuggled into my “Wilderness Bed,” in roomy tents, felted yurts, wooden

30 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Glamping Dromquinna Manor, Kenmare, County Kerry

t ’s the thoughtful luxury touches that impress me most at Dromquinna, and why not, owner John Brennan’s reference is fivestar Park Hotel Kenmare. Right in line are a basket of fruit and snacks, shampoo and body gel, bottled water with glasses and cushy towels in the tent. There are electric reading lights on the bed headboard and plenty of feather pillows on the bed. The shop stocks wine, gourmet cheese, candles, candy bars and even kites for the kids. It’s a treat to walk up the hill to get a steaming latte and croissant if you don’t want to cook your own breakfast

in the kitchen. For lunch or dinner the Boathouse Bistro on the waterfront serves up pizza and Spanish tapas with a nice wine menu. The food here is good but I found the service slow, so if it’s busy, enjoy wine on the terrace but head to one of the many gourmet restaurants in town. Alternatively, get a grill kit from the shop and take advantage of the barbecue area and picnic tables. I liked the covered deck in front of the tent with Adirondack chairs for gazing at the bay. The five family tents have a second bedroom with two single beds and an outer sitting room in addition to the covered deck. There are a lot of

trees between tents for privacy. The bathrooms are a bit of a walk, but they are clean and spacious, and even feature hair dryers. In all, Dromquinna has a quiet, upscale vibe. I enjoyed walking to the dock to catch the Seafari Cruise out to see the seals on rocky islands. Next time I’ll rent a horse at the stables for a ride along the estate trails. See page 44 for Managing Editor Jarlath Sweeney's seperate review of Dromquinna Manor Caravan and Camping Park.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Glamping Boutique Camping, Castletown Geoghegan, County Westmeath

he rolling landscape here has enabled the creation of far more than a glamping site – Boutique Camping is essentially an outdoor art installation. The 100-acre property is the creative muse of Adrian Murphy who runs the property with wife Deirdre. It was five years in development before it opened in August 2011. Before he was ready to open, Adrian planted 200,000 trees leaving hilltops open for views, and installed roads and six kilometers of gravellgravelleded walking paths. He dug a pond for fishing, replanted the walled garden, and built a variety of structures from a glassed relaxation hut at the pond to fanciful follies. Adrian collaborated with his many artist friends, incorporating their creations. I loved walking the property, discovering sculptures tucked into a grove of trees or emerging from tall grasses, delightful stone carvings incorporated into stone walls, massive tree trunks carved into Druids and mythical figures. Topping a two-tiered mound is a circle of carved standing stone slabs, while a circle of tall, colorful totem pole people overlook the pond.

There are 20 roomy yurts (6 meter diameter), each set in a private clearing in the trees. They have an iron double bed with duvet, plus two single beds for children. Interior walls are rich brocade fabric with criss-crossing bamboo; thick wool insulation in the walls and a small iron stove keeps them cosy. My boyfriend Tom and I opted for one of the three wooden shepherd’s huts added this season, custom designed with curved roof and lovely finish detail. Inside, the walls and ceiling are painted beadboard, windows provide ventilation and the cushy double bed is a welcome retreat. With a wee fire in the stove and lantern tea lights flickering, the scene is romance at its best. There are five bathroom/shower facilities, so glampers never have much of a walk. Bring your own towels. You’ll also want to bring your own food to take advantage of the two fully outfitted shared kitchens; one is fronted with glass and has an outside deck. Help yourself to the herbs and vegetables in the organic garden. There’s a gym/sauna to work off meals. You can walk to three traditional pubs in the village for a turn-in toddy.

32 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Boutique Camping is what glamping is meant to be – a unique, luxe outdoors experience with an added layer of artistic and cultural sophistication that invites discovery and shares the delight of creative expression.

Glamping Battlebridge Caravan and Camping Park, Leitrim Village, County Leitrim

here’s a trifecta of pluses at Battlebridge that make it an attractive glamping destination: The delightful design of the pods; the Shannon riverbank location; and the cheerful pub on premises for a satisfying Guinness after a day outdoors. When Joe and Eilish Beirne took over Beirnes of Battlebridge, a traditional pub that had been in the family for generations, they knew they wanted to develop the few acres behind the pub bordering the Shannon. Since it’s a crossroads for boat traffic with the river and canals, they dug a canal off the river and installed a marina and bathroom/ shower facilities. Next was a site for 40 tents and caravans.

Myself and Tom were among the first to stay in one of the four new wooden pods installed in August. These efficient units resemble an upside down boat hull, and are big enough for a double bed, small table and chairs, and shelves for a tea kettle and dishes. Large glass French doors open onto a wooden deck with picnic table and barbecue grill. Beyond, the lawn drops away to the canal. The pods are electrified and there’s an electric heater. The bell tents and the pods are off on a quiet end of the campground with

winding, lit pathways. That means there’s a bit of a walk to the bathrooms, especially problematic after a few pints at the pub. Eilish says a new bathroom unit is on the agenda for next season. Dinner is served at the pub Friday through Sunday, and there are restaurants in town. There’s often traditional music in the pub on weekends. A playground and game room keep kids entertained. You can fish in the river or canal, rent a boat for a day, or book a combo package with four days glamping and three days on a canal cruiser.

An appearance on the television program “At Your Service” with hoteliers Francis and John Brennan led to installing four carnival-style bell tents in 2011 with a double bed, two pull-out futons and linen service. It’s far cry from roughing it considering there’s a chandelier hanging in the middle of the tent, carpet on the floor and a wood stove. Glamping tents are popular for girlfriend getaways, according to Eilish. www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Glamping Teapot Lane Luxury Camp, Tawley, County Leitrim

here’s an ethereal, bohemian vibe at Teapot Lane, an intimate spot with just four Mongolian yurts, angels hanging in the trees and a spa for massages with essential oils.

the covers of our antique bed until the wood is crackling away. This is safer for Tom anyway; he’s too tall for the low ceiling. It’s still warm inside the felted yurt when awoken early morning by a short burst of rain.

The woodland setting adds to the mystery of the place – ceramic gnomes hide among ferns, hammocks are slung between tree trunks and a funky treehouse transports kids to fantasy land. There’s a bit of your grandmother’s eclectic tidbits too – colorful teapots topping fence posts, flowers springing from watering cans, embroidered quilts and hand-stitched pillows on the beds. The style is both charming country life and the whispered world of fairies.

