First time overnight - my experience

[Eber123]

Hello,

Even though we had the van since end of November last year, because of work and family reason we only managed to get out for a 2-day overnight stay last weekend.

I was reading a lot about the California, how to use various options of the van, saw many YouTube videos and heard that people take many month to get use to the camper. But the reality at the weekend hit me a bit, so I thought I put my thoughts together of what I have learned and what I will take away from the first overnight stay. More for myself let me break down the various topics to review my experience:

Driving
To drive the VW California is a wonderful experience. My wife and I feel that the seats are very comfortable, the noise level is very low (at least on good roads).
What have I learned? = VW California Ocean is a very good travel vehicle

Camp site
For the first overnight stay we decided to go for a good camp site, so we chose a site in NI not so far away from Kilkeel. With a 5-star rating I thought we have a bit of space around us and so a bit more of privacy. I was looking for this because there is so much we are not familiar with that I didn't fancy a lot of spectators watching me.
This was not the case. The camp site was very clean, facilities ok, but very cramped. There was barely any room between the different spaces.
What have I learned? = To put more research into choosing a camp site (my mistake)

Setting up camp
In general this is done quickly. Connect to power, put up the roof, get the chairs and table out. What I disliked was to swivel the drivers seat. That should be easier.
What have I learned? = I need to practise more to swivel the drivers seat (more practise)

Prepare for the night
Here came the real shock. Everybody has their own way to organize the storage, but I feel there are different storage areas with different usage:

• Boot = storage for cloth and personal belongings
• Above the boot = storage for the cushions, blankets, mattress protection etc.
• Shelf beside the boot = bits and pieces (general)
• Shelf beside the fridge = Wardrobe
• Cupboard = food, dishes and cutlery

We decided to sleep downstairs. To make the bed means that the only storage area for our belongings is in the boot. To get at these things is cumbersome. This really bother me. It is inconvenient. I must admit that I was a bit unhappy about this part of the usage of the camper.
What have I learned? =

• To be more organized. I need to save money to get the boot drawer, which will help to get access to this area
• Take less. Think more of what is needed and take that minimum. Less is more
• Not to go shopping during the trip. We had no time to go shopping so we did it in Newry. So on top of everything we had the shopping bags in the boot too

The downstairs bed is not that bad, but a bit too small for my wife and me. So my wife decided to sleep upstairs. Because she is not very tall, she struggles a bit to climb up.
What have I learned? = get some arrangements to help her to climb up.

Day tours
Preparing for day tours meaning to put everything back. This is no problem if the organization is well done. We suffered a wee bit for this.
What have I learned? = Be more organized

Was the 2-day trip an overall positive experience? No it wasn't. We need to organize ourselves better and do more research of camp sites. The van itself was brilliant to drive, just a pleasure. Set-up camp was easy, set-up for night was frustrating (I don't know what I expected). Prepare the van to move on, was OK but can take about half an hour (if the downstairs bed were used).

These are just my experience over our June bank holiday weekend. So there is a good bit to learn and to improve. Never the less I thought that would be interesting for people using the camper the first time (of course well knowing that everybody is different).

Regards,
Eberhard

 

[sapto]

Great to read! Thanks for sharing your thoughts&conclusions

 

[2into1]

The most important thing to take = an empty cupboard.

 

[Sonas]

Ill be going to Ireland soon. Im a bit scared of the campsite ratings to be honest. The OP went to a 5 star campsite but was unhappy. A 5 start on continental( in my experience) would be really top notch. I wonder who gives these Irish campsites their rating. Ive seen a lot of sites online from Ireland with a similar 5 star rating but when you consult trip adviser the amount of negative comments is a bit concerning. Anyway Im probably over anxious but Im not holding out too much hope that the stated rating will be reflected by reality. Please let us know of any other campsites you visit.

 

[Amarillo]

Ill be going to Ireland soon. Im a bit scared of the campsite ratings to be honest. The OP went to a 5 star campsite but was unhappy. A 5 start on continental( in my experience) would be really top notch. I wonder who gives these Irish campsites their rating. Ive seen a lot of sites online from Ireland with a similar 5 star rating but when you consult trip adviser the amount of negative comments is a bit concerning. Anyway Im probably over anxious but Im not holding out too much hope that the stated rating will be reflected by reality. Please let us know of any other campsites you visit.

