MY TRAVELS

Ronald van Wensveen starts the quest for his first motorhome with a trip in a rental ’van

Spending a wet few days enjoying Wales in a hired motorhome

Our quest to own a motorhome started two years ago, when my wife and I attended the motorhome exhibition at the NEC. The show was great and gave us enough inspiration to explore further.

Then Covid hit, but we were able to hire a motorhome for 10 days last August. This was the week England had a heatwave, but not so in Snowdonia...

We used McRent as it had a 10-day hire that was more or less the same price as a seven-day hire from smaller independent hire companies. We also did not mind the basic set-up in our 7.38m-long four-berth Sunlight T68, which is based on the Fiat Ducato. With all the awards the Ducato has won I was expecting almost perfection, so I was surprised to find the gearbox a terrible first experience. I am used to something more precise and quick. I even ended up swearing occasionally, which is unlike me. Towards the end of the holiday, I no longer had any issues, but perhaps was just more relaxed, not needing to get anywhere fast, and just went with the flow.

A lot of research took place to identify where to stay overnight, what places to visit and where I could potentially park. I soon learned that we would need to stay at campsites as wild camping is not really supported in the UK. I thus had a very detailed itinerary for each day, where to stop and try and park and, as some sites were closed and others were at half capacity, I booked the majority up front bar the last few days.

There was a load of road noise on the motorway that made it a little difficult to hear others and, throughout the staycation, there were water bottles that flew off the table when braking, as well as some white knuckles when I hit the smaller narrow roads of Snowdonia. I did get used to the size of the vehicle, but there were times I wish I had a slightly smaller motorhome. One campsite required a turn almost back on itself to access the site. With a combination of luck and, I like to think, some skill, I did not have to reverse back uphill into traffic to adjust my turn!

I had planned a Go Below adventure. On the day, the company called to say we’d have to drive in a convoy to the mine, and I immediately stated I was in a motorhome, but was informed it had someone who could drive us down.

The meeting point was a small car park used for a local attraction (Conwy Falls) as well as a café. We were extremely lucky that I was able to park the motorhome, as it clearly was not geared up for these types of vehicles.

Then the bad news that we no longer had a lift and I would need to drive down to the starting point down a small B-road. I was a little apprehensive but had no choice. Yes, I did meet a bus on the way back but, as luck would have it, it was on the widest possible section of the road.

I had also planned to visit Beddgelert. An enquiry to the council confirmed that we cannot use coach parking bays. As we would be taking up two car parking bays, we would need to pay for both bays. Now the likelihood of finding two bays in a row I assumed would be limited, not to mention that a motorhome may block others from being able to get back into their vehicles. Upon arrival at the small car park there were no spaces at all.

So plan B was to drive further out, find somewhere to park and cycle into the village. As we drove out from the car park, we spotted parking at the Royal Goat Hotel at a reasonable price, which was very convenient.

The weather was somewhat miserable for half the holiday, but we still had a great time and knew this would be the beginning of a new chapter in our lives.

The experience of renting was invaluable. It made me realise that I do not want such a big vehicle, so a 6m (or just over) motorhome should serve us well. I would also want a narrower body to make driving on narrow roads more relaxing and enjoyable to enjoy the view.