Twin axle not allowed on sites in the UK & Europe
I currently have an old swift blakemere 5 berth towed by a discovery tdv6 but are contemplating the big upgrade to a much more modern van. The layout is essential as ideally we would like to have a fixed double bed and then separate bunk area but still keep
the lounge area.
This seems to dictate that a twin axle is the way forward but I am very concerned about stories of not being allowed on to CC sites and that it's even more difficult when touring in Europe to find a site that will accept you.
Does anyone have any experience of this as I really am at a loss.
the main reason for going for this upgrade is for longer distance touring holidays but it defeats the object if we can't get on to sites that we want to.
Any advice will be very welcome.
Comments
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Hi serenity, generally in the UK TAs are not a problem. Some sites will ask for the van length to assist with pitch size. On the continent there can be problems with smaller and municipal sites but there are also a lot of sites that will take TAs. Generally
booking in advance or if touring, telephoning ahead will provide you with a suitable pitch.I'm also going to move this thread to the Caravan and Motorhome Chat section to try and encourage further responses.
Dave
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Must admit, I was slightly concerned about this when we bought our Barcelona, last year but, certainly in the UK over the last year, those concerns have proved to be totally unfounded. Indeed, it has been my experience that TAs seem to be the favoured van
amongst many of us retired folk who want that extra space and things like separate freezer, larger washroom, inboard tank etc. If you've worked hard all your life and want that bit of extra luxury and can afford it - then why not! When going to a new site,
I always ask if a TA is a problem - but mainly from an access point of view. No one, so far, has been the slightest bit concerned - indeed some have been surprised that I have even asked!0 -
There are some sites in France where twin axles are not permitted. Sometimes this is because they want to deter 'travellers' but more often because access to pitches is tight. Sites in France were set up years ago to accommodate the tiny vans you see on some French sites and there just isn't room to get a twin around some of the tight access roads. Usually they are signposted, and you can find thousands of sites where a twin could be accepted. You can find sites which accept twix axles on the Eurocampings website (click for link). You can use the same search for all the other countries in Europe (Advanced search link).
However there is an Adria which might suit you, on a single axle. It's still a VERRRRYYYY long van, but gets around the twin axles problem. It's the Adria Adora Rhine 612 (click for link) and the layout has been around for some time (perhaps with a different name as we thought of buying one a few years ago). It's good value, too, compared to some of the British vans with a similar layout.
We have an Adria and it is now ten years old, but still looks like new inside.
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We have been touring extensively in UK and Europe since 2008 with a twin axle (Sterling Searcher) and never been turned away from a site. We have left 2 sites voluntarily as one wanted to charge extra (France) and the other (Switzerland) would not let
us use a regular grass pitch but insisted we go on the MH area, where there was no room for the awning or car. Most odd!!On both occasions we found much nicer sites nearby.
We use mainly ACSI card sites in low season, in the book it tells you if a site is suitable for longer vans. There is now also a symbol for "twin axles accepted", but the lack of this symbol does not mean that a twin axle will be refused.
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I was asked several times in Ireland if my van was TA when calling to book - as it isn't I didn't have a problem but they would have turned me down if it had been. Also asked when trying to book Brora (I think) as they only had one space left for a shorter
van. So reasonable booking ahead might be a plan?0 -
Hi serenity normally you will have no problem,unless you want to go to CC site at Troutbeck and you book through the club.If your van is bigger than 8.00m then hard luck! We have a Elddis Crusader at 8.013m registered with the club and that stopped us going.Plenty
of twin axle vans just under this figure so you should be ok.Steve
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One or two club sites have a length limit but you will find that in the site details but generally you should be safe in this country. One or two club sites can be very tight for reversing in so a motor mover would be advisable. Commercial sites should be
OK but check their booking conditions first.You will find details of sites with length limits if you book through the club but again access may be tight so again a motor mover might be needed.
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Indeed. It has been the people who are using it. One cannot be confident they are owners.
