Table of contents for August 2023 in Caravan

"August is the border between summer and autumn; it is the most beautiful month I know"Tove Jansson SOPHIE BROMLEY-RICE CONTENT EDITOR Welcome to the August issue of Caravan magazine; I hope you have been able to get away on your summer holidays and enjoy some sun! If you have been away, why not tell us about your trip? You could feature in the magazine like our fantastic contributors below, just email us at caravan@warnersgroup.co.uk Excitement is also mounting for the new season of caravans that are now being launched and the new Bailey is one of the highlights (see page 72)! There are plenty of amazing new models that are yet to be revealed and we will feature those in the coming issues as well as in The Essential Guide…

Picturesque buildings and rugged windswept beaches are what tempted me to make the long journey from our Lancashire home to Suffolk. Arriving from the northwest, we pulled into the upmarket town of Bury St Edmunds that grew around a wealthy Benedictine monastery. Like many monasteries, the roof and exterior stones of Bury St Edmunds Abbey were removed after its dissolution and, today, romantic weathered remains trace the shape of the monastic buildings. Wandering around the park and ruins, we agreed this was a promising introduction to Suffolk. After visiting the light and airy interior of the cathedral, we circled the handsome building. In a peaceful green, facing further abbey ruins, we stumbled upon a striking statue of Edmund by renowned sculptor, Elisabeth Frink. Edmund was King of East Anglia, a…

Many of you will think of Dorset and instantly conjure an image of the dramatic landscape of Durdle Door, the magnificent limestone arch eroded by powerful waves and one of the county’s most iconic and photographed landscapes. This, and the stunning limestone scenery at the nearby pebbled beach of Lulworth Cove, make up just a small part of the South West Coast Path, which follows the entire length of the Jurassic Coast on its epic 630-mile journey from Minehead in Somerset to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Along with exploring the dramatic coastal path, fossil hunting on the beach is perhaps one of the most popular activities in these parts, and there are plenty of spots to go in search of relics of our prehistoric past. Or, for a dose of…

BUDGET PAPERLESS SUBSCRIPTION Just £9.99 annual direct debit with all of these benefits: ⬤ Access to the latest issue and over a decade of previous issues while subscribed ⬤ All pages are fully searchable so you can easily find answers to your caravan questions ⬤ Environmentally friendly SUBSCRIBE NOW caravan.ma/exdigi22 LESS THAN 3p PER DAY PREMIUM PAPERLESS SUBSCRIPTION £3.99 monthly recurring payment ⬤ Download and own the latest digital issue ⬤ Read it on any device ⬤ Exclusive extras including additional photo galleries, videos, live web feeds and hyperlinks SUBSCRIBE NOW caravan.ma/pocketmags PAPER SUBSCRIPTION £3.99 by monthly recurring payment, £10.99 by quarterly direct debit or 12 issues for £49.99 ⬤ SAVE UP TO £35 on rally pitches at Warners shows ⬤ SAVE UP TO £80 on day visitor entry to…

WORTH £250 EACH! Ideal for campsites with electric hook-up, thanks to its lightweight portability, simply plug in the Cadac E Braai barbecue and you’ll be ready to grill in just a few minutes. The cooking temperature can be pre-set thanks to an innovative auto-temperature control function and the digital LED accurately displays the cooking temperature via a sensitive probe that sits directly underneath the grill surface. The barbecue comes with a 38cm ceramic-coated barbecue grid and a removable pot stand for use with your own kettle and pans. A range of interchangeable cooking surfaces are available separately, including the Pizza Stone Pro 40 for easy stone-baked pizzas and breads. The electric 2.3kW heat coil is protected by a tempered glass ring, and the fat pan simply lifts out after use…

For some reason whenever I’m planning a trip away in the’van, in my imagination the weather will always be perfect. In every scenario the sun is shining, I will be feeling the warmth from that sun on my face and I won’t be needing waterproofs! I sometimes come back to reality with a bit of a bump, though. We’ve probably all been there at some point in our trips – when you climb that mountain you’ve been meaning to for ages and can’t see a thing when you get to the top; when you go for a leisurely bike ride and finish up completely drenched or have a destination in mind but the place is closed due to bad weather or, in some cases, recent storm damage. That’s life I…

CASTLERIGG HALL CARAVAN & CAMPING PARK Keswick, Cumbria CA12 4TE T 01768 774499 W castlerigg.co.uk OPEN 11 March – 31 October If you want to be within two miles of the bustling market town of Keswick, yet still be surrounded by the gorgeous Lakeland scenery, then Castlerigg Hall is the place to be. It’s just one-and-a-half miles to the town centre, set in an elevated position with panoramic views of Derwentwater and Bassenthwaite Lake, with a backdrop of the surrounding fells. The site offers hardstanding touring pitches set on mainly level terraces. Some pitches have lake views while others are set among trees and hedges. There are a choice of pitches – hook-up only, fully serviced and ones with a guaranteed lake view. Facilities on site include toilets, showers, a…

