Your first campervan trip.

Plan a small first campervan trip

Our first campervan trip was too ambitious. We drove too far, arrived at dusk, could not find the water point and ate crisps for tea. It was still brilliant, but it did not need to be that hard.

So here is the plan we give friends now. Pick somewhere within about two hours of home. Book a proper campsite with electric hook-up, toilets and a chemical disposal point. Stay one or two nights. That way, if something does not work, you can fix it, go home or ring for help without ruining a week off.

Good first trips are usually coast or countryside with gentle roads. Our weekend campervan trips page has ideas. Save the single track roads, mountain passes and big multi-day routes for when you know how the van feels.

Know your van before you go

Most first trip stress comes from not knowing the van's numbers. Find them before you set off:

• Height, including anything on the roof: solar panels, a roof box, an aerial, a pop-top. Measure it yourself on flat ground rather than trusting the brochure.
• Width, including mirrors. Mirrors are what touch hedges and bollards.
• Length, which matters for parking bays and ferry bookings.
• Maximum weight (shown on the plate on the van, often in the door frame or under the bonnet) and roughly what you weigh fully loaded.

Write the height in feet and metres on a label by the steering wheel. UK signs often show both, but older ones may show only one. Our guide to height barriers explains where you will meet them, which is mostly car parks at the coast and in towns.

Then learn the habitation side at home. Fill the water tank, run the taps, light the hob, switch the heater on, try the toilet and make up the bed once on the drive. Anything you cannot work out at home will be harder in the dark.

Check your licence covers it

This catches people out. According to GOV.UK, if you passed your car test on or after 1 January 1997, category B lets you drive vehicles with a maximum authorised mass (MAM) of up to 3,500 kg (4,250 kg for some electric and hydrogen vehicles). Many large motorhomes weigh more than that. To drive a vehicle between 3,500 kg and 7,500 kg you need category C1.

GOV.UK's old licence categories page says licences from before 1997 generally included C1. Check your own entitlement through the DVLA's online service before hiring or buying anything heavy. We cover this properly in insurance and the DVLA.

Driving a bigger vehicle

A campervan is not a car, even a small one. A few things that helped us:

• Brake earlier. A loaded van with full water and gas takes longer to stop. Leave a bigger gap than you would in a car.
• Take bends slower. Vans are taller and lean more. Cupboards full of tins will tell you when you got it wrong.
• Use your mirrors more than you think. There is usually no view through the back. Set the mirrors so you can see the rear wheels and the road beside you.
• Swing wide on tight turns. The back wheels cut the corner. Watch for kerbs and posts on the inside.
• Get someone to guide you when reversing. Agree hand signals before you start. The rule in our van: if the guide disappears from the mirror, the driver stops.
• Watch the wind. High sided vehicles get pushed around on bridges and open coast roads.
• Check the sat nav. Car sat navs do not know your size and will cheerfully send you down a lane with grass in the middle. Look at the route on a map first.

Before the trip, spend half an hour in an empty car park practising reversing into a bay and doing a tight turn. It is the best half hour you will spend.

Roam's trip planning that knows your van's size is coming, and is built for exactly this problem. For now, look at the route yourself before relying on the sat nav.

Booking campsites

For the first trip, book. Turning up and hoping can work midweek out of season, but on a sunny bank holiday you will spend the evening driving around. When you book:

• Tell the site your van's length and whether you need hook-up.
• Ask about hard standing if it has been wet. Grass pitches and heavy vans do not always mix.
• Check arrival times. Many sites have a latest check-in time and a barrier after that.
• Look for a chemical disposal point (sometimes called an Elsan point) and a fresh water tap. Our water, waste and toilets guide explains why.
• Check the dog policy if your dog is coming.

Once you are comfortable, there are other ways to stay, from aires to wild camping where it is allowed. Read our guide to wild camping in the UK before trying it, as the rules vary across the four nations and you should check before you go.

Your first night

Arrive in daylight. Everything is easier when you can see the pitch, the tap and the toilet block.

1. Pick your spot and level up. Park with the bed end slightly higher if you cannot get it perfectly level. Use ramps if you have them.
2. Handbrake on, in gear, or in park for an automatic.
3. Plug in hook-up if you have it: van end first, then the post. Unplug in the reverse order.
4. Turn the gas on and check the hob lights.
5. Fill water if you need to.
6. Cook something simple. A one pan meal or something you have made before. Our one pan meals are designed for this.
7. Crack a roof vent. Even on cold nights, a little airflow keeps the condensation down.
8. Put the head torch by the bed. You will need it at 2am.

You will hear every noise the first night: the fridge clicking, rain on the roof, someone walking past. By the second night it becomes the best sleep you get all year.

After you get home

Write down three things that went wrong and three things you wish you had brought. Then empty the toilet and grey water, top up gas, and restock the van. Our campervan checklist is a good base to build your own from.

Questions

How far should I drive on my first campervan trip?

We would keep it under about two hours each way. It leaves time to set up in daylight and means you are not tired when you arrive.

Can I drive a motorhome on a normal car licence?

If you passed after 1 January 1997, GOV.UK says category B covers vehicles up to 3,500 kg MAM. Heavier motorhomes need C1. Check your own licence with the DVLA.

Do I need to book a campsite?

For a first trip, yes. It takes away the biggest unknown, which is where you will sleep, and gives you water, toilets and help on site.

What is the hardest part of driving a campervan?

For most people it is reversing and judging height and width. Practise reversing somewhere empty, and keep your measurements by the steering wheel.