Best Of
Re: Scotland to Spain and return costs.
Do those of you who keep such meticulous records do so from curiosity, or to inform future plans?
Both although the original motivation was to budget/ inform future plans, not necessarily confined to van trips. Without the aide of computers it is not any easy task and certainly before them any records kept were rather sketchy. As my finances have improved so the curiosity has become more prominant.
Does the result of record keeping influence holidays?
Not a lot, in this respect they are more a curiosity but there is little point in maintaining them if you didn't use them for whatever reason.
Would you cut short a trip / alter the final destination of a trip if money was running away and exceeding a budget?
This shouldn't happen if you have done your sums right, but the answer is no.
Would you make entirely different plans for the future if a trip had been wildly off the mark in terms of planned expenditure?
My plans are never the same, variety is the spice of life. Even if the destination is the same, the route there is always different and impacts costs..
peedee
peedee
Re: What are you all up to
Sorry to read of your DIL's injury TG, there seem to be a spate of broken/dislocated bones at the moment. Hope that it doesn't take too long before she has full use of her arm again.
Hope your are able to get away for few days between Xmas and the New Year, Francis. Pleased to read that you were able to get the van cleaned, keeping up the standard !!😊
Grand photos, tda, just the sort of places we like to visit. Just look to go there some time in the not too distant future.
Yet another day with too much rain, although we did have a dry period mid afternoon, so got some things into the van, and then a walk without getting wet. Just hope that the forecast is correct and we have a dry morning for setting off.
Re: Newbies
It’s more a case of where do you want to go. You give no clue as to your location but there will be a site waiting for you wherever choose.
Enjoy your van.
Re: Scotland to Spain and return costs.
We are similar to TG-as I mentioned I only started to look at the comparative costs during lockdown for something to do.
Similarly, we dont have a 'budget' ,and no we would not cut a holiday short unless it was circumstances beyond our control.
Its very much a case of a "change being as good as a rest" and travelling across the water provides that and for us a UK holiday would be no substitute as we do that as well anyway.
Re YT comments, its clearly very different for MH ers and our friends will be returning via Dieppe after we head for Santander for the return crossing, and using aires as they do so
However, even at the most pessimistic estimate, using the Santander route will be just £180 more-the ferry costs being just over double at £1176 compared to £564 for a car and van booked with a CV code.
Re: What are you all up to
I need to explain a bit more🤔 We are some 350 metres up the side of a mountain, with uninterrupted views across Caernarfon Bay, due West. So we can just see the Wicklow Mountains in the very very far distance. Apologies, it’s the elevation that’s giving us extensive views. Down at sea level wouldn’t be anything like as extensive. We are South enough for Anglesey not to be in the way.
Another very interesting day, another Castle. This time Dolbadarn just outside Llanberis. Interesting history, and the setting is truly spectacular. Nice walk to get to it. Then we dropped into one of those places that totally fills your day (if you enjoy industrial heritage), The National Slate Museum. I can just remember the Slate quarries working, as we used to visit an Uncle who lived in Blaenau Ffestiniog. This is the old Dinowic works, now preserved as a Museum, with the gouged out side of a mountain as it’s backdrop. We watched slate working crafts, blacksmithing, and got to look around the whole works, including some slate worker cottages preserved and brought from BF and displayed down the working periods. Very interesting. Free entry as well. (we left a donation).
Re: Scotland to Spain and return costs.
I can only answer for us. Up until last year we never did, we don't keep meticulous records just check the credit card for fuel and I added the site cost to my record of what sites we used.
While we were away last year there was a problem in France with getting fuel. As our return booking for home was from Calais we decided to look at other options (we could defer booking until the following year) we were in Spain at the time so looked at the Santander ferry costs, then it was St Malo and Caen. Once we factored in fuel costs, night halts and time it became obvious to us that a St Malo crossing would work out a good choice, both time wise and cost.
As to site costs. Purely for my own satisfaction against costs in the UK, given the same type of sites and timeframe.
This year I did it again out of curiosity as we are constantly being told that the cost of living has gone up dramatically and site prices have gone through the roof (well here in the UK)
To answer your questions. I think that now we have done the sums it gives us more information on which crossing we would use depending on where we are going at different times of the year. We are happy to take our time through France in good weather so the tunnel crossing suits but in winter not so much.
No we would not cut short our holiday or alter the final destination as we don't have a budget, it costs what it costs.
The same answer really on your last question, there is no planned expenditure.
The only time we change our very loose plans is if the weather has been unkind to us or if like earlier this year there was flooding and landslips. If we are not enjoying where we are we move but I wouldn't come home early just find a nicer place 
Re: Vloggers Experience of Metering
"There is no pleasure going away in winter in the van and being cold, just plain silly."
agree not for us, in our dotage, we like the comfort of home too much and with much shorter days you are limited as to what you can do and lots of areas have hunkered down for the winter so not a lot going on.
we used to many years ago when we lived in Scotland and we were foot loose and fancy free, on one occasion on the club site at Braemar, we could not open the door as the snow had weighted down the porch awning and was blocking the door, and on several occasions we had to leave the caravan in the farm yard at the bottom of the lane as the lane was full of snow or just too icey
Rufs
Re: Vloggers Experience of Metering
We do not heat the house overnight, never have, so in the van we step the Alde down to 13/14 degrees overnight, Spring and Autumn, with it coming on at 18degrees in the morning as, perversely, the biggest radiator in the van is the one alongside the bed!
First person up, usually me, turns it up to 20. If out all day it goes back down to 18, but never off completely.
We would be uncomfortable in the house with 16-18 overnight.
KjellNN