Days out in my campervan in July 2026

We looked at booking a trip in the van with the awning for a couple of weeks exploring the UK coast line but finding camp sites within a short walk of the beach or within a decent bus ride without us having to pack the van up each day and having to drive back and forth and finding parking without 2m barriers was getting complicated and the cost was running at over £1000 for us to sleep in our own van and share a shower and a toilet so it was a no brainer to fly to Crete for around the same price for our annual holiday.

So we had a couple of short stays in the Forest of Dean and in South Wales to visit family on weekends which is what we purchased the van for and as I've said before that 'days out in the van' was always intended more for the colder months.

I took the cat pole with me to drop at a friend's on the way, but she had to work late so I left it at the back of the van. The little girl next to me was disappointed I didn't have the cat with me.

On the last day I loaded it back in along with the washing up and rubbish which I did sorted when I got to her house.

I do wonder if the cat would like to come for a trip as she loves being in the van when it's on the drive?

We had a night camping in Tredegar in Newport, we have to take the washing up away with us there as they shut the toilet, shower and washing up block for cleaning at 10am till midday which drives us mad as check out is at midday and it means that in reality you have to be packed up before 10am or earlier if you want a shower.

My troll collection travelled with us to Newport. I dropped it off my with 2 year old great niece who I'm pleased to say is loving her new collection.

Back to the Forest of Dean and the awning had an outing. It takes two of us to set it up, so not used often. 

I can do it on my own but too much of a flaff in reality.

Well it's been almost 3 years since we purchased the van and oops we'd not seen since since we bought it. I can't believe the gas bottle has lasted this long, it's been threatening to run out for ages.

We're due a service and habitation check in September so I'll purchase a new bottle and get it all ready.

I've been carrying this around for the past few months as in preparation thinking 'surely it must run out soon'

When I camp on my own I often go off grid as we have solar panels, but it's rare I camp without access to a toilet block. We do have a portaloo. This site had lovely showers also and a little cafe. There was electric hook up available at an additional cost and I could fill the tank with water on site. But there was no grey water waste pit to drive over to empty the tank and I don't have a detachable tank, so I waited till I got home.

The grey waste I have is just from washing and teeth cleaning. I don't do washing up in the van and I use the grey waste to water the plant pots.

The water tanks show the grey and fresh water levels and there is a system that allows you to ensure you're not driving with more than 10 litres of fresh water.

Finally we saw another Nugget in the wild. The top pops at the back of the vehicle unlike the Volkswagen's that pop at the front. Let me know if you see a Ford Nugget Westfalia on the road they are few and far between.

Days out in my campervan in June 2026

There really aren't that many days out in the campervan at all, unless you count the days I take the van to work because Peter needs the car or I fill it up with diesel because the Maple Leaf garage near where I work is one of the cheapest in the UK.

In the summer there's no real need for the van on a day out as we'll take a picnic and not really go back to the van to eat it as the car park is usually too far from the event we're attending and who wants to sit in a car park to eat their lunch. If we're at the beach, you can rarely park anywhere near the sea or where you get a decent view other than looking at an industrial or housing estate or you're in the middle of town, so we tend to take the car where we don't have to think about height restriction barriers either and we can access more parking spaces with multi story and underground car parks.

The van seems to be used more for days out in the autumn and winter months when less people are out and about due to the weather, when we prefer to be out, when we can shelter in the van from the rain and the cold, have a picnic in the dry, out the kettle on and get changed and dry out before heading home and it encourages us to get out the house more in the winter months than we did before.

This year I've challenged myself to camp at least one night every month in the van and this month I almost didn't make it. I managed to sneak a night on my friends drive in Monmouth, literally arriving and asking her to move a car as I was setting up.

She offers me a bed in the house each time I go over, but I sleep so well in the van and honestly it's quicker to set up the van than it is for her to have to strip and change a bed after I've stayed.

My friend's drive has a lovely view, you'd never imagine I was in a housing estate. It's lovely and secluded at the end of a cut de sac.

The other side of the fence is a walkway, rarely used other than the occassionaol dog walker, but in the night there was a bit of a panic with a loud thud and a slump, followed by a second and a third. I quietly pressed the lock button on the keys. No further movement and I went back to sleep.

In the morning there was evidence of squirrels or cats having fallen out the tree and sliding down the roof, the windscreen and scurrying away. I suspect they hadn't encountered a sloped vehicle roof before.