The bathroom and hot shower are close at hand, but the composting toilets are a bit of a turnoff. I know they’re eco-friendly, but the smell and thought of lurking spiders makes me thankful for flushing toilets elsewhere. It’s important to start breakfast early because there are freshly laid eggs from

the chicken coop on the table, and they are so delicious that you wouldn’t want to miss out. The kitchen cottage has flowered tablecloths and everything needed; it feels like a spot you’d have a chat with your grammy over a pot of tea. For a relaxation top-off, walk the flowerlined path to Teapot Lane’s spa for an aromatherapy massage in this realm of magic. We’ll see more glamping in the future as there are new yurt and pod sites in planning for next season.

This glamping site, opened in 2010, is the private preserve of Derval McGovern. It’s a fun spot for families, as the kids play together and toast marshmallows around the campfire at night. In fact, the nightly campfire draws everyone together to watch the sparks fly, drink a glass of wine and share stories. Tom and I create a fairyland of our own inside our yurt, lighting all the candles and lanterns we can find. We set a fire in the potbelly stove and dive beneath 34 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Text & Photos: Kathy Mangan

Tow Car Test

Ford Mondeo and Bailey Orion the perfect towing partnership

hen a Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCI arrived to the Fleet Publications / Caravan Cruise Ireland office as part of a long term test this summer, it probably hadn’t envisaged spending a great deal of time hitched up to our Bailey Orion 440-4 caravan, pulling it all over Ireland and the UK. But the Blue Oval’s large family car performed its tow car duties admirably, and it was with genuine regret that we handed the car back on completion of our extended review.

Pick-Ups were so much more powerful they tended to overwhelm the caravan and mask what was happening behind. On one such instance a driver following me on a distinctly bumpy road reported the caravan bouncing around alarmingly, which I as the driver was not aware of. With the Mondeo, while it was well able to pull the caravan without trouble, any undulations would immediately transmit themselves to the driver, resulting in the adoption of slower – and safer speed.

Fitted with the larger of two engine options for the Irish market (there’s also a 1.6 TDCI), the 2.0 litre version develops 140PS and a reasonably substantial 320 Nm of torque. Plenty to tow a fairly lightweight caravan such as the Bailey Orion with an MTPLM of 1,249 kg you’d think, and inputting the two vehicle’s data into www.towcar.info showed that the weight ratio for the caravan relative to the car is 80% giving a nice green rating of 4½ stars out of 5. Caravan experts recommend against matching a car and caravan with a weight ratio of greater than 85% so the Mondeo is more than up to the task of pulling the Bailey.

On the fuel economy front, we returned an average consumption of 5.8 l/100 km (48.7 mpg) when the Mondeo was driven unhooked. With caravan attached, that figure inevitably jumped considerably, hovering around 9.0 l/100 km (31.4 mpg) when pushing on, but we did manage as low as 8.6 l/100 km (32.8 mpg) on some extended runs. Certainly no worse than we had been expecting, though it was noticeable how much the fuel consumption increased when travelling in the UK where the speed limit is 60 mph (100 km/h) on motorways and dual carriageways compared to 80 km/h here. Certainly an incentive to slow down and allow plenty of time for a journey!

That’s the theory anyway, putting it into practice on the road confirmed how well matched the pair were. Interestingly we had previously towed the Orion behind a couple of Pick-Up trucks, and would have to say that the Mondeo felt far more suited for the job. Because the

As mentioned, the 2.0 TDCI is quite a torquey engine, meaning that gear changes are kept to a minimum. With the caravan behind, the Mondeo would motor along quite happily in top gear at 80 km/h, while even steep inclines proved no bother.

Text & Photos: Cathal Doyle - cathal@fleet.ie

Interestingly, we did a back to back test of this car versus a 1.6 TDCI version (featured in the winter edition of the Fleet Car supplement of Fleet Transport magazine), and noted that in comparison to the bigger engined car, that one needed far more gear changing for day to day driving, something that would certainly be accentuated when towing a caravan. Aside from its actual towing capabilities, the Mondeo is a fine tow car in other aspects, thanks to one of the most spacious cabins in the business, very comfortable seats, and a cavernous boot. As a vehicle to load the family and belongings in when heading off for an extended caravanning holiday, there are few better. An all-new Mondeo will be with us inside the next year, but the current model remains one of the best all-round cars on the market, and should be worthy of serious consideration for any owner of a light to mid-weight caravan. Just make sure to opt for the bigger diesel engine!

CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Winter Storage

Laying up for Winter!

inter has an unerring ability to strip the gloss from a new camper or caravan – both inside and out. But a little TLC at the end of the season can go a long way to protect your investment, writes John Stanley. Many campers are obsessed with maintenance and are to be applauded for their unflagging attention to detail. You will come across them on campsites the length and breadth of Europe. You can spot them because they’re the ones (almost invariably male, it has to be admitted) you’ll find under their vehicle on the day they arrive. While spouse and children relax and play in the sun they’re trying to identify what’s causing the squeak that started an hour after they left home and which has been bugging them ever since. But for those of us lacking this obsessive gene the big temptation when we are laying up our camper or caravan for the winter is to simply “do the basics”. We are happy to do those essential things we know are important – such as draining the water tanks – but to leave many of the smaller, supposedly non-essential items until we take our vehicle out of storage next spring. After all, we may be dropping the vehicle off at its winter home at the end of our last expedition of the year. Chances are it’s in the evening and we’re tired. Maybe the kids need to be fed and put to bed and our mind has already moved on to other things, like what we have to do when we go back to work in the morning. Take a word of advice: delay your lay-up for a week, or longer if need be, and set aside time now to undertake your once a year inspection, spring clean and the

all-important repairs. If you don’t already have this mindset it will require a significant change. But the

benefi ts are potentially immense immense, both benefits in terms of your mental well being and your finances. To start with, it means that when you take little “Betsy” or “Lulu” out of storage next spring you’ll know that she’s in perfect working order. You’ll only need to put back bedding and such like, refill the various tanks, re-check the tyre pressures and be on your way. Even more reassuringly, it means that throughout the long winter you’ll know those things that should be clean and dry are just that and those things that should be lubricated are, so nothing is seizing up or quietly deteriorating on you. You will know that surfaces that should have a protective finish on them do and that as far as is humanly possible you have prevented mildew or rust getting a finger hold. Water and sunlight are the two biggest enemies of the campervan and caravan owner. Left to their own devices both will wreak havoc with any vehicle in a surprisingly short time. Water comes in a surprising variety of shapes and sizes – from large beads of rain to seeping condensation to invisible

36 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

moisture in the air air. All of them can do damage, if let. Damp air will penetrate everything, destroy fabrics, nurture mildew and can create particularly unpleasant stale odours, which you may never be able to get rid of completely. Mix water with salt, even just salty air on the breeze, and you have the perfect recipe for rust. It can be defeated, however, with a little knowledge and a lot of care. Sunlight is almost as bad and the combined effects of ultraviolet rays and heat can quickly cause irreversible damage. Ultra Voilet rays will leach the colour out of pretty well anything, paintwork as well as fabrics. Too much exposure, furthermore will not only cause premature ageing and cracking of your own skin, it can do the same to a wide range of materials, especially plastics and vinyls, leather seat coverings, seats and carpets. Here are some practical approaches to keeping your little Betsy happy over the winter...