Back in 2011, Adria brought its first front-kitchen caravan to the UK. It grabbed attention for a few years – then disappeared. Perhaps the British market wasn’t ready for such a radically different layout. These early models – there were two layouts – were under the Astella range name. The presentday Astellas are built specifically for the continental seasonal siting market and don’t appear on the main UK market. Enter the new addition to Adria’s flagship tourer range, Alpina. In addition to its head-turning front kitchen, the Alpina Rio Grande makes a bold layout statement in terms of its lounge – that’s in the centre of the caravan. Sofas face each other; one L-shaped, the other very much like a conventional house sofa. When you turn the lounge into a…

Nothing says summer like a barbecue, whether you are sitting outside your caravan on the campsite or at home in the back garden, plotting your next getaway. For camping in the summertime, a portable barbecue is considered an essential piece of kit by some. But if it can’t fit into the caravan without taking up too much space, then we are not interested. The models we have looked at are a good mix of gas and charcoal barbecues, and the type you go for will come down to personal preference. There are pros and cons for each in terms of flavour, effectiveness for cooking and ease of keeping clean. Gas is by far the easiest and most practical way of barbecuing but, if the authentic smoky flavour is important, then…

Straight2Sleep French bed extender If your’van has a French bed, you might be more than familiar with the feeling of having your legs and feet dangling in mid-air (or perhaps you’re the lucky one who gets to sleep on the other side in a full stretch!). Having struggled with uncomfortable sleep in her French-bed motorhome, inventor Linda Turner, came up with the idea for the UK patented Straight2Sleep bed extender. Simply slide under the mattress to create a flat surface which then supports a mattress infill, thus extending the width of the bed. Not only does it mean a better night’s sleep all round, but it also means you’ll be able to use standard-size bedding. Said to be compatible with most caravan French beds, Straight2Sleep is available in either an…

sudoku If you are looking for a way to exercise your mind, sudoku is great and will certainly get the cogs turning! just for fun Find the 20 British islands and isles crossword ACROSS 1 Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Share Index; ankle-fl irting (7) 5 Most widely spoken dialect in India (5) 8 Fact of being elsewhere (legal) (5) 9 I nag men! (anag) (7) 10 Fashionable footwear (8,5) 11 Blanket-like cloak with a hole in the centre for the head (6) 12 Body of literature, writings or other work (6) 15 Weak-kneed (13) 18 Rope ladder in a sailing ship’s rigging (7) 19 Debonair (5) 20 Bit of parsley, etc (5) 21 Mutual correspondents (3,4) DOWN 1 Sensible alternatives to 10!; places to live (5) 2 Personal belief…

With acres of uncrowded countryside, a glorious coastline, turquoise sea and the possibility of spotting dolphins and seals, Ceredigion had been on our bucket list for years. But for various reasons, we’d never made it to that neck of the woods until we bought our’van in 2022. As a whole new world of places to visit opened up to us, we finally planned a trip to this beautiful area. When deciding where to break the journey from our home in Wiltshire, the map revealed that our route would take us very close to Dolaucothi. It’s the UK’s only known gold mine dating from Roman times, and intrigued, we pre-booked a guided tour of the mines. Winding along the secluded and tranquil Cothi Valley, it was hard to imagine that the…

SIGN UP TO OUR EMAIL NEWSLETTER TO GET YOUR FREE ISSUE TODAY! YOUR PERSONALISED NEWSLETTER WILL BE PACKED WITH THE LATEST NEWS AND UPDATES FROM THE EXPERTS, INCLUDING: ● Travel inspiration for your next adventure ● The best sites to stay on ● Top buying advice to help you make the right choices ● Insights and technical advice from our industry-leading experts ● Exclusive discounts and special offers And much more Plus, we’ll send you a link to try a FREE digital issue of Caravan, which gives you access to all the content – whenever and wherever you want! It’s also fully searchable and includes links so you can easily find what you are looking for! SIGN UP HERE caravan.ma/signup22…

First-timers essentials Q We are first-time caravan owners and, before we embark on our first trip, are there any essentials we need to pack that we might otherwise forget? A Your caravan should already have a few items, such as a 230V hook-up cable, corner steady winder, etc, but the following should get you up and running while you decide what else to bring: ⬤ Leisure battery ⬤ Gas bottle (6kg propane or 7kg butane, plus the relevant hose) ⬤ Aquaroll (plus filler pipe and inlet hose/pump) ⬤ Wastemaster (plus associated pipework) ⬤ Levelling ramp (plus spirit level) ⬤ Toilet chemicals ⬤ Towing mirrors for your car ⬤ Noseweight gauge (or bathroom scales with a length of wood between hitch and scales) The above items are a good starting point.…

Bailey reveals all-new Phoenix GT75 range The Bristol-based caravan manufacturer, Bailey, has revealed six models in its new Phoenix GT75 range, which has just been launched to celebrate the company’s seventy-fifth anniversary. Among the range is a brand-new model – the Phoenix GT75 762, which is a twinaxle six-berth with a family layout featuring bunk beds and two lounges. The arrival of the 762 in this special edition Phoenix range sees the line-up of six models starting with the 420 (£22,999), which is a couples’ caravan, right through to the new six-berth 762 (£27,499). There are also four other four-berth models in the new range. The smallest and lightest (1,146kg) – the 5.56m 420 – has front twin sofas that convert into a double or two single beds at night,…