The rating may only be based on a tick list of facilities.
Swimming pool
Children's playground
Games room
On site bar
On site restaurant
Shop
Etc.

We use ACSI ratings and reviews to choose sites.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[Verity]

It just takes a bit of getting used to and a few trips away to find how to store things and which order to do things. Making up the bed downstairs is much easier if only one person is in the van. You need to be really tidy and everything must have a place it goes back to. We've had our van for 18 months now, and over time we have changed the places we store things as we get more experienced. In this weather, we always sleep upstairs as it's wider, cooler and we don't have to move anything downstairs. Thetford loo can stay in the cab and then we don't need toilet tent etc.

When we started I prettied up the van with loads of throws and cushions as the van is so boring and grey inside. Most of this c**p has now been ejected as you keep having to move it around.

Front seat swivel: agreed. After 18 months I still get it badly wrong 4 times out of 5, and only once have I ever got it in the right place first time without having to shovel backwards and forwards. If we're both on the trip we always do it though. If it's just me, I'll leave that one and just swivel the passenger side.

The beauty of the VW is the ease of pitching up. We arrived at a French aire last week, watched by another older English couple in a big motorhome. We'd had a long drive and we were hungry, so we parked, got out the table, chairs, tablecloth, food, beer and that was it. We were eating in about 3 mins. They came over and expressed their amazement and said it took them ages to set up. Did we feel smug? Well, maybe a little bit …

Enjoy your van, and trust me, it will get easier.

 

[MickyTwoPints]

I've always struggled a bit with the swivelling drivers seat but found out last weekend that if you push the steering wheel in the seat turns without any problem. Just put the steering wheel back as you like it before moving off.

Campsites on the late May Bank Holiday will generally be busy. Try going again when the tiddly peeps are at school (unless of course you have to take some with you).

As far as storage goes, I put anything needed externally (screen cover, awning sides, walking boots, ehu etc) in the boot. Duvet etc goes on the back shelf but is thrown up top when we arrive. Anything for internal use goes inside. So clothes go in the wardrobe, other bits and bobs like Mrs Two Pints make up goes in the top cupboard, food under the seat kitchen stuff in the cupboards under the cooker That seems to work OK for us

 

[MattBW]

Probably took us 2 years to get it right and 3 years before we found our perfect setup, seems you are doing pretty well already! Have fun in the Cali!

 

[Eber123]

Good afternoon,

Last week on a camp site web page I saw they offer 3x different version of spaces. 1.) VIP 2.) Deluxe 3.) Standard.

I loved that idea. VIP was surrounded by hedges, very private. A bit more expensive, but worth it. Deluxe had more room and standard - well standard.

This is a good offer for customers. Obviously the more private the site is the more you pay and that is fair enough. To stay one night, the standard is more than ok, but if you stay a few days a bit more private space might be welcome.

I will research a bit more. In July we plan to drive a bit up the Wild Atlantic way. I expect that we will stay on various camp sites. I don't believe that there are Aries. But be on the move all the time means that we have to be even more organized.

A lot to learn.

Eberhard

 

[Hotel California]

Can't see the point of putting the roof up and sleeping downstairs , this obvious results in a logistic nightmare when bedtime arrives.

Pillows , bedding, toppers ,... don't belong "in" a cupboard or wardrobe , just trow it on top of the rear parcel shelf when driving and at arrival trow it on the top bed and push it up ....all things out the way until bedtime.
You will gain a massive space ....

Personal stuff / clothing should be in the large warderobe left to the fridge as you need direct acces to it . What do you do when you leave in the morning sunny weather wearing t-shirt/shorts and ending up at a place in the afternoon in the rain and cold ? I just climb in the rear seat and change clothes without opening any doors , if you personal stuff is under the parcel shelf in the booth ....not handy .
You need all things within' handsreach to stop the Cali somewhere close the blinds , eat / sleep / wake-up / move further ....called "stealth camping"

Under the parcel shelf in the rear sits all the things only needed when parked on a campsite (hook-up cable , leveling ramps , spare shoes , ....)