>>>>>>>>>

Winter Storage INSIDE Fully drain all water tanks and connecting pipes, blowing through the pipes to clear the water from any u-bends or kinks. Inserting a little wad of cotton wool in external outlets will prevent any spiders or other insects choosing a new home – but be sure to remove them next spring! Fully empty all tanks associated with the toilet. Draining the water achieves two things; it makes sure there is no water left in the pipes which could go stale and harbour microbial growth and it prevents possible damage to the pipes if temperatures go below freezing. Remove all leisure batteries and store them somewhere indoors where they will not be exposed to very cold temperatures. These are an expensive item and if you want to get a full life from them keep them fully charged. If you do have to leave them in the vehicle and you cannot top them up during the winter with an electrical hook then it’s worth considering buying a small solar trickle charger to do the job. At the very least, they should be disconnected. Gas cylinders should also be removed and stored in a safe place over winter. Again, if you’ve nowhere to store them they should, at least, be disconnected. Clean the interior. Start by taking out all foodstuffs, including condiments, herbs and spices etc. If they are going to be put back next season you can put them in airtight plastic boxes and store them at home. Do the same in the bathroom, removing any cosmetics, shampoo bottles, ends of soap, sponges etc. You may think it excessive and unnecessary, but my instinct is to remove pretty well everything which isn’t fixed in place, including guidebooks, maps and the like, as well as all bedding. The basic principle is simple: anything which would or could

Text: John Stanley

suffer in a damp environment is best stored in a dry place at home. Now it’s time to thoroughly vacuum and clean all the surfaces inside, using the right cleaners and polishes for every surface. In many cases, that’s soap and water. Don’t forget the windows and things like the rubber window seals. There are appropriate products for everything and the right treatment, on door seals for instances, not only keeps them looking smart but also prolongs their lives quite considerably. Finally, consider what’s practical for you in terms of keeping the interior dry and sweet. Dehumidifier balls, small electric fan heaters on timers, if you have a hook up supply, are all options worth considering. Remember to leave doors ajar, especially the door of the fridge, so that air can circulate throughout the home. OUTSIDE Next, turn your attention to the outside. The vehicle should be washed thoroughly. Mud splatters on the underside, in particular, may keep water trapped against bodywork and will certainly prevent you from detecting the first signs of any rust spots developing. One helpful tip: you can clean the underside with a lawn sprinkler, repositioning it a number of times to make sure that every area is covered. If you have the time, energy and enthusiasm, now is an excellent time to reapply a wax coating to the paintwork. It provides an extra layer of protection and helps to keep it looking spanking new. You know the ones, you see them on sites quite regularly. Twenty years old and looking like they’ve just come out of the showroom. Yours can be like that, without just a little effort and a lot of love. Many people cover their vehicle over winter with a large tarpaulin. The

concensus amongst experienced owners seems to be strongly against this, as it prevents air circulating. Much better is to build a wooden or scaffold frame over which you can drape the covering, so you get the protection of the fabric covering without the potential downside of trapping damp. Better still, find somewhere, which offers covered storage. Picking an appropriate storage facility is a whole other challenge. It’s never cheap and your preferred option may well come at the top end of the range. Expect to pay from around €12 per week for uncovered storage up to a not unreasonable €600 a year for storage in a secure, dehumidified covered storage facility. Propping the vehicle on axle stands is a good idea, especially if storing on a hard surface out of doors, as it will help to keep your tyres in good shape and create an additional difficulty for any would-be thief. Tyres should be left at the correct pressures. Oiling and greasing any moving parts, such as hinges, will help to protect them over the winter. It is not recommended that you regularly start your engine just for the purposes of keeping things moving or charging the battery. Short start ups like this can just create problems. If you do feel the need to start the engine then run it for at least 30 minutes each time you do to prevent corrosion in the exhaust system and other engine damage. Much better, if you are doing it for battery purposes, is to buy a solar trickle charger to do the same job. One final word of caution. Do not consider this thorough cleaning and maintenance as a replacement for regular habitation inspection and service. As we all know, defects in a gas fridge or heater can have fatal results. So always ensure that the right checks are undertaken when they should be by an appropriately trained and qualified mechanic.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Motorhoming 2

Ideal for Two – Swift’s Bolero 630PR to get comfortable, with a full range of adjustments to suit drivers of all shapes and sizes. The wood effect finish on the dash takes away from the Ducato’s commercial underpinnings, giving an appearance of quality in line with the rest of the interior. Both driver and passenger seats swivel around easily, however one issue I would have with this particular layout is that they are effectively removed from the living area at the back of the vehicle. Fine if you want to get away from your travelling companion, but not so good from a social point of view when visitors come around.

wift is an instantly recognizable name in the mobile leisure world, its motorhomes, caravans and mobile homes well respected for their designs and build qualities. Of course, the Swift Group encompasses much more than just Swift itself these days, familiar brands such as Bessacarr, Autocruise and Escape motorhomes, and Sprite and Sterling caravans helping to make the group the market leader for both caravans and motorhomes in the UK.

The door pillar can obstruct the driver's side rear view mirror.

The Swift motorhome family consists of three model designations, starting with Sundance, while at the upper end of the market is the flagship Kon-tiki range. In between sits the Bolero family, a range of low-profile coachbuilts consisting of two 2-berth and five 4-berth models built on a Fiat Ducato with an Al-Ko chassis and with 130bhp (2-berth) and 150bhp (4-berth) diesel engines. The Swift motorhome franchise for Ireland is now being managed by Donaghey Motorhomes in Letterkenny, County Donegal, and it was there I headed to review one of the 2-berth models on offer, the Bolero 630PR. This features a rear living room layout converting into twin singles, or a double bed night layout, whereas its sister 2-berther the 630EW has the washroom and shower located at the rear. Both these models have a maximum technical permissible laden mass (MTPLM) meaning they can be driven on a car B licence, whereas the 4-berth models in the Bolero range will require a C licence to drive. Driving First impressions are of a sleek and stylish motorhome with the low profile roof providing an aerodynamic silhouette that should help keep fuel costs down. A large sunroof allows plenty of light into the cabin and living area. Sit into the driver’s seat, and it doesn’t take long