I've been googling and following Ford Nugget groups to try and see if there is a better way to fold the material of the roof. It appears that I;m actually folding it better than most and I've shared a few tips of my own in several places. I can fold the roof down in under a minute and I'm that confident I can do it without trapping any of the material on the outside I rarely check these days. I just there was a way to make it look neater on the inside just for my benefit.

The pink material is my bed sheet, that I forgot to tuck away properly.

July's trip so far was to Newport to visit friends and family. Schools break up soon and we'll be off on more travels soon.

Days out in my campervan May 2026

The post this month is about the campervan rather than where I've been in it.

We belong to the caravan and motorhome club. It costs around £66 a year and the facilities are brilliant. We spent the May bank holiday at East Freshwater in Wales and decided to take the blow up awning as there was two of us and the plan was long walks and chilling at the camp site and not taking the campervan off the pitch, plus we knew the weather wasn't going to be the best.

It was one of the smallest pitches we've camped on and a very tight fit.

We were raided during the night by local wildlife. I had a package to send my son in Australia containing a football program, a bar of chocolate and a letter in the yellow bag.

The chocolate was eaten along with a bag of rice out the pantry and the letter was never found.

After that night we put all the food in a sealed box.

The last time we were raided whilst camping, I was in Kruger National Park with the 2 youngest boys and baboons broke into our tent and stole bread and cereal by opening a crate. They also tried to get in the camping fridge, but I'd sealed that with bungie cords, they'd left paw prints everywhere.

We keep meals simple in the van, but we also have a stove that we cook on in the awning. The club house on the neighbouring Parkdean holiday site had an excellent pub/restaurant so we ate there in the evenings and after a cooked breakfast in the mornings, we just had sandwiches or salads in the day.

Next up was my trip to with half the week camping on my son's drive. My eldest grandson referred to me as 'my granny lives on our drive'

Not the best views, but I only slept in it.

I kept the torch charged but being so far north it didn't get dark until nearly 10pm and was light around 5.30am.

I was running the fridge on low and used the lights when the curtains were closed so had to keep a close eye on the leisure battery.

The can was in use every day being loaded and unloaded, back and forth so I had to pack up every morning. Apart from putting the bedding back under the bench seat and folding the roof down, it wasn't too difficult as I was washing and getting dressed in the house and I was able to keep my day to day stuff in the little cubby hole under the sink. As I wasn't cooking in the van either there was little else to pack away.

I did have some parcels to pack and post and letters to write and I retreated to the van once the grandchildren were in bed for some peace and quiet

I did get the occasional visitor though.

The second half of the week I moved up to the parent in laws. I plugged into the mains and as son's house was now empty and we were now waiting for the keys to be exchanged and I'd woken early I had a chilled out morning.

I was now stealth camping as I was parked on the road. But I had the roof popped upend the van plugged into the mains. I couldn't park on the drive as it was on a slope and front to back I'd have either slid down into the small space or out the bed. I needed to park on the flat.

I really don't like the fridge in the van. I can't understand why it doesn't have a door rather than being a cool box. You have to lift everything out and you lose half the surface area once you open the lid so have no where to put stuff. I bought some cheap baskets from B&M and I've declared myself a genius.

I've done my restock and checked dates on the sauce packets and jars of jam and need to buy a new water bottle as I dropped my current one (again) and the lid leaks. I only fill the water tank on arrival at a camp site as it's extra weight. I did travel home with the waste water on this trip as I had no where other empty it.

In the Ford Nugget Facebook group there is a lot of discussion about the best way to fold the pop up roof. I can close the roof in under a minute without trapping any of the fabric or having to use empty Pringle tubes or the top of my head to rest the roof on while I roll up the fabric to stop it getting caught and ripped in the clip. I open the back door and both side doors, start to lower, pull the sides in and roll the back towards me. Our struts support the roof at this height until I'm ready to close.

However the end result is ugly, but I don't care what it looks like.

Next trip is a night or two at the end of June for my birthday, no idea where, probably somewhere in the Cotswolds and a night on my friend's drive.

Days out in my campervan in April 2026

We're not actually having many days out in the campervan, just weekends away. Which is ok with us as I aim to spend at least one night a month in the van this year. I'm booked for May and July/August, but struggling to fit something in for June, at this rate It'll be a night at a campsite near work. 

I take the campervan to work once a week to give it a run or when Peter needs the car as it's cheaper to run being a hybrid.

In April our trip was to Brighton, which of course *yawns* was for my marathon.

