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First 2 months/3000 miles

Larkrise

Larkrise

VIP Member
Messages
395
Location
Whaplode Drove
Vehicle
T5 SE 180
Well, we are settling in to Cali ownership, and love it! Quite a few short breaks so far. About the spec: really happy with the 180 DSG- it is a real pleasure to drive. After parking on a damp grassy slope last weekend I did wonder about the 4Motion, but we didn’t slip, and it’s too late anyway.

Generally pleased with the RNS510 though still a little wedded to Waze on the phone for accurate navigation especially good for eta. How on earth do you mute the radio…only by reducing the volume to nil it seems! The leather retrim was our best extra – changes the feel of the van and no worries about dirt etc. The router was another great addition- we can work anywhere and get better bandwidth than at home in many places. Reliable text conversations with our son in Afghanistan, reliable streaming Spotify Bluetooth to 510, vpn to work…all good. Also Bose mini soundlink as others have said is lovely.

We have absolutely no issues for the dealer (yet) and even the not clicking down sink catch was only a matter of repositioning the little gel thingys that had moved a bit.
We haven’t got a topper for the roof. We sleep downstairs and it has been fine so far. We haven’t got an awning but are tempted by the Brandrup side panel. We did get a tailgate air-safe from the forum but this was faulty and almost impossible to remove, so will get the Brandrup version now. Jury is still out on a toilet. We tried and rejected Duvalays and are very happy with a Zonesleep topper (why are they so expensive!). We’ve resurrected and updated our old camping list and trying to get as many items permanently into the van for a quick get-away.

So, off to Ireland for a couple of weeks next month and northern Spain late September. No regrets so far! Oh, and hats off to the forum which remains more civilized than most and a great source of wisdom.
 
Hi Chris and Sue,

Glad you are enjoying the van. We're new comers also, and the van has the Wi-Fi option. Where did you get your SIM card from, what type was it and (if you don't mind me asking) what deal did you go for?

Almost certain we won't use the Wi-Fi (it was an ex-demo van, so we didn't spec it), but if there is a zero cost / pay as you go option it might be useful to have set up for emergencies ... and to give me something else to configure / play with.

Also, considering Duvalays. Why did you eschew them?

Thanks in advance - have fun

Mark
 
Re the SIM: we have a Three one month rolling contract £15 10gb/ month; we also have a Europasim which will connect to any network when abroad.

The Duvalays just didn't feel right for us and we are not that keen on memory foam ( a little hot). We have a good quilt and the Zonesleep- it's quick to get out and very comfortable. Having said that many folk love their Duvalays.

One other aspect of the van I was going to mention- the coasting. This is changing my driving style! First we drive more slowly in the van which feels good, but it coasts for so far when taking foot off accelerator I'm sure the brake wear will be up. Now need to anticipate roundabouts etc further in advance, knock off the cruise and roll the rest of the way.
 
Hi Chris and Sue,

So glad you are having a good time in your Cali and good to hear a positive post.
:thanks
 
If travelling to Northern Spain, might I suggest Donostia (also known as San Sebastián).

There is a campsite there which is perfectly good. It is a regular bus ride from the centre of town - I normally prefer to walk into places, but this place is well worth the visit. It is one of the most beautiful cities I have been to in Europe with amazing coastline and beaches. If you have the taste buds and cash, it is also home to a number of michelin starred restaurants.

The cycle ride from town to the campsite goes up very steep hills, but we managed it on bromptons. Ok we did cheat, we took the furnicular part way up. What views ....

http://www.sansebastiandonostiaenglish. ... ay-igeldo/
 
Excellent. We have friends to visit in Oviedo and Bilbeo but apart from that have no commitments other than start and finish at Santander. Picos looks lovely.
 
We took the ferry to Bilbao last year with the Cali. Donostia was one of the high points.

We also really liked logrono which is a pleasant drive South of Donostia. The campsite at logrono is next to a park and river and right in the town. It has loads of nice tapas spots and it is capital of Rioja, so this flows liberally.

http://www.spain.info/en_GB/que-quieres ... ogrono.htm
 
Great to hear a report on your first 3000 miles - I'll write one in the coming month or so. Like you I'm delighted with the Cali still can't believe I have one. I have the VW mattress which is good but I will be intrigued to see the first 'zone topper' when I eventually meet up with Cali colleagues in the future. Great to read the tips on Northern Spain - its on my planned route when I eventually leave Kosovo as we shall probably do the Santander ferry to UK. Keep the posts coming and thanks for the links above
Gareth
 
There's a thread on the Picos de Europa which I'm sure will come up on a search - we'll be back!!
 
Larkrise said:
Re the SIM: we have a Three one month rolling contract £15 10gb/ month; we also have a Europasim which will connect to any network when abroad.

The Duvalays just didn't feel right for us and we are not that keen on memory foam ( a little hot). We have a good quilt and the Zonesleep- it's quick to get out and very comfortable. Having said that many folk love their Duvalays.

:thanks
 
Hi. Someone sent me a PM. I can't access it, so pls just add to this string and I will help if I can
 
Many thanks for the recommendations (Gatvol). Do you have specific details of the campsites at Donostia and Lograno (have followed the links, but not located the sites). I think that Lograno is one of the places (also Leon) that our son walked through when he walked the Camino last year and said we ought to visit. Chris
 
We went to Spain in late sep, the weather was still very nice then

This is Donostia ....

http://www.campingigueldo.com/ubicacion.php

Our tomtom really struggled in this part of Spain and sent us on a wild goose chase up progressively narrow roads. We actually gave up and followed road signs from the city centre. If you get right in the centre of town so you can see the sea you will see signs. This is an awesome city, I cannot imagine that you will be disappointed

This is logorno. It is a very pleasant walk into town. The nightlife is so accessible. I had never even heard of this place before but we loved it. We like walking into towns or villages at night so this place was perfect. But when we saw the modern bullring with retractable roof that did spoil it a bit as I thought Spain was banning this sort of thing.

http://www.campinglaplaya.com/index.php

My tip for Spain is to buy food when you see it, and get used to shopping in small independents which takes ages. Supermarkets are hidden. I have never been anywhere like it before.

I am not of the ban everything mindset. But there is a case to ban this. One is not meant to cheer when matadors get hurt, but ....

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/m ... rs-injured
 
Yes! Excellent, a lovely resource- these would make a great resource generally for forum members, if more people did it. We have been saving our plans for Ireland on a map like this, and we have a nearly empty one ready to be populated for Spain. A sort of library of them would make for great browsing when planning a trip. Thanks anyway. Btw- was the issue to do with permissions/sharing?
 
Hi there Larkrise

The map was originally made in what is now "classic maps" and the first post was converted to "new maps", the second post that you opened was "classic maps"
Hope that makes sense but my IT skills are very basic.
In fact its all a bit of a mystery to me :headbang

Have a great time in Spain, we are going in September :D
 
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