38 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Visibility from the driving seat is good, however the driver’s side door mirror can be slightly obscured by the middle pillar in the door, meaning you have to lean forwards or backwards to see properly. The Bolero has a width of 2.35 metres meaning the motorhome body is only marginally wider than the van chassis, making it easy to drive on narrower roads. With a length of 7.04 metres, the 630PR isn’t particularly long, however there is still a reasonably substantial overhang at the back, which is where the 2-way rear view camera comes in handy. The 130 bhp 2.3 litre Multijet diesel engine is adequate rather than nippy, but certainly feels up to the task of taking the Bolero up whatever mountain passes its owners feel inclined to tackle. Interior First impressions on entering the 630PR is how spacious it is. Too often even large motorhomes can feel cramped, but the opposite is the case here, the Bolero seemingly larger on the inside than the outside dimensions would indicate. Certainly two people should be able to easily move around without feeling on top of each other. Directly opposite the door is the bathroom, and to the right of this is a generously sized 190 litre three way Thetford SE5 fridge freezer. Next to that

Motorhoming 2

is a wardrobe that also accommodates a stowaway table. On the offside of the vehicle, adjacent to the door is the kitchen area, featuring a sink unit to the right of a Thetford cooker with three gas rings and one electric, and below them, separate grille and oven units. Overhead is a microwave oven with plenty of storage spaces either side. Also noteworthy is the Alde dual fuel radiator central heating and water heating with a new touch-control system and 1kW, 2kW and 3kW settings. The bathroom area is quite spacious with the sink on the left hand side, the swivel cassette toilet straight ahead, and shower with slide around plastic door on the right. Those of restricted mobility will appreciate the sit down area in the shower, while again there are plenty of storage areas dotted around for bathroom utensils.

The rear third of the vehicle is taken up by the living area / sleeping quarters with two generously sized benches running parallel along the two sides that could comfortably seat three apiece. Side and rear windows keep the area light and airy. A chest of drawers sits at the end, with the top shelf sliding out to give an extended table. Overhead there are a total of six cupboards. The two bench seats rise up on struts to provide further storage, as well as concealing the slide out lats to convert the living area into a bed. On the subject of storage, while the Bolero is well fitted out with cupboards for kitchen and living belongings, it doesn’t have a garage to store larger or awkward shaped objects. There is an external access door, but it only opens into the relatively small nearside under-bench storage area at the rear of the vehicle. With a fairly generous payload of 310 kg, some Bolero owners may find space rather than weight to be the limiting factor when loading up.

Text & Photos: Cathal Doyle - cathal@fleet.ie

Minor issues aside, I liked the Bolero 630PR. If you consider that any motorhome or caravan layout is going to have to compromise somewhere, then Swift has done a pretty good job to create a spacious, comfortable and well equipped living quarters for two people within a compact sized motorhome. The Swift Bolero 630PR retails for €79,675 in the Republic of Ireland and £51,995 in Northern Ireland and the UK. Thanks to Donaghey Motorhomes Letterkenny for supplying the Swift Bolero 630PR. Donaghey Motorhomes is the exclusive dealer for Swift in Ireland. See - www.donagheymotorhomes.ie or call on +353 (0)74 912 9235

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Waterways 3

Waterways Ireland Education Programme launched

inisters Ruairi Quinn T.D. and Jimmy Deenihan T.D. launched the Waterways Ireland Education Programme at the Waterways Ireland Visitor Centre, in the Grand Canal Basin, Ringsend, Dublin. The Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn TD, highlighted the role of education in delivering culturally and socially aware young people, “Education plays a central role in delivering culturally and socially aware young people. The Waterways Ireland Education Programme provides an excellent way for students to engage in the fascinating history of our Waterways and to encourage them to use this wonderful resource. “

staff and through the use of online and offline resources, Waterways Ireland has presented a programme capable of fulfilling a range of curriculum needs in Ireland both North and South. This holistic approach will effectively engage the education sector and reinforce the progress made by Waterways Ireland since 1999 in establishing the Inland Waterways as a major asset to the people young and old.” Margaret Buckley, Scoil Bhride, Tullamore, Ruairi Quinn, T.D. Minister for Education and Skills, Herbert Farrell, St Matthews National School, Ballymahon, Co Longford, Manus Tiernan, Education Officer, Waterways Ireland, Jimmy Deenihan, T.D. Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, John Martin Chief Executive, Waterways Ireland.

The Waterways Ireland Education Programme has been developed by Waterways Ireland’s Marketing & Communications Division. Education within the organisation is a key strategy in engaging young people in understanding the waterways; and fulfilling the remit to promote increased use of the waterways. The Programme will be rolled out to schools along the waterway corridor initially and will then be spread further afield. The programme has online resources available through www.waterwaysireland.org and an off-line teachers resource pack.

Minister Jimmy Deenihan T.D complimented Waterways Ireland for their foresight in linking this rich literary, historical, environment of our inland waterways to our young people through this education programme. He stated “Targeting the future leaders currently in 5th and 6th class, is an ideal way of ensuring a deep personal engagement by every one of our young people in protecting and using the waterways fruitfully in the future.” John Martin, Waterways Ireland Chief Executive, thanked Éanna Rowe, Waterways Ireland Head of Marketing & Communications and his team for the development of the Education Progamme, a key strand in the corporate strategy for the organisation. “Capturing history through the Waterways Ireland archive, and the expertise and knowledge of current

Pictured (L-R) Eanna Rowe Head of Marketing & Communications Waterways Ireland, John Martin Chief Executive Waterways Ireland, Ruairi Quinn TD, Minister for Education and Skills, Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht

IRISH WATER SAFETY – Seventy years saving lives • 36 Lives Saved in Dramatic NearDrowning Rescues Irish Water Safety to honour remarkable rescuers

wenty-six rescuers from twentytwo dramatic near-death incidents received recognition at Irish Water Safety’s National Awards Ceremony at City Hall recently. Thirtysix lives were saved through the brave actions of these rescuers.

Mr John Perry TD, Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation presented the “SEIKO Just in Time Rescue Award” to these rescuers in appreciation for saving so many lives. “Tragically an average of 140 drownings occur in Ireland every year,” commented Minister Perry, “and although that’s 140 too many, the figure would be even higher but for the dramatic efforts of these individuals who saved others

40 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

from drowning and the ongoing work of volunteers teaching swimming and rescue skills.” “Last year, the 128 drownings in Ireland were lower than the annual average, reason enough to be confident that the work of Irish Water Safety Volunteers and partners in the public and private sector is having the desired outcome – more people enjoying our wonderful aquatic facilities more safely. That said

Waterways 3

Don’t Miss the Boat!

