Finding the perfect vehicle for a low cost camping tour of Europe

As all my camping holidays to Europe start in the UK, a channel crossing is always needed, and this can be the most expensive single cost of a holiday, especially if you choose the wrong vehicle. Ferry companies charge extra for high vehicles, trailers, and rear mounted bike racks.

There are a few different combinations of vehicles that you could go camping with car and trailer tent, car and caravan, luxury custom built motorhome, converted mini bus, or just a car or van.

To keep costs low I think the best vehicle is a DIY motorhome or camper van. If you're going to remain static for a couple of weeks then a caravan or trailer tent might be a good option because when you arrive at your destination you have a car to go off exploring in. But speed is limited when towing to your destination and channel crossings are more expensive than a single vehicle.

Custom built motorhomes in the price range that I could afford are slow and terribly fuel inefficient, their height makes channel crossings expensive and European breakdown cover also seems more expensive for this type of vehicle.

Converting a van into a motor home requires a lot of thought, and when you've finished and used it you will probably sell it and make the next one differently, or rip the insides out and start again!

When I was looking for a vehicle to convert I considered a recently retired ambulance, several mini buses and a few panel vans. I decided against the ambulance, it was Mercedes based and the engine was a 3litre diesel, it was going to be expensive to run and it had many not standard parts. There are some really nice converted ambulances out there, but I was concerned about availability of spares in Europe.

So it was between the mini buses and the panel vans. Most people make their first camper from a mini bus, but the more I looked into to it, the more I went off the idea. To start with a mini bus has a lot of glass in it, single glazed glass that is going to get very cold in spring,autumn and winter. Glass everywhere also means that everyone can see all your stuff when you're parked in a car park, and you also need curtains. The only advantage I thought a mini bus had over a panel van was the upholstered roof in the back, but to make an all year round camper, or even a camper that doesn't get to hot in the summer of southern Europe, you need an insulated roof, so that nice upholstered ceiling is going to have to be removed anyway.

So I chose a panel van, if the budget would have stretched to it I would have got a sprinter or crafter, but I ended up with a medium top LWB transit. This transit stands 2.2 metres high without the aerial (which was removed entering a car part with a 2.2 metre height limit!) and at that height it qualifies for the cheapest fare for a motor home on the cross channel ferries and channel tunnel.

I've insulated the transit with the Kingspan that I bought on ebay for £10 an 8x4 sheet and added a couple of windows and skylight, also from ebay. These are proper motor home windows which are double glazed and can open outwards, they are also tinted so need for curtains.