All year rounder or is it hibernation for you?
Earlier on in our vanning days we kept the van on the go all year round. Not quite as much in recent years and then Covid put paid to many plans. We often went away for the New Year, usually with friends but having done that for several years we're tending to be home birds through the colder months. We try to get down to Cornwall in winter though, as we like a mooch around some of the big gardens, they can be quite beautiful all year round.
So are you an all year rounder or a hibernator?! (If that's the right word...
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For us, winter is the time to enjoy our own area once the crowds have gone so, no, we don’t go away.
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All year round for us Brue. We don’t go away just as much over the winter but like 10 days away in October then try and get in a couple of weekends a month throughout the winter we did spend the period between Christmas and new year over in Edinburgh a few times which was nice may do that again this year if possible. We do like away in winter sites and places of interest are generally quieter and cheaper. So long as the weather is ok for towing then we will go
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Brue, subject to ongoing covid and other regulations, we will continue to be 'away' from home as much as we have been...
12 weeks in Spain from mid Jan, 8 weeks in France (or italy or..).for late summer or early autumn and as much cruising or foreign hols as possible in between.
christmas with full family as ever, new year with pals (before Spain) and a break or two in uk with gkids when possible.
time actually at home...not much. Even this year, once touring was opened up we have done stops in 12 counties.
whilst i agree some areas are nice in winter and its a relatively warm part of the uk where we live, we both hate the wind and rain we seem ti get plenty of here.
we like to follow the sun and different culture/lifestyles
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All year if possible for us ,we are home today ,then off begining of October ,until mid Noveber then off mid Dec though new year ,then the cycle hopfully will continue ,as we are now booked until end of Sep 2022 with about a week at home every couple of months .thats the plan
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When we were both working and confined to school holidays, our touring year usually started at February half term and lasted through to November just after the October half term. Although the van then went into storeage we definitely didn't and used cottages. We've had some fabulous winter holidays in the lakes and Yorkshire, nothing like a bright frosty winter day in the UK!
One of the reasons we finally decided to leave touring with the van in tow was that we started going further away overseas in February and October and, with our static available 11 months of the year we weren't using it enough to justify the cost of insurance, servicing and storeage.
Now, at least in normal times we are down here in Cornwall for 80 nights or so and combine that with cottage stays, 4 in each of the past couple of years - but who knows what's in store for 2022 - already 2 overseas trips and 1 cottage booked!
Hibernation is definitely not on our agenda!
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Brue
I think our jury is out on that at the moment. We have a week booked this month but when I have tentatively looked at places to go in October and November they all seem booked up. In 2019 we went to Bladon Chains in December to visit the Palace which was nice. (no longer an option) Previously we have been to Chatsworth in December. I don't know whether we are just getting old but I think all the upset of COVID has diminished our enthusiasm for all year round touring. Perhaps that enthusiasm will return, difficult to tell?
David
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Bfeore all this we are all year really and have probably done every month down the years. Certainly November through March are on sites that are open and of course have HS. I like all seasons really but especially nice being toasty warm when it's freezing outside.
Actually I've never been out in the snow but might happen now.
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We are all year rounders, always have been. Done snow plenty of times Corners😁 We don’t tend to travel as far, but the A1 is a good travel corridor for us, so we sometimes head up North, done some good Xmas Craft Markets in Hexham, we spend a lot of time on North York Moors, Dales, and Ferry Meadows is a good Winter Site, some decent all weather cycling. We like to explore in the Winter, especially Churches and Abbeys. Bolton Abbey Club Site was one of our favourite destinations in Winter, but it shuts early now. We don’t like Bridlington, so that’s out, but have some good Winter bolt holes not far from home. We might book a cottage and go further afield. We have done Cornwall in February a few times. Weather forecasts are much better nowadays, and so long as you are well prepared, it can be great fun. OH’s birthday is in December, we had a great week up at the Fox and Rabbit CL a couple of Winters ago, pre Covid. Castleton used to be really nice, but it’s just too busy nowadays.
