From the outside in

An off-road caravan’s body is always high off the ground. That means it’s at an uncomfortable height for you to get in and out with one step. A mounted step folds out of the caravan, making it less of a schlep. Measured against the original threshold height (545 mm) you now lift your foot only half of that (285 mm) height to climb up. The step also has a strap on the side that you pull when you’re inside, to fold it up so you can close the door. This kind of step should be standard on all caravans – that’s how practical it is. By the way, a mesh door with its own zip fits into the door opening, in case you want to sleep with the door open without the bugs carting you off in the middle of the night. The roof lifts on the door-side and has a total height of 2,23 m at the apex. The top of the fold-out bed’s mattress is 80 cm off the floor and you have to climb through a 61 cm opening to lie down, but at least the apex of the tent above the bed is high enough that you can sit upright on the mattress. Getting onto the bed might sound like a mission, but once you’re sitting on the side of the mattress and you lean back, you can get comfortable without much of a struggle. It might be bothersome to older or heavyset people, but it’s perfect for the little ones. The bed doesn’t have a mounted light (the closest one is at the door); and as with most fold-out beds, there are also no shelves for your clothing. The side of the bed, where you sit and lean back to get comfortable, is also the storage space for the loose fold-up table (62 x 185 cm). It stands on its side, and you open up a clip close to the door to slide the table in and out. The section in the back of the trailer is one big family bed, and up to three people can fit in here comfortably – it stretches from one side to the other. The middle part can fold up to make a 50 cm-wide passage from the front to the back between the two sides. This makes two single beds, with a sliding window next to the bed on the left. A narrow table (103 x 53 cm) unfolds in the passage if you want to eat inside the caravan. The table is large enough for up to four people, but it’s better if it’s just the two of you. All the cupboard space around the bed at the back is a real treat. There are no fewer than 15 cupboards in various sizes, and besides the one or two open shelves, the rest have canvas doors that you can zip up. There’s a light at the back cupboard (at the top of the bed) and the two canvas doors on the cupboards on the right form the back of the outside grocery shelf. It’s the perfect place to keep a few things for a midnight snack.