• LateBoat.com promises ‘best deals’ for last minute European Boating holidays

oating cruise holidays in Europe have, until now, been unaffordable for many. The launch of www. lateboat.com is about to change this. A website specifically for those seeking canal boating holidays - a great, and now an affordable, way to explore Europe. From beginners to experts, riverboats are easy to navigate, require no license and have no mooring restrictions, so it’s a great way to achieve that intimate cultural experience whilst enjoying a calm and tranquil countryside. From vineyards to local cuisine, there really is no better way than cruising gently through them aboard your private luxuriously appointed cruiser.

“LateSail has received enormous support since our launch and really carved a niche in the yachting industry for clients looking to find the best offers in a simple to use central source and avoid them having to make an endless round of phone calls to track down the best deals. It was the logical progression for us to apply the same simple rules that have

made LateSail such a success to the inland waterways, which offer a wealth of fascinating destinations and a great variety of brilliantly equipped boats, which are available to all, whether or not you have any prior boating experience,” said Dan Lockyer, LateSail and LateBoat CEO.

Now LateBoat clients will be able to choose from numerous discounted cruises across Europe, including France, Belgium, Ireland, Germany and the United Kingdom.

complacency is not an option”, he added. “I appeal to all adults to make themselves more aware of the dangers in, on and around water”, continued Minister Perry. “It only takes seconds for tragedy to strike and this can so easily be avoided if people take responsibility for their own safety by learning about the hazards. I ask that people encourage friends and family to read Irish Water Safety’s guidelines at www.iws. ie so that they don’t become a drowning statistic.” Service Awards were also presented, recognising 795 years of personal service of 43 Irish Water Safety volunteers from around the country for teaching swimming, rescue and water survival skills.

Text: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Park Review 1

Dromquinna Manor Caravan and Camping Park Address: Kenmare, County Kerry. Tel: 064 6642888 Email: admin@dromquinnamanor.com Web: www.dromquinnamanor.com

Another jewel in the Ring of Kerry.

sign ‘Work in Progress’ would be appropriate at the entrance to Dromquinna Manor, the new camping, RV (recreational vehicle) and holiday resort on the Sneem side of Kenmare Bay. Located on a once large estate, five kilometres from the Kerry tourist hub, the establishment purchased by John Brennan (of the Park Hotel & RTE TV’s At Your Service fame) and his wife Gwynne is currently being transformed into to their dream venue for weddings, short breaks, entertainment and cuisine. Presently, Dromquinna has three separate businesses up and running - the Manor House which hosts weddings and corporate events, the caravan/campervan and yurts park (luxury camping) and the beside Boathouse Bistro. Since our first visit to the site in the autumn of 2011, much has changed with significant reconstruction done on existing buildings with some new builds. At the entrance there is a ‘Slow’ sign erected to protect the hedgehogs - which have become the

42 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

official mascot for the venue. Today there are 12 gravel based hard stands, each with EV and water connections that are surrounded by a high wall providing good shelter. The gravel base doesn’t make for smooth cycling though! Alongside is the Comfort Zone is where to find the kitchen, laundry and BBQ area. Toilets and showers are combined and there are a number of family units, which are a good idea. The chemical toilet outlay is also nearby. According to site manager Patrick, ongoing work includes providing a service area for caravan/campervans to dispose of grey water etc. Would like to see a shelf for clothes/wash gear in the shower cubicles, as suggested to Patrick, himself an avid campervanner. The children really enjoyed the playground, which was a magnet to meet other campervanners and ‘yurters’ of the same ilk and making new friends. Pitch stays are charged at a flat rate of €30 per night and with no extra charges is a big plus factor. Football and volleyball can be played on-site and there is free WiFi throughout.

Park Review 1 While there we went on out ‘Seafari’ which offers scenic and informative wildlife cruises on Kenmare Bay starting from the Pier in Kenmare town. Guests at Dromquinna can be conveniently picked up at the jetty pavilion. The ten mile trip takes about two hours and costs €20 for adults and €12.50 for each child. Family discounts apply. Skipper Ray Ross entertains along the set route informing those onboard of the various wildlife and fauna along the shore and on the islands dotted along the beautiful bay. Local history is thrown in for good measure. Ray even sings to attract the attention of the seals and their puppies as the boat pulls along their resting area. “Bird watching for the majestic white-tailed sea eagles is a constant occupation around here for the locals and tourists,” he said. Land beside Dromquinna Manor, once part of the original estate, houses Dromquinna Stables & Stud where horses and ponies are available for beginners and experienced riders over mountain, sea and woodland treks. Every morning the stable-hands call in the equines from the fields and follow slowly in single file back to the stables. Mentioning woodlands, there is a nice Cliff Walk at the Manor that brings one eastwards along the sheltered seashore. Alas, the narrow trail comes to an abrupt end but Patrick said that a bridge is to be built to bring walkers across to the little wooded island. With some furniture and fittings this area could provide a tranquil solace for residents. Our tranquillity was somewhat disturbed on the final night of our stay as a wedding

Text: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie

ceremony held on a most beautiful setting on the lawn in front of the Manor House (in brilliant sunshine, I might add) turned a bit noisy with the music and revelry carrying on into the early hours. Conscious of this happening, John is considering curtailing the campervan/caravan park opening times from Monday to Thursday as wedding bookings continue to increase. Further resources are to be put in place at the Boathouse Bistro as customer demand from the site and beyond has stretched staff numbers to the limit as the delays experienced between courses are unacceptable. That said, the Spanish cuisine presented was delicious. Kenmare nestles at the foot of the Cork and Kerry mountains and is one of Ireland’s best-kept traditional towns that bustles with restaurants, bars, craft shops and provides a host of services and activities. That region also boasts some of Irelands most scenic drives, as the Ring of Kerry and Ring Beara are to be experienced on

both sides of Kenmare Bay. An annual Walking Festival takes place at Easter and during the summer while Kenmare Golf Course offers 18 challenging holes. So much done and more to do at Dromquinna. Plans for the future is to increase the number of pitches to the left of the site in a forested area on the way down to the Bay. Although we did not avail of the yurts experience, our colleague Kathy Mangan did and her review of same is featured in this edition. The award winning travel writer from the United States (with Kerry & Mayo roots) has visited a number of ‘Glamping’ sites around the country, which is proving to be extremely popular with Irish holidaymakers. Dromquinna Manor has a lot to offer visitors with more to come. Watch this space!

