How to prepare for your first campervan trip

A first campervan trip usually ends one of two ways. Either with "why didn't we do this years ago?" or with someone hunting for the gas valve by torchlight at midnight. The difference is generally made in the hour before you set off. This post is the list for that hour. It works for a hired motorhome and for a caravan towed behind your own car alike.

Before you leave: the desk work

For your first trip, pick a short route. A campsite two or three hours from home, with electric hook-up, water, toilets and showers, is the right choice for the first night. Save wild camping for your second or third trip.

• Ring the campsite in advance and tell them how long the campervan is. Some sites have narrow entrances, low trees or sandy ground.
• Ask whether there's electric hook-up, what type of socket it is and whether they lend cables.
• Ask whether there's a disposal point for waste water (grey water) and the chemical toilet. We explain why this matters in our post on campervan water, electricity and waste.
• Know where you can fill up with fuel on the route, and know the campervan's height. Low bridges, car park barriers and narrow village streets are the three things that cause the most sweat on day one.
• Ask the hire company in writing whether your driving licence covers the vehicle you're hiring or towing. Weight limits vary by vehicle and caravan type.

When you're looking for a campsite you can check the teknovan campsite list, and if you haven't chosen a region yet, start with our guide to campsites around İzmir.

When you pick up a hired campervan

Handovers are usually rushed. There's another customer waiting behind you and you want to get on the road. Even so, don't take the keys until these checks have been done:

1. Walk round it and take photos. Scratches, the edge of the roof, the awning, the step, the windows and the tyres. Dated photos settle any argument at return.
2. Turn the gas on and off yourself. Where the valve is, how the hob lights, how the heater works. While the staff member is showing you, try it with your own hands.
3. Learn the water system. Where the fresh water filler is, where the pump switch is, which valve is the grey water. People do mix up the water filler and the fuel cap. That's not a joke.
4. Ask about the electrics panel. The battery gauge, the 230 V hook-up inlet, the fuses, and the inverter and solar panel if there are any.
5. Find out what powers the fridge. Some run only on 12 V, others switch between gas, battery and mains.
6. Try taking out and putting back the toilet cassette. Ask how much chemical fluid goes in.
7. Insurance, the breakdown number and the accident report form: find out where they are and save the numbers in your phone.

When you arrive: parking level, gas, electricity, water

Parking level. When a campervan isn't level, the doors swing open by themselves, water won't drain from the sink and you spend the night sliding. Many campervan fridges also don't work well on a slope. A spirit level app on your phone does the job. Most hire vehicles come with plastic levelling ramps to put under the wheels, and if yours doesn't, ask for them. Drive onto the ramps first, then put the handbrake on.

Gas. Don't use the heater or the hob while driving. Many caravan clubs and fire service guides recommend keeping the gas off while the vehicle is moving. If your fridge is designed to run on gas while travelling, check its manual. When you arrive, turn the gas on and do a quick sniff test before lighting the hob. If you smell gas, don't light anything, don't touch electrical switches, open the door and get out.

Electricity. Plug the cable into the campervan first, then into the campsite bollard. Unroll the cable reel completely, because it can overheat while coiled. On wet ground, putting a container over the plug is a good habit.

Water. Ask before you drink the campsite's water. Keep your hose in a clean bag, and don't use a hose that's been lying on the ground for water you're going to drink. Filling the tank on the first day is enough. The heavier the campervan, the more fuel it uses.

Packing light: what to take and what to leave

A campervan's payload is limited, and the handling changes as every cupboard fills up. Almost everyone takes too much on their first trip.

When you close the cupboards, make sure every door has latched. Plates hitting the floor on the first bend is a memory most campervan travellers share.

The 10 mistakes beginners make most often

1. A first route that's too long. Six hours on the road turns a first campervan experience into an experience of being tired.
2. Arriving in the dark. Finding a level spot, connecting the cable and placing the ramps takes five minutes in daylight and half an hour at night.
3. Forgetting the roof height. Petrol station canopies, tree branches and car park entrances.
4. Going to sleep with the awning out. The wind can get up at night in the Aegean. It can easily bend an awning, and the damage is usually your bill.
5. Driving off with the step still out. Before moving, walk round once: step, awning, roof vent, cable, ramps.
6. Assuming the fresh water tank is full and the grey water tank is empty. Look at the gauge. When grey water overflows, you're the first to smell it.
7. Draining the battery with 230 V appliances. Kettles, hairdryers and heaters are a battery's enemies.
8. Heating a closed campervan with gas. Carbon monoxide has no smell and no colour. We go into detail in our post on winter campervan trips.
9. Letting waste water run onto the ground. As well as making you a bad neighbour, it falls foul of environmental law.
10. Trying to do everything on day one. Don't go anywhere on the day you arrive at the campsite. Set up, explore the area on foot, cook dinner and go to bed early.

Set aside an hour on return day too

On return you may be asked to hand the campervan back with the fresh water tank empty and the grey water tank and toilet cassette emptied. The conditions are in the contract. Spending your last night at a campsite with a disposal point makes this easier. Have your photos from day one with you at the handover.

Frequently asked questions

What's the best season for a first campervan trip? On the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts, spring and autumn are more comfortable. Heat and crowds in midsummer can make a first trip harder. For summer camping, see our post on camping in the summer heat.

Where can I park a campervan overnight? For your first trips the safest option is a licensed campsite with electricity, water and a disposal point. Rules and bans vary by province and district, so asking the local municipality is the most reliable approach.

Can you use the hob in a campervan while driving? No. Don't use the hob or the heater while the vehicle is moving, and follow the vehicle manual on what to do with the gas.

Is the toilet in a hired campervan hard to use? No, but learn how to empty the cassette at the handover, and only empty it at a chemical toilet disposal point.

Sources

• Caravan and Motorhome Club: How to stay gas-safe when touring
• North Wales Fire and Rescue: Caravanners and campers urged to take extra care
• WorkSafe New Zealand: Gas safety for caravans and motorhomes
• Caravan and Motorhome Club: Toilets for caravans
• Teknovan: campsites

Image credits

Photos illustrate the region; they are not photos of the campsites themselves.

• Dikili: Kadı, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons