We must have heard that 9 out of 10 times when we told friends and family that we had bought a motorhome. At 34, with a wife and two young children (one and three years old) and so many people saying it ? I started to wonder if they were right.

I will never forgot the excitement I felt as a 10 year old child when we hired a motorhome for the first time in 1983. We hired it from a local garage. It was a creamy coloured Ford Dormobile with an overcab bed. The feeling of utter excitement I felt as a 10 year old getting into it for the first time and setting off from Somerset to Scotland, still comes back to me every single time I get into our motorhome even now – some 24 years later.

It’s difficult to say what it is. It feels like the start of an adventure. You load your stuff in, bedding, food, snacks, clothes, games, books, dog etc and off you go – nothing can stop you – you can go where you want when you want. The feeling of freedom cannot be matched. You have everything with you that you need and feel that you could go anywhere, stop anywhere, sleep anywhere – do anything!

The journey is part of the adventure. Sat up high you feel like you are someone special – you see things you can’t from a car, you feel a different person sat up there – you start to have a holiday from yourself. You stop when you feel like it, have a bite to eat, a sit down, a read, a snooze or a ‘wee stop’ – only a few of these you can do in a car without making a mess!

So are motorhomes just for old folk? Well no, I don’t think so. Ok, so having two young children in the space of most peoples study at home may not seem like a fun day out for everyone – however, what about all the good things that having your home with you brings. What about being able cook a meal at any time when people get hungry. Make a cup of tea when you feel like it (ok so maybe I am old before my time!). But, we can park at the beach and always have a change of clothes nearby for small children falling in the sea, more towels, more toys… home is just across from the beach in the car park.

Then there are those times when nothing comes close to having a home on wheels. Would a hotel be able to give you a room five yards from the waters edge of Lake Windemere, parked under the dappled shade of some trees, with your very own piece of lake side to watch the sunset by… drinking a glass of wine or an ice cold bottle of beer. The next morning, you pull the curtains to see the sunrise over the lake, and settle down with a cup of coffee and egg, bacon and toast – whilst you lazily watch the lake gradually come to life with fisherman arriving and boats taking to the lake. The children are happy, you are happy – happy holidays.

Ok, so there are some downsides. There’s no getting away from the fact that motorhome cassette toilets are always going to smell like motorhome toilets! Campsite toilet blocks can sometimes be an adventure all of their own too, especially with young children.

Sometimes on crowded campsites you feel like you are lined up like cattle in a cowshed all pointing in the same direction, everyone sitting in their own little white aluminium box slowly getting colder and damper as the night draws in. But then the little orange glows start to appear in the caravans and motorhome windows and a quiet descends on the campsite as people start to settle down for the evening. Curtains shut, TVs go on, games get played, books get read, puzzles get pieced together, couples talk to each other, children play and families eat, sleep and laugh together. Family memories that will stay with you for the rest of your life get made in these white boxes on wheels and that’s why motorhomes are not just for old folk.

Paul Chorley is a motorhome enthusiast and Managing Director of www.searchMOTORHOME.com a website for finding used motorhomes for sale on the internet.

Jenny reminisces over a year's travelling, and plans a big trip to Morocco for 2008

It’s now a year since we bought The Lady and thus an opportune time to review the past year. We’ve travelled around seven countries, in comfort, covering 10975km (6860 miles) and used 1100 litres (245 gallons) of diesel in the process, at an average consumption of 10kms/litre or, in old money, a healthy 28mpg.

Cost wise we’ve spent about £3000, divided almost equally between insurance and servicing costs, diesel fuel, ferries and ‘white van man’ damage. For the amount of enjoyment we have had, and the variety of interesting places we have seen, that represents, to this novice motorhomer’s way of thinking, excellent value.

Despite one or two hair raising moments, not once has The Lady proved to be anything other than totally reliable and we look forward to more adventures in 2008.

Talking of the coming year I was supposed to be doing the homework on Morocco but Christmas sped up on me virtually unnoticed. I am aware that there are websites of motorhomers who’ve travelled extensively through Morocco so I really must get on and find them.

Some of my friends seem nervous at the idea of us travelling throughout Morocco in the Lady and are counselling me against it. However, Morocco apparently has less crime than one experiences in most of Europe so I am determined to keep an open mind and get on with the planning.

If there is anyone reading this who has been, I’d welcome an email to motor caravan@ipcmedia.com

Our motor homer- at-large, Jenny gets the van ready for Morocco

Well, our faithful Lady has had her service and MOT. All ok except that the tester advised the shock absorbers were showing the first signs of a problem.
The jovial mechanic said ‘It will last ‘til the next MOT.’ However, he wasn’t the one contemplating a prolonged trip through Moroccan deserts in the coming months so as he wouldn’t be there to deal with the problem if his confidence was sorely misplaced, they were, as a precaution, replaced.

