FOUR-WHEELED STAYCATIONS
WITH FOREIGN TRAVEL A TRAFFIC-LIGHT HEADACHE AND HOTEL RATES RISING, WHY NOT TRY A MOBILE B&B WHERE YOU CALL THE SHOTS, SUGGESTS ADAM HAY-NICHOLLS
Ford Transit Custom Nugget
Engine: 182bhp 2.0 4-cylinder diesel Four-wheel drive? No, front only 0-60mph: 12.2s
Top speed: 111mph Sleeps:
Prices from: £65,562
Ford has taken its no-nonsense Transit van and turned it into a compact camper with a kitchen. And, to burnish its Outback credentials, they’ve named it Nugget after Crocodile Dundee’s mate from the Walkabout Creek pub. Behind the wheel it does feel like a Transit – and a very expensive one at that. But behind the front seats, which can swivel around to create a living-room setting, there’s lots of space. There’s a dining table that can be dismantled (albeit not that easily) to make way for the first of two double beds. The second is upstairs, with a manually opening roof-section and ladder.
There’s a two-hob gas stove, fridge and sink, so you can rustle up a feast in the wilderness, and an awning on the driver’s side, which helps create an al fresco living area. These bits have all been engineered by camper experts Westfalia.
Land Rover Defender 110 with Autohome Roof Tent
Engine: 300bhp 2.0 4-cylinder petrol Four-wheel drive? Yes
0-60mph: 7.4s
Top speed: 119mph
Sleeps: 2
Prices from: £52,276
This is a stylishly modern redux of a design classic. It mightn’t seem quite as rugged as the previous generation utility vehicle but the 2021 Defender lives up to expectations off-road and is a revelation on it, with a comfortable cabin, quality materials, impressive pace and superb handling.
Without question, you’ll favour this over any of the other machines listed here on a long drive. The roof tent erects instantly using gas springs, without the need for poles, lines or pegs. The height when up is 5ft. Inside is a cotton mattress and room for two adventurers.
Morelo Palace
Engine: 180bhp 3.0 4-cylinder turbo diesel Four-wheel drive? No, rear only
0-60mph: Unspecified
Top speed: 71mph
Sleeps: 4 (or 5, in the ‘bar’ version)
Prices from: £196,500
The German-built Morelo Palace certainly lives up to its name. Based on an Iveco Daily truck, this seven-tonne plus motorhome is accessed by an electric entry step and there’s acres of floor space. There’s a fridge-freezer, full kitchen and living room, a 32in TV, a master bedroom that wouldn’t look out of place on a superyacht and a second double bed that electrically drops from the ceiling. The bathroom has a glass shower and porcelain WC. This is how headliners tackle Glastonbury.
VOLKSWAGEN Kombi Type 2 (1949-1979)
Engine: Various, inc. 30bhp 1.2 4-cylinder
Four-wheel drive? No, front only
0-60mph: Ages
Top speed: Slow
Sleeps: 4
Prices from: £20,000 (or rent £50 per day) A cult classic like no other but don’t expect cutting-edge performance. It’s also not as comfortable or well-equipped as the modern motors you see here. But what it lacks in grunt and polish it makes up for in bohemian charm. Invite a friend camping in your Transit van and be prepared to get fobbed off. Suggest a sojourn in your 1960s Kombi, though, and you’ll have a queue of guests and offers of free love. Camperbug.co.uk offers rentals.