We're members of the Caravan and Motorhome Club and there are massive savings to be had, but you need to book early. Showers, toilets and washing up facilities are amazing, but they do shut the blocks at set times for cleaning, which does work out well on sites like this where there are 2 blocks, unlike the site in Newport.

There's loads of space between the vans as a 'fire safety break' and it's easy to find a space and pitch up.. We didn't have the awning for this trip as it was supposed to be just two nights, but we struggled to find parking for the Sunday with the marathon on and roads closed so we stopped an extra night.

It only takes around 5 mins for us to set up. We each have our own jobs. I pop the roof and sort the bedding out and the table and organise the kitchen area, while Peter sets up the electrics. We fill the water tanks when we arrive on site and quite literally that's all there is to it. We just repeat the process when we leave. The Caravan and Motorhome campsites have drainage pits when you leave so we just drive over and empty the tanks before going home.

We do have to be very careful with the wildlife, no leaving anything outside unattended or it's away. Shoes included. In Tenby last weekend, something got into the awning overnight and made away with a parcel containing a bar of chocolate and ate it all. I discovered the wrapped in the morning.

The campsite is at the top of the hill a short walk from the Marina and handy for the parkrun on the Saturday morning.

It's a 35 minute walk from the centre of Brighton, which I had to do on the Sunday before the mArathon. On the Saturday we caught the bus in and out and explored the Laines.

It looks warm, but we're in winter gear on the beach.

Fish and Chips on the pier.

I spent a lot of time in Brighton as a child. We caught the bus into Peacehaven on the Friday night to meet up with my cousin and her fiancé for dinner. We're back in June for their wedding, but staying in their house as they'll be in a hotel over the weekend.

My next trip in the campervan is for the Whitsun week where I'm staying on my sons' drive for the week.

Days out in the campervan in February 2026

I'm aiming to camp out in the campervan every month this year and so far I've camped in January and I've camped in February and I've got 2 camping trips booked for March and 1 booked in April. The only thing that's going to stop me completing the challenge is not having enough days in the year for all the commitments I have lined up.

I visited child 2 and camped on his drive. Now they've had a 2nd child there is no room in the house other than an air bed and the bed in the van is far more comfortable plus I have my own space and I'm more than happy in the van. I just pop in first thing for the toilet and make a cup of tea and if they're till sleeping I go back out, stick the heating on and I'm lovely and cosy.

It's annoying being last vehicle on the boat as your'e exposed to the sea water for the full 7 hour crossing.

We've got a convertor so we can plug into the mains and not have to rely on the leisure battery and can use the plug sockets in the van.

There was one morning it was so cold outside that I couldn't open the sliding door and had to run the diesel heater and wait until the door defrosted.

Dry robes were made for days like these.

As there was only me in the van and I wasn't using it for cooking I was able to spread out and I kept my shower bag in the house.

When I travel alone I just pack straight into the wardrobe.

I didn't use the van during the day for the week so I could leave everything set up which made life so much easier, it's not often this happens, in fact I don't think we've ever done this before.

The last night I packed the roof up as it was dry after raining all week, which meant everything inside had to be put away so I could get the lower bed out. it took me about an hour to do.

I had to remember to open a window when I put the diesel heating on for ventilation.

I didn't have a table to work from and I had to keep moving things around so I could move around.

I also lost my head space and kept forgetting when I tried to stand up.

The best thing we like about the Ford Nugget Westfalia conversion and our reason for choosing it over the Volkswagen Campervan is that when the lower bed is is use we can still use the kitchen fully as it is located in the back of the vehicle and although this isn't the best photo we can access the back through the vehicle and not have to go outside to do so as you have to in the VW. The space in the first photo is where the kitchen would be in the VW and you only get one sliding door. In our vehicle you get access on both sides which makes parking a lot easier. Also when the roof is popped up, it pops above the kitchen and not above the drivers seat, giving you full height access above the kitchen.

I think I've camped in the coldest of the weather so far so the rest of the year should be a breeze. I've got a 2 week stay in August which will be my longest stay and challenge as I'm not sure about toilet blocks and shower facilities and I may have to move around to charge the leisure battery if I don't get enough sun light and to fill the water tanks but I do have a portable toilet and and outdoor shower will just need to buy a shower/toilet tent and find a disposable waste point. It'll be annoying setting up and packing away every few days to fetch supplies etc but initial camp site prices for where I'm going are extortinate due to the event I'll be attending.