With over a million leisure vehicles in Britain alone, there is no doubting the excitement and adventure this form of travel promises.

With that in mind, this is the million-dollar question for aspiring campervan and motorhome owners: ‘Would I enjoy this way of independent travel?.’

While the allure of hitting the open road and exploring the treasures of the UK and beyond can appear a potent proposition, this lifestyle - and its accompanying highs and lows - is not right for everyone.

Experienced motorhomers - writer and broadcaster, Sharon, and photographer, Steve, who shared their jaw-dropping experiences in our newly launched column, help you to decide whether to take the plunge.

Read Sharon's first article The Magic Of Motorhoming: Advice, Adventure - And The Unexpected!

The Great Unknown: Appealing or Appaling?

The rise of UK based holidays, known as staycations, took off at an amazing pace after Covid with the appeal of being self-contained while travelling - and free from anxieties of contracting the virus at an airport or on a cruise with thousands of fellow passengers.

For us the pull of motorhoming remains as strong after six years and over 60,000 miles - despite a raft of harrowing experiences. It also entails balancing research and planning with the freedom and flexibility to stay put or move on.

Choosing the right mode of transport is critical. The booming sector offers an enormous range of motorhomes and campervans of all shapes and sizes, from the iconic VWs to self-modified vans, to ultra swish US style Winnebago’s to suit all budgets.

But before we talk about size - which really does matter - and money, let’s get to the nitty gritty.

Do you love The Great Outdoors?

For us and fellow travellers like us, a love of walking, hiking and cycling ticked a box to opt for a motorhome.

Another indicator to assess if this is your bag is whether you have ever tried and enjoyed caravanning. While restrictive as it requires avoiding narrow mountain roads and staying on major roads and campsites, it gives you a taste of the lifestyle. Naturally, towing a caravan does let you use the car for moving around while camped up on a site.

Even so, bear in mind it is still a quantum leap to swap towing a caravan with more room, facilities and storage - to a 2 or three berth motorhome or campervan – the latter where it can be a challenge to stand up in.

If you’re more of a city person, you may want to rethink. While there are free park-ups in cities, negotiating traffic and finding parking without height restrictions (this has been particularly challenging at home and abroad) coupled with sleepless nights from the incessant traffic, can be an issue.

We also tend to feel more vulnerable in cities, despite ramping up our security measures after being robbed in the middle of the night in Sitges, Spain, while asleep just eleven days into our first motorhome trip.

Key Questions For You

Along with loving being out in the elements and the joys of caravanning, these questions will help to determine the next steps:
1.What do you want from a campervan/motorhome – more travel opportunities, fun, independence, exploring new cultures?
2.What is your budget? Outside of the initial purchase investment, you will incur ongoing operation costs such as maintenance and servicing, MOT, road tax, fuel, campsite fees – and unexpected repairs. Among the latter we’ve had a passenger mirror almost obliterated by a maniacal Italian lorry driver hurtling along on B roads by the incessantly busy Lake Como
3. How many of you will be travelling?
4.Will you travel in the UK or venture abroad? (we’ll discuss Schengen restrictions in a future article)
5. How long will you travel for? – our longest trip has been 36 weeks
6.Who will be driving? If only one of you, this may limit your stops and itinerary to avoid exhaustion setting in
7.Will you be travelling with pets? Doing so entails special safety requirements and the costs of paperwork and pet passports if going abroad. Our travelholic golden retriever, Bracken, has now explored 17 countries with us – not all of which have been a smooth ride
8.Could you and your partner rub along for extended periods in a small space? Our closest friends are astounded that we’re still doing this after mega trips - some in atrocious weather with a muddy, wet and smelly golden retriever!

Rent Before You Buy

If you’re still unsure, why not rent a campervan or motorhome for a week or weekend. If you’re still on speaking terms after your taster trip, the future looks bright.

Rental costs will depend upon the size and model. As a rough guide, expect to pay up to £150 a day along with fuel and campsite costs. We’d highly recommend staying on a campsite as opposed to a free park up for your first adventure.

If you’re still apprehensive, there are organised trips where motorhomes go in convoy, and your camp sites are booked for you. Courses are also available in manoeuvring and running a motorhome and can be found on the web.

We hope these insights prove valuable. In future articles we’ll explore key areas including the type of vehicles available, security, travelling with pets - and where to stay.

In the meantime, you can also email us Sharon.cain@yorkshiretimes.co.uk - we’d be delighted to help with your queries.
Every time we set out, we leave bricks and mortar behind and our home, every night, is where we park it – whether it be in a car park, the countryside, in the mountains or by the sea. Adhering to the motorhomers’ code, we leave behind only our footprints.

The biggest adventure any of us can embark on is to live the life of our dreams – wherever they take us. We are constantly surprised by the wonders we see and the amazing people we meet.

We hope that whichever road you choose will reward you with happiness and fulfilment.