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Travel Abroad

Exploring Germany’s Caravan & Motorhome Industry ... and other attractions CWG Press Familiarisation Tour of Germany – June 2012

The Porta Nigra dates from 200AD

n 2010 the Caravan Writer’s Guild (CWG), organised a press familiarisation tour of Ireland. It was a huge success and since then a large number of articles have appeared in the caravan press extolling the virtues of Ireland as a touring destination. In June 2012 the Guild embarked on a similar tour of Germany. We were hosted by the German National Tourist Board and some of the major players in the caravan industry who have operations in Germany. We started our journey at Camping Friebad, a pleasant riverside campsite in Echternacherbrück just inside the German border with Luxembourg. It was a bank holiday weekend when we arrived and the place was bustling with life. A few miles away lay the ancient city of Trier, which dates back to 16BC and is the oldest city in Germany. It stands on the banks of the river Moselle, right in the heart of the wine growing region. The Romans had a huge settlement in Trier and significant parts of it survive to this day. Perhaps the most impressive is the Porta Nigra (Latin for black gate) which formed part of the old city wall defences. In 1986 it became a World Heritage Site, along with other Roman monuments in Trier and the surrounding area. Much of the history of Trier is captured in its excellent archaeological museum. It has a unique sound and light show about the life and love of Trier in Roman times. The museum’s old artefacts are brought back to life by a computer controlled display using light projectors and actors’ voices. Foreign visitors are given headsets and can hear the show in their own language. It really is the most amazing experience and well worth seeing. Those who fancy a tipple could do worse than to visit the Viticulture Centre in the lovely town of Bernkastel- Kues , 40 kilometres down river from Trier. For the

modest fee of just €15 per head you can visit the cellars and taste any of the 130 wines laid down there. Apparently no one’s managed to taste them all yet! The main part of our tour was in Bavaria where we stayed at Lech Camping, near Augsburg. It’s a family run campsite of the highest standard and is complete with an onsite shop and restaurant. The owners speak excellent English. From there we travelled down the romantic road across the Danube and on to Nördlingen, one of only three remaining medieval walled towns in Germany. It’s a lovely place, sitting as it does, slap bang in the middle of a meteorite crater formed over 14 million years ago. Nördlingen’s stone buildings contain millions of tiny diamonds, created when the meteorite struck. You can

Good sized, well spaced pitches at Lech camping

44 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

walk the 2.7km right round the walls and several of our party did. No stay in this part of Germany would be complete without a visit to the fairytale castle at Neuschwanstein. It was built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria, commencing in 1869. He died in mysterious circumstances in 1886, shortly before the castle was finished, but he did manage to live in it briefly first. It’s now one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, so it pays to get there early before it gets too busy. The next destination was the Wendelstein Mountain in the Bavarian Alps. It’s 1838 metres high but is served both by a funicular railway and a cable car, which go to within 100 metres of the summit. There you will find Germany’s highest church and the welcoming Wendelstein House where you

Travel Abroad Neuschwanstein caste – it’s what fairytales are made of

The Erwin Hymer museum is well worth a visit

can have a hearty meal. When we arrived the place was shrouded in mist but this soon cleared to reveal incredible views. Having travelled up by the railway we opted to come down by cable car. As you might expect it was much quicker. Then it was on to a malt whisky distillery. Believe it or not there is one in Bavaria but it’s relatively new, commencing production in 1999. It was founded by a schnapps distiller who was taken with whisky during a visit to Scotland some years earlier. The whisky produced is single malt, aged in new American oak barrels. It’s quite smooth but does not really compare to a good Irish whiskey or Scotch whisky. AL-KO Kober Bavaria is home to several important names in the caravan industry. AL-KO Kober, famous for its chassis and running gear, started here as long ago as 1931. The company is still family owned and is run by four grandsons of the founder. Although the factories are not open to the public there is a new service centre in Koetz which is. There you can get your chassis and running gear serviced (or even upgraded) and visit a large shop selling AL-KO products, including those from their extensive gardening range. Truma Truma, suppliers of everything from heating and air conditioning systems through gas regulators to water heaters and caravan movers, was founded in Munich in 1949. It started as an English language school but frequent power cuts persuaded them to make gas lights and the rest, as they say, is history. The founder, Philipp Kreis, named his company after the then US president, Harry S Truman, who Kreis greatly admired for the role he played in rebuilding Germany’s industry after the World War II.

Text & Photos: Terry Owen

Hymer Hymer began making small caravans in its workshop in Bad Waldsee in 1956 after a family friend, Erich Bachem, asked them to make him one. He liked it so much he asked them to make more and he marketed them under the name ERIBA, using the initials from his name. The first motorhome was built in 1961 but it was not a success and it took Hymer 10 years before it built another. Despite simply being a caravan on a truck body it was a modest success and heralded the start of the mass production the Hymer reisemobil (motorhome) and the coining of the name ‘Hymermobil’. Erwin Hymer, who founded the company, is still alive and has built a large museum opposite the factory in Bad Waldsee. There you can see a considerable selection of caravans and motorhomes constructed over the last 60 years or so. As far as I know it’s the only one of its type in the world and is well worth a visit.

On leaving Bavaria we headed for Campingplatz am Rhein in Rüdesheim. It’s a well run campsite, right next to the Rhine and within easy walking distance of the town. Rüdesheim itself is a popular holiday destination with many excellent restaurants and opportunities for music and dancing. A cruise boat took us 55km down river to Braubach where we visited Marksburg castle, the only castle on the Rhine which has never been destroyed. We returned by train, arriving just in time for our finale meal. This took place at a restaurant in the famous Drosselgasse, a small historic alleyway bristling with wine bars and restaurants and right in the centre of the town. As we sipped the excellent local wine we reflected on what had been a most amazing two weeks. For most people, Germany is not the first country that comes to mind for a Continental Caravan/Campervan/ Motorhome holiday but for many of us, it now will be. Terry Owen is a chartered engineer of many years standing who took early retirement to indulge in his twin passions of caravanning and writing, writing mainly on technical subjects.

Marksburg castle has been lived in for over 700 years

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Festival

Westport Music Festival - A Child's View

y parents and I went to the Westport Festival of Music in Mayo during the summer. On Saturday morning 29 June, we arrived at Westport House, the venue for the event, in our campervan. We noticed that there were a lot of campervans there and we were doubtful about if we could get a plug-in point. It seemed that we missed the last electric connection as we had to park on the grass in the Caravan Park which was a bit disappointing but luckily we found a place where there was a plug-in and we settled there.