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Have toured UK and 14 countries in Europe for the last 10 years with our Elddis Crusader Storm and never been turned away, I always email ahead 2/3 days before to check plus site entrance and approach on campsite we have never used before and never a problem.
The problems is Travellers have such size and longer vans. Especially particular in Holland.0 -
Sometimes there are good reasons for the restriction. A couple of years ago we picked out a municipal site next to the Rhone. Nothing in the book about length, but on checking street view saw a sign limiting length to 5.8m. Our van was 6.47m and vans you could see on site were clearly longer then 6 metres. I emailed the site with our dimensions and they replied we would be OK as long as we had a single axel. On arrival, site roads and position of other vans made access very tight, and manovering ours onto a pitch was difficult, a large double axel would have probably been impossible.
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There are some sites that are happy to accept twin axles in the off season but not in the high season. This is usually because there is less room to manoeuvre because the site is fuller. Twin axles are also more inclined, according to some site owners,
to cut up the grass in tight situations.David
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Strange this attitude towards twin axle Caravans in some places and yet our 3 axle motorhome doesnt get a 2nd look I!!!
You cannot get a load of tarmac in your motorhome so you are not the target of the restrictions.
Write your comments here...Not really sure what is meant by the 'tarmac' however there are some very "short" 3 Axle MH around where as a twin axle caravan can be (and generally is) long indeed.
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We have only had a twin axle van for 14 months, no problem in the uk. When we go to france i email a few sites to make sure that will accept twin axle vans. There is a site in st pol de leon which doesnt accept twin axle vans but upon emailong the. Explaining
i have stayed there for the past few years. There were no problemsi have emailed a site this week about staying in september with camping cheques and they wanted 9euros on top of the camping cheque as i would need to go onto a luxury pitch, needles to say we wont be stating there
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We have only had a twin axle van for 14 months, no problem in the uk. When we go to france i email a few sites to make sure that will accept twin axle vans. There is a site in st pol de leon which doesnt accept twin axle vans but upon emailong the. Explaining
i have stayed there for the past few years. There were no problemsi have emailed a site this week about staying in september with camping cheques and they wanted 9euros on top of the camping cheque as i would need to go onto a luxury pitch, needles to say we wont be stating there
I am not suprised you are looking elsewhere €9 is very big price hike for a luxury pitch, sounds about twice the going rate maybe its the TA issue again.
They must be rich enough without our money as we would not pay over the top for any pitch on any site. Now if they wanted to chage a couple of euros extra per night id happily pay that but 9 euros...... not a chance
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I think there is sufficient variety of style and sizes of pitches in France to be able to find suitable pitches, but personally, I would book ahead to be on the safe side.
My knowledge of Italy and Germany is much more limited (I'm sure there will be someone along with more experience here than me), but I sense the pitches here are generally smaller, so suitable pitches may need a bit more searching out.
David
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I think there is sufficient variety of style and sizes of pitches in France to be able to find suitable pitches, but personally, I would book ahead to be on the safe side.
My knowledge of Italy and Germany is much more limited (I'm sure there will be someone along with more experience here than me), but I sense the pitches here are generally smaller, so suitable pitches may need a bit more searching out.
David
We never book as we use camping checks but we always email the sites we fancy to ensure they will take the outfit, so far after contacting over 15 stes in the past 12 months for last year and for this September not one has said no! and only one has tried to rob me with a 9 euro surcharge
Kev
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We have been touring with our twin axles since 2008, I was also concerned about the stories. Only once have I been refused, this was at a Municipal site in France. Like others here I mostly use ACSI CC and email ahead to check, but I have found some French
sites do not answer, but if you turn up, accept you. Also some French sites have the "no twin axles" sign outside but will accept you if you go into reception and ask, it is there as a deterant. They want to check you out! I have had no issues in Spain, Holland,
Germany, Italy, Austria, Croatia or Slovenia. More of an issue is the size of the pitches and the access to these, and this happens more in Italy and Spain, but we have no motor mover and have always managed to cope. Go for it, and plan ahead, it really is
not a problem.0
