First time caravan owners, did we make the right decision?

[@christianluff]

Wow, I didn’t expect the fluorescent yellow A3. That looks stunning. Breaking down the stereotypes of caravanners being ‘Mr Beige’ 👍🏼

[@KnightsOnTour]

Ha ha thank you. It’s off getting a new colour currently and def gets some looks when we take it with us to a site 😂

[@Julieandysaceventures]

We have caravanned for a number of years now, we did a 4 year stint with a motorhome and have recently gone back the caravan. Find it much easier for getting around once on site. We caravan all year round and especially love Christmas away. Your caravan looks absolutely lovely. Hope you and your family enjoy your travels. 🤗

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you, yes we are trying to get out more all year, off to Cornwall next week and really can’t wait. Thank you, it took the wife a long time to settle on the layout and van but couldn’t be happier. Looking forward to catching up on your videos.

[@lostweekendscaravan]

Hi. The EMUK Towing Mirrors are the best on the market we love ours. Towing in Europe is far less stressful than towing here in the UK. Enjoy your Caravan and make many happy memories. Thanks Phil🙂👍

[@KnightsOnTour]

Yes they made such a difference. Just in DisneyLand Paris currently and the toll roads have been a dream compared to home so looking forward to that part of the drive!

[@CaravanVlogger]

Welcome to KZbin! I think you did the right thing with the twin axle, the alternative is to get a single axle and then change it after a year or so, you've saved yourself some money by getting a twin axle first...We love travelling through the night, especially on longer journeys. I can confirm an aircon is essential if going to France!

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you! That is a very true point and I feel it has made towing a little more stable too. The night travelling is so much easier and quieter especially when the 4 year old is sleeping! Good to know about France and the Aircon, that was one the key selling points to the wife!

[@CaravanVlogger]

@@KnightsOnTour Haha, yes we did France at 35 degrees without aircon. No problem convincing the wife after that 🙂

[@MattHealey-mn7yu]

Great vid. Just upgraded to a twin axle Swift challenger exclusive. Towing with an X5 30d. Great tow car!! My previous tow car, a Disco, lasted 2 weeks before the engine blew up in tow.

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you. Yeah I find the X5 to handle everything that’s thrown at it so far. Big test later in the year with France but can’t see having any issues. Do like the Disco’s but yeah that’s what worries me! Thanks Martin

[@JackieCollins-gz2ko]

Brilliant video. Such useful information. Looking forward to your next video.😊

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you so much Martin

[@sheilahowse6880]

Been caravanning for 40 years you sound like you did your research and are comfortable with your outfit-enjoy making memories with your family we use our van all year too expensive to leave on the drive just think things through for winter trips only one piece of advise we never drink the water out of the aqua roll yes we sterilise it and flush the pipes but always have water in a bottle on board for drinking never had an upset stomach Enjoyed the vlog

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you. And yes we are with you too. Always have and get bottled water, the tea is never the same when using the aqua roll water and can’t deal with a rubbish cuppa. Yes we try to get out as much as possible all year but has been a little quieter this year.

[@MacSarah]

Great video and really insightful so hear your experience with different accessories and the process of choosing your caravan and tow car. You've got us thinking of air dryers now lol. Just subscribed too 👍 All the best Mac & Sarah

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you and really appreciate the follow! Taking many notes from your channel and looking forward to hearing about the new travels in the new van! Thanks Martin and Lu

[@HomefromHomewithLinRich]

Hi, just wanted to say hi and welcome to KZbin. What a great start and introduction. Looking forward to your next one! ~ Lin

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you. Appreciate the time to put a comment!

[@cdelotz]

Living the life, man! 💪🏼 Looking forward to watching your channel grow ❤

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you! Always great having the support from you guys!

[@happy2help1]

grow??? boring as

[@grahamv5380]

Great video we are also first time caravaners picked up our new Eriba in Nov 22. Like you we want to make life easy so got motor mover lock n level 4g internet router we have a Thule canopy which is great I believe we are in the same storage facility enjoy your adventures

[@KnightsOnTour]

Ah it’s a small world! Yes, making life easy is def the way to go…. Taking time I have found to be one of the biggest things too! Can will be on the drive for a night this week to get a few bits sorted before this weekend away.

[@Wolfyjinny]

I have been looking at getting an x5 7 seat as we are also a family of 6, we only have a 2 birth at the moment as it was handed down with the passing of my father and not used it due to size, so an upgrade is due on both our car and van, i will be following your blogs to see how the combo works for you and hopefully it will help us make a decision. Thank you for sharing with us.

[@KnightsOnTour]

Thank you for watching and subscribing. Always fun having to shop for a car and a van but so many considerations to take in. The year that we have had with the X5 has been good. Tows really well and took a drive to Paris at new years and was comfy for 5 of us. The 2 extra seats in the rear are not the biggest, I’d say up to about 10 years old would be ok.

[@Wolfyjinny]

@KnightsOnTour-tx4df Thank you for the reply, our youngest 2 are quite small for their age (15 and 16) after you saying about loading the car rather than the van I worried slightly because my wife is a 3 case a day gal 🤣 so I don't think the boot space in the x5 will cope on its own.

[@kazhilly]

As with so many things, I don’t believe in buying a cheap “starter”. When you buy a caravan, you get the caravan you know you want and that will last you for a long time. As long as you see Towing it as a lesson and gaining experience. Don’t be afraid to Learn something new on Every trip, and you will be fine.