 

[Camper Mouse]

Our set up is similar to hotel California. We use a really useful box, as a camping box, which goes in the boot when camping, it holds all the camping bits, the hook up cable, awning tie down kit, tent pegs, etc. Clothes stay in the van, under the seat, so still easily accessible with bed made. Bedding folded on rear shelf, easy to pull forward to make up the bed. Kitchen cupboards have food, crockery and kitchen equipment. Works for us!

 

[bigmac77]

I echo what Hotel Cali says but if we are away for just a couple of nights we don’t usually have anything in the boot that is reserved for equipment for longer trips of a week or more.

 

[T6 CFO]

Carry only what you might need. Less is more. In the back keep outside stuff etc. Keep clothing in the bench seat. Keep food in the kitchen cupboards. Keep the wardrobe free for bunging stuff in. Keep the overhead storage for wash bags and light stuff. Brandrup pockets for the techie stuff and small stuff.


Mike

 

[BRC]

After going away for 4 nights with two kids and better half totally agree with clothes in rear under bed is not the way ahead. We are now aiming to put shelves in wardrobe and use these and under seat drawer for clothes. The rear right hand window storage set up would also come in handy I think.Also a couple of boxes, not too big that can be transferred to front footwells when seats swivelled would useful.
With four bikes and small dog I think an awning for two or more nights is going to help enormously!

 

[Velma's Dad]

Boot = storage for cloth and personal belongings

There's maybe a clue in what you write there. For a two day / one night trip, what clothes do you actually need?

Answer = the ones you're wearing. Plus a set of clean underwear and socks, you can tuck those in a corner of the 'overhead locker'.

The point is that a Cali is a small campervan, not a motorhome. As you've discovered, cutting down the stuff you take is a key to happiness in the Calizone.

You'll have great fun figuring all this out.

 

[BRC]

Oh and the kids are already banned from taking more than 1 cuddly toy!
Shoes seemed to get everywhere, 4 x flip flops, 4x normal ‘day’ shoes, 2x cycling, walking boots as well. Perhaps box in front footwell will be for these..

 

[Properjob]

One top tip on the swivelling front seats that I got from someone on here that I finally put in place last week is to find the optimum place on the runners that your seats need to be then draw a line in a white or coloured marker pen on the runner itself. Then it’s really clear where the seat needs to be each time. Makes a real difference.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Eber123]

Good morning,

Thank you for all the feedback.

Sometimes I even put the roof up for only a pick nick, simply for convenience (standing hight). It is straight forward and rather quick. But of course if it is wet or windy I won't do it.

Pillows, beddings etc was on the parcel shelf, but that is my point, it has to be moved in order to make the bed.

The VW California has many years time to develop, but I am not quite sure if they continued looking into details of everyday usage (or maybe the existing arrangements can't be changed). For example in 2018 vans the split top of sink and cooker.

Here are a few things that I felt could have been solved a bit better:

Drawer under the seat
I am not quite sure if it is only me, but why is the lever on the left side? To open the drawer one always has to go into the van or stretch... Wouldn't it be more convenient to have the lever to open the drawer on the right and the lever to move the bench on the left?

Open the gas bottle
To open the gas bottle the shelf has to be emptied, shelf moved, lid unscrewed - open gas. Wouldn't it been nice to have this somewhere more accessible?

Boot area
If the boot area is filled up, it will interfere folding the kitchen table back in parking position (experienced it with cloth and towels which were in the way).

Wardrobe
Well, wouldn't it make more sense to have shelves in there? For hanging space it is not tall enough, putting everything on top of each other is not economical either. I know that there are accessories to sort this, but shouldn't this be done by VW?

Bicycle holder
On Monday I used it the first time. My wife has a normal street bike, which we brought to repair and collected her new eBike.
I am 1.75m so not the tallest person, but by gosh it is difficult to get a heavy bike (yes I removed the battery from the eBike) placed on the holder and fix it securely.

Windscreen blinds
Closing the blinds from the windscreen is difficult. To fold out the holder beside the mirror is cumbersome. I need to exercise this more at the weekend.