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"Actually I've never been out in the snow but might happen now."
That reminded me of our long ago tenting days - Easter at Gisburn in Lancashire. Walked back from the pub in pitch black (but dry) and woke up the following morning to 6 inches (would be 15 cm these days
) of the white stuff! Didn't think I'd had that much to drink the night before! 
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I remember Easter in the early 1970s being in the Bluebird at Treyarnon Bay and the snow arrived. Being young then, we decided to stick it out despite having no heating (no EHU in those days). We bought a paraffin heater and shivered our way through. Madness!
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All year round for us. We generally do 5 or 6 trips a year of up to 10 weeks at a time, and prior to Covid the number of nights away each year, for the last 18 yrs of so, was around 260. Even before I retired we would be away for all the major holiday periods, including the winter one, with the occasional weekends in between. We are currently away till sometime in mid November, and still have our Xmas/New Year trip to plan and book. Have been on numerous sites in the snow, both CLs and club sites. Love getting out into the country on clear frosty days with snow on the ground.
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Short, cold, grey and frequently damp days do little to inspire so we generally conclude sometime in November and restart around early March. If we get a nice bright day we will sometimes do a 'day out' in the van during the three months hibernation. A bit like hibernating bears really. It also gives me a bit of time to do stuff at home that's on the "I must get around to.." list.
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All year round, and that started even when we had a tent and were camped at Wray Castle, Lake District, one Easter in the 80's, when we woke up to a lot of snow one morning. It was magic, eerily still and quiet, we did have a blanket with us, as well as the sleeping bags, and weren't cold. Since then, we've had motorhomes and caravans, been in Germany one December for the Xmas markets, at minus 12 for about a fortnight; no problem. The heating in the vans has always been good, and we've never been cold, in fact, we both think there's something really cosy about being nice and warm inside, when it's freezing outside.
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Our first ever stay out in our MH was a cold snowy one. We stopped at Durham Grange, it was -10c that first night. We were cosy and warm, but I was a tad worried about the trailer tent next door🥶 We had a good few days up to Hexham for the Xmas Craft Market, that was a snowy day! OH has towed in snow as well, we used to visit Castleton each December with caravan. Nice to be on a Club Site with all the vans lit up😁
We have a CL booked for October, nothing after that yet, but we usually go up to Pickering area for OHs birthday.
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Questions like this always make me smile. I usually hibernate from July to October. I hate summer. I hate heat. I'm terrified of wasps and nettles. Summer is more of a survival game than anything else. This year though, I have been as brave as possible and have kept going through the summer, mainly because we've spent my best time of year for the last two years, locked down.
This winter... we're planning to get away as much as possible and visit some UK places we haven't been before. I bought a scratch-off map last week and I've scratched off all the places (counties) we've been to and it shows that we are creatures of habit. We tend to go to the same places all the time. So this year is the winter of new places!
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Would never go away over Christmas, Christmas is for families
Stop when clocks go back ,start late April early may0 -
Did not say am a Christmas fan,Christmas is what you make it
I am a family fan, we just love to have family, children, friends around at that time .We even have one couple who are carvanners come down ,and stay a few days
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There were a few factors affecting our decision David. Over the Winter of 2008 I had stopped my regular gym visits whilst not away as my arthritis in neck, shoulder and spine flared up. I was planning to undertake big change in our toilet and bathroom and also install a plinth and firewall for the location of a new oil tank. In February 2008 I was in constant pain and had been through the Winter and Fliss was saying "you'll have to get a man in'. I was protesting but secretly thought that would be the case. In the late April I had a relief as the pain subsided and I spent August doing the work. I had for many years had a party for around 15 guests in December and August but after August 2008 I realised that I could not stand and work in the kitchen for two days in preparation. Also over Winter I saw less of Fliss as I hate TV. Both solved by going away for a couple of weeks up to New year.
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