A new tyre had also been fitted but when Michael went to collect her he noticed that a van tyre, rated at 60 psi, and not an 80 psi motor home tyre, had been used so collection was delayed until the correct tyre had been sourced and fitted. The tyre incident set me wondering - how many other garages out there automatically think that vans and motor homes use the same type of tyres?

I don’t know about the UK but, having lived in France, I do know that they are very hot on all tyres having to be of the same specification and model. A while ago I was stopped by the French police who were ‘just checking’. I never knew what for, but when, a few months later, I got a serious telling off from a French garage who, whilst mending a puncture, drew attention to my mixed make tyres I realised how close I had come to a fixed penalty fine – so now I try not to give them a chance to get difficult - better safe than sorry!

About Jenny

After retiring Jenny and her partner Michael bought a Hymer Tramp, lovingly referred to as The Lady, at the end of 2006. Since then they have spent a significant amount of time travelling around Europe, with plans to do even more, and go further afield, in the future.

The couple also own a house in France with access to a nearby barn where they can leave their motorhome should they need to pop back to the UK during any extended periods of touring France.

Jenny will be sending us regular blogs about life on the road and her experiences as a motorhomer so keep track of her adventures and thoughts here.

Motor Caravan's blogger is getting ready for Christmas

As our motor home is due her full service and MOT we’ve had her parked on our drive for the past couple of weeks. This doesn’t endear us to our neighbours so, once that is done, she’ll be tucked up in storage until the end of February as we have other travel commitments that have led to the putting back of our much anticipated trip to Morocco. The security alarm seems to be taking undue toll on the battery so I bought one of those solar panel car battery chargers from Maplin, as we’ve used one before very successfully, but, always a but, we overlooked the need for the vehicle, in the U.K. winter, to be facing directly into the sun, and not as it is at the moment, partly shaded by the house. So flat battery was the result – it’s not that old, so will be tested thoroughly as part of the service.

I’ve tried out my Diablo toasted sandwich maker that works on a gas ring, which I bought at the NEC and it’s perfect, just as the stall holder said. Ten years ago I gave my first one to Oxfam thinking I’d never need it - hey ho, doesn’t life change - will now tidy it away in the van together with the rather handy “smalls dryer” I found in Lakeland! Michael hasn’t tested his hob top roasting pan yet, with a ring one fills with water to stop all smoke. Again, most impressive at the NEC - will have to report later on that.


About Jenny
After retiring Jenny and her partner Michael bought a Hymer Tramp, lovingly referred to as The Lady, at the end of 2006. Since then they have spent a significant amount of time travelling around Europe, with plans to do even more, and go further afield, in the future. The couple also own a house in France with access to a nearby barn where they can leave their motorhome should they need to pop back to the UK during any extended periods of touring France. Jenny will be sending us regular blogs about life on the road and her experiences as a motorhomer so keep track of her adventures and thoughts here.

Catch up with the latest blog instalment from our motorhomer-at-large Jenny Jones

Having long planned to take our Hymer to the International Caravan & Motorhome show at the NEC a last minute family commitment meant a switch to the car and a hotel for our two day trip from London to Birmingham. We spent two days looking around the show (we could have spent more but Michael had an urgent appointment in Paris he couldn't miss, something about a rather important rugby match). I bought the two-day ticket online through the Caravan Club, which worked out as excellent value as I am a member.

I thought the show was noticeably better than last year, mainly because there were a wider range of accessory stands so at well as casting our envious eyes over the new motorhomes we also managed to pick up some missing essentials, handy as there is no dealer near us to buy these things.

We also met John Wickersham at the Motor Caravan stand and we had a marvellous chat and put the motorhome world to rights. That man really does know his stuff.

As much as I love our 6.2m fixed bed Hymer, I still (being of a certain age) dream of having an island bed. So we set ourselves the task of looking at just about every model. We soon discovered, however, that for us to find an island bed model comfortable for us it would need to be about 7.5m long. Still, I suppose Michael could just about get this into a supermarket car park ? this being my criterion for perfect mobility ? so the sifting through the brochures shall continue in earnest!

About Jenny

After retiring Jenny and her partner Michael bought a Hymer Tramp, lovingly referred to as The Lady, at the end of 2006. Since then they have spent a significant amount of time travelling around Europe, with plans to do even more, and go further afield, in the future.

The couple also own a house in France with access to a nearby barn where they can leave their motorhome should they need to pop back to the UK during any extended periods of touring France.

Jenny will be sending us regular blogs about life on the road and her experiences as a motorhomer so keep track of her adventures and thoughts here