Later, that evening we decided to go into the town which was surprisingly only a 5 minute walk! The people at Westport House made a new path which leads up to the center of the town. We sat down in a nice Chinese restaurant and the food was tasty. My Mam, Dad and I went back to the Festival and took in a bit of The Horslips and Ray Davies. We went to bed a bit earlier than usual to have a good sleep for the next day. On Sunday morning we woke up at a reasonable time and went for a walk around the Campsite, wishing we brought

Holland, who was amazing! I thought he was really wonderful and put on a fantastic show with a lovely orchestra and many guests. Jools was playing the piano and singing, which he is excellent at, and he made a great end to the Festival. Having a campervan at Festivals is really lovely because if the weather is wet and you are all mucky you can rely coming back to the home comforts of heating, plenty of hot water, comfortable beds and your own toilet. With the help of my campervan, I had a magnificent experience at the Westport Festival. A piece of advice I would give to people who might be planning to go to Westport next time is that I would have a day or two before the Festival to go to the brilliant Adventure Park at Westport House.

We went into the Festival Arena at the front of the Big House soon after. The first act we saw was The Lost Brothers at the Acoustic Stage and they were very good, and sang beautifully together. After that we decided to go on the Swan Padoloes on the Lake to the rear of the House for free, and it was marvelous! We were on it for an hour and a half. My Dad and I did all the peddling, which was hard work. My Mam had the best of it because she was able to just sit back and enjoy the ride, watching us getting puffed out! After that we went to the Main Stage and enjoyed The Walls and The Dubliners. We saw a few different musicians and groups after that at the different stages.

our bikes. We went into the Festival Arena at 3 oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; clock and made a plan, that we would try to get right at the front of the stage and stay there until Imelda May was over. It was a good few hours but it was worth it and of course we got to see the other acts before then such as; Hothouse Flowers, The Chieftains and Alison Moyet who were all very good. Imelda May was my favorite. She was world-class! She is very likable and a very talented singer, I love all her songs. After Imelda May we went over to Stage Two to see Macy Gray who was splendid and so was her partner, and Seasick Steve who was a great Country singer. We went back to the Main Stage, close to the front and watched Jools

46 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

Text: Mary Clare O'Donnell - Aged 12

Park Review 2

o go to Dugort and stay at Lavelle’s Golden Strand Caravan & Camping Park on Achill Island. One of Ireland’s most majestic beaches awaits as the Atlantic Ocean sweeps into the North-East coastline of Ireland’s largest island and deposits layers of fine golden sand for all ages to appreciate and enjoy. In fact, it is one of five ‘Blue Flag’ beaches within 57 square miles. The facility is run diligently by Joe Lavelle, which contains around 50 mobile homes and 35 campervan pitches, dates back to the 1950s to when his uncle provided holiday makers with the basic requirements. Since taking over as Site Manager in recent years, Joe has invested time and money in connecting to the main Sewage System and installing a playground. There are sandbanks around the site for the kids to play with also. Joe, who was born and reared only a stonesthrow away from the location and was in the news recently on the debacle that has arose in relation to ‘wild campers’ cheekily using his washroom facilities free-of-charge. In his estimation, over 150 wild campers have parked nearby since April, many of which took this liberty on his site.

interested in local history will be entralled by visiting the Deserted Village, the Nagle Community Settlement and Henrich Boll’s Cottage in Dooagh, where the Nobel Prize winner’s home is now a santuary for artists and literacy folk.

Lavelle's Golden Strand Caravan and Camping Park

Further out from Achill Sound, at the entrance to the island, is the award winning Cycle Greenway, which runs from Achill through to Mulranny and on to Newport and Westport. Surprisingly, this is not a seamless route, as some landowners on the old Westport to Achill railway line do not allow access through their land along the way. This means that cyclists (many inexperienced) have to depart the Greenway and head out to the Main Road and rejoin later on. Not a very safe manoeuvre for cyclist or motorist. As mentioned times before, Achill Island boasts some of the most beautiful scenic drives in Europe, as voted by members of the Automobile Association. Joe’s attention to care for the customer is welcomed and appreciated by all visitors, especially the paying ones! His lively personality and local knowledge is infectious will ensure long-term loyalty. Well worth a visit and stay.

Address: Golden Strand, Dugort, Achill County Mayo. Tel: +353 (0) 86 231 4596 Web: www.lavellescaravanpark.com

Here one will find the usual services available toilets/ showers/kitchen/wash-up area/ tv room and a rebuilt disabled toilet/shower unit. The mile-long golden beach which is only a few hundred metres away does cause some problems for Joe as wet sand can cake-up and block the shower units if users does not rinse off outside beforehand as advised. Outside the gate a vast array of interesting things to do and see from surfing, hillwalking, kiteboarding and of course, sea swimming. Those Text: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Tow Car Awards

Jetta on cloud 9 -

wins successive Towcar Awards

ne o off th the he pr prou proudest oud ou destt exhibits de exh xhib hib ibiit it s its at the recent Caravan & Motorhome Show at the NEC Birmingham on the Volkswagen stand was the Jetta 2.0TDI DSG which had just been awarded The Caravan Club Towcar of the Year 2013 for the second year in a row! In selecting the Jetta as class best and overall winner of the 30th running of the awards programme, the judging panel applauded its design, its practicality as a caravanning family car and its great performance when towing in a variety of situations. It was the first time in the long history of this competition that the same car secured the accolade twice in consecutive years. In recognition of today’s motoring issues, the categorisation of entrants was decided on the vehicle’s exhaust emissions. In the Club's on-going quest to provide its one million members (and caravanners in general) with as much information as possible, an acceleration test – carried out by two judges with specialised test equipment – and a reversing test, were added to the usual evaluation of the towcar’s dynamic abilities and ergonomic qualities. These included a mid-range 30-60mph acceleration assessment,

high-speed towing circuits, emergency high h-sspeed d ttow owiin ow ing ci ing circ ircui uit its ts, em ts, emer erge er genc ge ncyy nc braking, ride and handling evaluations and hill-stop and restart tests. Held, as in previous years, at the Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire, the Competition attracted 23 entrants. The vehicles were divided into four classes plus two All-Wheel Drive categories. Class wins in the Competition went to the Volkswagen CC GT 2.0-litre TDI 140 PS; Volkswagen Jetta 2.0TDI DSG; Škoda Yeti SE; Mercedes-Benz ML350 BlueTEC and Chevrolet Captiva 2.2 LT 5DR. Special guest Sir Ranulph Fiennes attended the testing regime at Millbrook and then presented the Class awards to representatives from the winning manufacturers at the Awards ceremony. Grenville Chamberlain, Caravan Club Chairman, commented, “The Club extends its congratulations to all the winners in this Competition. Special plaudits go to the terrific Volkswagen Jetta, it really is a great vehicle and it proved itself time and time again with the judges during testing.” Bailey of Bristol once again supplied the caravans for the tests loaded to 85% of the car’s kerbweight with AL-KO representatives ensuring that the workings were in order and safe. Manufacturers