I know I give out a lot, but please don't get me wrong, I think the van is brilliant and eventually my wife and I will get use to it. But using it as a base for hiking and staying overnight is very different and I am still struggling with this a wee bit. I thought it would be a bit easier. So while we getting use to it I will read here more and try to learn from the experienced users.

Regards,
Eberhard

 

[PudnBob]

Our set up is similar to hotel California. We use a really useful box, as a camping box, which goes in the boot when camping, it holds all the camping bits, the hook up cable, awning tie down kit, tent pegs, etc. Clothes stay in the van, under the seat, so still easily accessible with bed made. Bedding folded on rear shelf, easy to pull forward to make up the bed. Kitchen cupboards have food, crockery and kitchen equipment. Works for us!

we are pretty much the same although our useful box is a proper tool box which becomes my step to get in and out of the van when parked up. Being vertically challenged and usually carrying a tray of food it makes it much easier!
Bedding goes into “stuff” bags which squidgy down to nothing, and clothes are packed into travel pods, again you can get plenty of kit into them. We are still paring down kit each time and are in rapid camping mode so we can decide to go at lunch time and be away. We invested in the drawers this year and although I had to change my approach to the storage solutions we are so happy we went down this route.

 

[Velma's Dad]

Open the gas bottle
To open the gas bottle the shelf has to be emptied, shelf moved, lid unscrewed - open gas. Wouldn't it been nice to have this somewhere more accessible?

Yes that is one unusually inept piece of design on the Cali. But for that reason I keep everything on that shelf above the gas bottle in one single plastic box, so it all whips in and out in a second.

Wardrobe
Well, wouldn't it make more sense to have shelves in there? For hanging space it is not tall enough, putting everything on top of each other is not economical either. I know that there are accessories to sort this, but shouldn't this be done by VW?

Actually there are lots of different views on this. Some people really like the wardrobe as hanging space, and others like to have the big empty space to cram bedding etc into. For a long trip we use packing cubes, but I am considering one of the aftermarket shelf solutions.

 

[Aubisque]

It's a bit like living on a boat, fitting in around it is part of the charm. As long as you like that sort of thing. My user experience tips would include :

- As above, only stuff you are prepared and able to move when you make the bed up should go on the boot upper shelf

- I've removed the two upper shelves from the rear cupboard above the gas cylinder. Easier to stuff bags in without them. For that reason no shelves in the wardrobe is also better.

- We generally use an exterior thermal blind rather than the slightly fiddly side and front blinds

- The space underneath created when the bottom bed is made up is really handy for any bigger bags and things that were in the upper boot that you don't need overnight, I drop them in there.

- Brandrup Inner Iso-therm pop top liner. Expensive, but warmer, quieter, darker (important for kids) and once installed you never have to touch it again and means less hassle arriving and leaving.

- Have a place for everything and always put it back there. And take the minimum.

 

[Skewif]

Drawer under the seat
I am not quite sure if it is only me, but why is the lever on the left side? To open the drawer one always has to go into the van or stretch... Wouldn't it be more convenient to have the lever to open the drawer on the right and the lever to move the bench on the left?

Not only you. I totally agree.

 

[GreggB]

Oh and the kids are already banned from taking more than 1 cuddly toy!
Shoes seemed to get everywhere, 4 x flip flops, 4x normal ‘day’ shoes, 2x cycling, walking boots as well. Perhaps box in front footwell will be for these..

Shoes! Arghh! On a recent 4 night trip away I was forever picking up loose shoes from the kids or other half. I only took one pair, they all seemed to have at least 3 pairs, even the 1yr old!

 

[larrylamb]

Sometimes I even put the roof up for only a pick nick, simply for convenience (standing hight). It is straight forward and rather quick. But of course if it is wet or windy I won't do it.

Absolutely, we pop the roof up everywhere, I don't see the point in crouching around trying to make a brew. The airy space created is fantastic.

 

[sapto]

Yes that is one unusually inept piece of design on the Cali. But for that reason I keep everything on that shelf above the gas bottle in one single plastic box...

So do we