[@martinhughes93]

Great video, I am a newbie caravaner this year as well..and in a Challenger X850. So you have great caravan choice :-} But from my limited experience of towing the the 850..it's down to confidence and the correct choice of equipment to make it easier..and you seem to be well sorted and knowledgable. Decent towing mirrors and a satnav that will help caravaners and planning the route. Also I had 4 motor movers fitted, that is probably the best money spent.

[@KnightsOnTour]

Great to see another X850 owner! Absolutely love ours! Yes the motor movers make the world of difference, we have a tight drive when we bring it home so wouldn’t have any chance of reversing it on. Found towing to just take my time and enjoy it, sort of enjoy the slower pace!

[@paulferguson-coughtrey3681]

Looking forward to getting our first caravan next year, so was interesting to listen to everything. Also thinking of an L shaped lounge as well, really liked the layout of the coachman. Have subscribed and will watch more. Thanks

[@paulferguson-coughtrey3681]

Sorry meant to say Swift, not Coachman. Looking at so many different males and models!!

[@KnightsOnTour]

@@paulferguson-coughtrey3681 there is so many options and names out there! But thank you for subscribing. Good luck with the search, the caravan show is a great starting point but again there are so many it can get overwhelming. I’m not too sure we would ever move away from the L shape now, just works so well with the space.

[@RBcymru]

Personally I prefer a Kia Sorento auto diesel for towing a twin axle Eldiss Avante 840 8 ft wide caravan and it has a 7 year warranty. BMW X5 owners have experienced many problems and expensive repair costs. Our Kia has had a new radiator, intercooler and engine all under warranty and at just under 7 years old drives like new. Engine failure was due to dealership messing up a service breaking the engine. Kia badge not for everyone especially badge snobs but my wallet is happy and it tows 1.8 tonnes effortlessly. I had a Hyundai I30N which impressed the badge snobs making a Golf GTI look very old and slow.

[@KnightsOnTour]

Heard good things of the Kia. And yes the I30N is a great car and does surprise a good few people. At the time the Kia wasn’t for us, but will be looking at the whole market again next year. I think you can be unlucky with any manufacturer but having that longer warranty period is a plus. Outside of that it is pot luck and have to factor in any potential repair costs going forward.

[@RBcymru]

Yes but you can't tow with a hybrid version which is crazy. You would have thought KIA would have thought about that. I also had an Audi S3 as couldn't stretch to an RS3 which I wanted. My S3 auto was nice but no way near as much fun to drive as my I30N. The Audi was silly quick but no soul. Hyundai needed coil overs and better tyres. @@KnightsOnTour

[@paulhilling6208]

We did the same thing start of 22 as an upgrade. Looking at this van or the newer 1. We have the sprite 4eb from new, but have since gained a baby and a dog. So the L shape and 8 foot wide is ideal will have to wait till 2025 though .

[@KnightsOnTour]

Yes it’s surprising how much more space it gives you. Going from 7.5ft to 8ft doesn’t sound much but again it’s surprising what that small bit of extra space gives. Good luck on the search for the new van…. Always find that part to be one of the most fun but stressful things to do

[@paulhilling6208]

@KnightsOnTour-tx4df when we go ours I had eyed up the x850 but didn't need it at the time. 4eb has been great to teach us caravaning. Added a few extra sockets etc.

[@pristinekleencleaning]

New sub here thoroughly enjoyed this mate and lovely setup 👌 I also threw myself into the deep and with a 24ft single axel lunar Venus 570 in 2023 and you soon learn haha 🤣

[@KnightsOnTour]

Ha ha thank you! and so true, it doesn't take long to pick things up and I'm sure I wont stop learning!

[@pristinekleencleaning]

@@KnightsOnTour definitely mate every time we go away I learn something new or end up having to buy something I didn’t realise I needed 🤣 itching to get back out in March miss it so much. Can’t wait to binge the rest of your videos later 👌 we’ve also got two young girls one 3 and one 6 so I’m sure your videos will be massively relatable for us

[@KnightsOnTour]

@@pristinekleencleaning yeah I know that feeling. I think we maybe getting away in Feb which could be a brave move! Ah I bet they love it at that age! It’s funny how much they pick up and learn but for us the best thing for us is watching Ro playing outside and making new friends.

[@pristinekleencleaning]

@@KnightsOnTour oh nice one I’ve always wondered what it’s like to go away in the colder months, maybe a video showing how you did it I.e stopping the water from freezing and stuff would be interesting to see ! Yeah us too the girls love making new friends , we always seem to attract the child that the parents don’t care about and the kid seems slightly Ferrell 😂 you almost wonder if they even know where their child is

[@royvanbergen4384]

Were does the kids sleep? Always wonder that when you dont have bunkbeds, when they sleep at the couch you cant sit inside yourselfe

[@KnightsOnTour]

So the youngest will use the l shape sofa when it pulls out to a bed. The step son when he comes will be on there too. Tbh it’s not often they are in bed early so tend to go to the main bed when they do, we have a TV in the rear so that’s not a problem. If they do go down early we just use the awning and sit out there so not really been an issue for us.

[@royvanbergen4384]

@@KnightsOnTour Oke nice, always wonder that. when in the early spring of autum the evenings can be cold we have a buerstner premio plus 510tk love it! But always look to the english caravans. Love them exept In the netherlands they dont sell with bunkbeds

[@KnightsOnTour]

@@royvanbergen4384 I never knew that! Yeah I do think when the smaller one is a little bigger I think fixed bunks could be a good option going forward. It’s ok now being the age he is. And by then the older step son prob won’t be coming as much.