48 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

invited were we re iinv nviit nv ited d to to submit sub su bmit bmi bm it for for testing any cars that were new launches in the period 1st August 2011 to 30th September 2012, or existing models that had been substantially modified (e.g. new engine, different transmission etc). The Caravan Club also invites the previous year’s overall winner to submit its car for re-testing – in this instance, the Volkswagen Jetta 2.0TDI DSG. The cars entered were carefully scrutineered to make sure they conformed to the exact specification declared on the entry documentation. Track tests, using eight expert drivers, assessed each car’s towing ability as well as acceleration, braking and the ability to cope with demanding hill starts. Another team of two ‘caravanability’ judges assessed each entrant’s usability in terms of everyday caravanning. Would it carry a set of awning poles, for instance, and do you have to get on your hands and knees to connect the caravan electrics? Noseweights were set at the car manufacturer’s recommended limit, 5-7% of the caravan’s running weight or the maximum stipulated weight for the caravan coupling head, whichever was lowest.

Tow Car Awards The Caravan Club Towcar of the Year 2013 -

About the winning vehicles… Overall Caravan Club Towcar of the Year 2013: VOLKSWAGEN JETTA SPORT 2.0 TDI DSG It’s all good! As would be expected from a two-time winner of The Caravan Club’s Towcar of the Year title there’s very little to find fault with. Great dynamics, totally stable, good brakes, sharp and accurate steering, accomplished handling – nice ride. A consistently high set of marks from all driving judges.

Class Winner:

Volkswagen CC GT 2.0-litre TDI 140 PS BMT

Škoda Yeti SE

A good performer, it has all the ergonomic attributes of the regular Passat, along with excellent standards of finish. It was stable up to well beyond the legal UK towing speeds and its sportily set-up suspension aided good handling, with compliant ride.

This 2.0-litre diesel version has the grunt needed for towing. A strong performance, high speed stability, cornering prowess, handling and ride. It retained stability until well over 70mph, it’s a light-hearted package with serious ability.

Class Winner:

Mercedes-Benz ML350 BlueTEC

Chevrolet Captiva 2.2 LT 5DR

Performed faultlessly. Its strong performance made easy work of the hills, with stops/starts just as easily dismissed. Spacious interior with expected quality feel, comfortable seating and generally good ergonomics.

Text: Jarlath Sweeney - jarlath@fleet.ie

The Chevrolet Captiva tackled the hill route without any effort, pulling well up steep inclines. This SUV is a practical, useful and robust car for family activities, making it the perfect choice for caravanners.

www.caravancruise.ie | WINTER 2012

Book Reviews

Motorhomes – A First Time Buyer’s Guide in association with the RAC by Trevor Fry. Published by Veloce – www.veloce.co.uk £9.99 ISBN 978-1-845844-49-3

hen buying your first camper van or motorhome, some research and test trials are a must. Reading a book like this – Motorhomes – A First Time Buyers Guide is a big help too. Packed with good advice from Trevor Fry an experienced motorhome user, this 80 page A5 size booklet is for anyone making that decision and ultimate purchase. It explains the different types available on the market bringing the reader right up to date and also informing on buying a new or used unit from a dealer or privately. Large colour photographs help to explain about the various layouts inside and compares a basic van conversion to the range-topping A-Class fully integrated leisure vehicle.

Build your own Dream Camper Van for less then £1000 – That’s including the cost of the van! By Matthew & Stuart Ball. Published by Veloce www.veloce.co.uk £19.99 ISBN 978-1-845845-24-7

e can all dream about owning and living in the latest and greatest shiny new motorhomes, but what if finances don’t extend to the not inconsiderable amounts of money required to fulfill these dreams? One option is to go down the second hand route, but another alternative is the do-it-yourself method by building your own dream home on wheels. Of course unless you plan very carefully

One of the first questions to be answered by a potential buyer of a motorhome is how do you intend to use it? The number of people going on the trip will indicate the size required but obviously it will have to fit within your budget. That’s all dealt with in chapter two with the following chapters comprehensive in explaining the size dimensions from small to medium, medium to large to extra large motorhomes or the latter know as RV’s – Recreational Vehicles as popular in North America. Extras and Awnings information, featured also covering add-on accessories such as TV dishes, cycle packs, ladders and racks etc. A detailed checklist completes the picture for the buyer, which is a handy and quick way to decide which are the main features important to your requirements. In our case, we hired out a few different types of motorhomes with varying layouts before making the final decision. We are happy with our Luton type of coachwork with double lounge and with the washroom / toilet placed in the middle.

Before making that ultimate decision, take a read of this book too! Jarlath Sweeney

indeed, you can easily find costs escalating rapidly, to the extent that you spend as much on your homebuild that would easily have bought a very respectable motorhome or campervan. Which is where ‘Build your own Camper Van for less than £1000’ could be just the read before embarking on that long planned for DIY motorhome project. The clue’s in the title, as they say, this is a blow by blow account by two brothers, Matthew and Stuart Ball, who, frustrated by the costs of buying a purpose built motorhome, embarked on the rather challenging project of building their own with an incredibly tight budget. That £1,000 included the cost of the base vehicle, a 2000 reg LDV Convoy van, and donor caravan, a 27 year old Elddis Vogue. The book is well laid out, easy to read, and with plenty of pictures and diagrams outlining the step-by-step processes the brothers followed during the project. While not making it look a doddle, they clearly explain the complexities involved,

50 CARAVAN CRUISE IRELAND | WINTER 2012

most of which are achievable for anyone with some DIY ability and basic tools. As a read in itself this is an interesting book, and anyone seriously thinking about taking on such a project would be well advised to check it out. Cathal Doyle

Review 4

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GREAT SAVINGS ON FAMILY MOTORHOMES As a family owned and run business we greatly appreciate our customers both old and new. We have become the largest motorhome dealer in Ireland, due to great aftersales service and great prices. We have over 100 motorhomes in stock at any time. We are the only Hymer fully accredited franchise in Ireland. We are agents for Swift, also franchise holders for Dethleffs, TEC and Carado. We use motorhomes ourselves every weekend as we love the lifestyle. Come talk to the experts. Fully trained staff in our 12 bay workshop. All accessories available.

Visit our online parts shop at www.partsformotorhomes.com

OPENING HOURS:

• Mon-Fri 8.30 am to 5.30pm • Sat 10am to 5pm • Open most bank holidays

www.irishmotorhomes.com

Call: 00353 (0) 749 11 11 11 Email: info@irishmotorhomes.com

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