Caravan/ overlanding vehicle/ RV is part of the dreams of millions of men who love outdoors, its a ‘toy for big boys’. Are you also dreaming TO OWN A CARAVAN? Take our advice and save yourself from the hassles which we took 20 years to learn as there was no one to share insight of caravan designing/ fabrication and travelling in India when we wanted to seek advice desperately.
Holidays with recreational vehicle (RV) are in embryonic state as of now; never heard of caravans in India till a few days before the arrival of Corona. We at Green Dot Expeditions think that there have been quite a few reasons for RV tourism not getting known in India in the past. First of all, no caravan travellers were visible in India and if some were there but their visibility was very limited in comparison to today in times of portable internet in every hand, thus people were not aware about the concept. Also, most couldn’t afford as it needed quite an effort to fabricate one and turned out to be an expensive exercise, so it was considered an activity of the rich for luxury travel. The motor vehicle acts were not clear (even now there are ambiguities), and no experienced caravan travellers to design and fabricate in India. Since there was no demand for the accessories/ fittings and equipment needed for caravan, hence were not available in India. And caravans lived only in the West till Corona brought it to India!
Now, social media and the need for a safer substitute to hotel stay on holidays have made people think for caravan holidays as it ensures ‘social distancing’ to stay untouched and safe from Corona.
These days, News travels faster than light across the globe and people got to know about how in the West people who had their own caravans escaped from cities to countryside and were safer catching fish and roasting in their grills to eat with boiled potatoes. Absolutely perfect social distancing – in absence pf medical cure for Corona, recreational vehicles (RVs) caravans are the best way to stay away from the deadly clutches of COVID-19 on holidays as you are at home even while being away from home, have full control over your environment. Caravan holidays will remain as the best option till some miracle happens in the medical field.
Now, Corona and social media are going to put caravan holidays/ recreational vehicle vacations on a booster and make them popular faster than anticipated. And the tourism industry in India is waking up to the vast potential of this segment, as its bound to grow at very high speed and at a large scale.
As expected, when the concept is in cradle right now in India, most people have confusion about vanity van being called as caravans. In India vanity vans have been more well known in the Bollywood, as these are used for the film actors for the outdoor shoots to take short breaks. Though vanity vans look very much like caravans and are plush when one takes a quick look, but have basic facilities to have a short break only – wash room with fancy toilet seat, aircon, leather upholstery, fancy lights, carpet, music system, microwave, etc. In a vanity van its occupants spend short duration and need only basic comforts, they get external support for food, electricity, water, etc. Whereas a caravan has to support living for its occupants for few days to months, it has to be ‘home away from home’ on holidays.
And if one wishes to enjoy holiday/ travel in a caravan independently for more than a week or so, then one must be well versed with the machine and ready to go under the vehicle anytime! And there are some nuances which every enthusiast must understand about caravans.
Wish to have a caravan of your own then you must know the following:
Should you own a caravan in India or hire one for holidays?
Best bet would be go on a curated caravan holiday offered by experienced service providers and have a pleasant and hassle free holiday.
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- There is an old saying – easy to buy an elephant, not easy to maintain one!
- Owning a caravan/ overlanding vehicle in India sounds quite glamorous but if you are not an outdoor person with a technical flavor then better is to go on curated caravan holiday with a service provider like Green Dot Expeditions.
- Caravan in India should be for the Indian conditions and for India.
- If you are going to commission RV holidays as an effort to save money, then take advice and finalise the design and assess the size of the hole it will drill in your pocket, then you must work on ROI (return on investment) with a big magnifying glass in your hand – to know and understand if it is worth it? Before you take the plunge you must understand it with a cool mind. Don’t look for valid excuses to justify your intense desire to own one, usually all men do that when they want to own their ‘toys for big boys’.
- Driving your caravan from home to destinations will cost you far more than your car i.e. tolls, fuel consumption, wear & tear, running per kilometre. All this will add to the total cost of your holiday and make an invisible bill quite tall. It will be too late!
- How about the hassles of the police and RTOs on the way when you drive a big vehicle?
- How about depreciation?
- How about the age limit (10 to 15 years) of your caravan/ vehicle?
- You need to have quite an experience of driving a big vehicle and a driving license for a bigger vehicle than cars.
- Very expensive to maintain big size vehicles i.e. tyres are expensive, routine service, etc.
- Do you have a parking of your own in your city?
- How many days in a year are you going to have caravan holidays? If you work in a corporate then 15 days max in a year, if stretched. If you have your own business then hardly a week ten days. Instead of having your own caravan, better it is to hire one.
- Are you a bit of technical hand to carry out small repairs yourself on the road on your vacation?
- Having your own caravan sounds a great idea, but remember – on your short holiday you will have to manage water refill, toilet offload, replenish veggies, where to spend the night and keep looking for parking everyday. It’s a good idea to have your own caravan if you are going on a longer trip, otherwise these chores will eat away precious time of your holidays.
- India doesn’t have caravan parks like they have in the West. And most Indians are thinking they will travel in their caravan and use a hotel parking or a resort.
- Would you like to barter your privacy? There will be drivers of other vehicles and trying to peep into your vehicle, a common habit of taxi drivers in India. Our two friends who owned their own caravans have experienced the same.
- Onlookers will gather around your vehicle in such parkings for sure – making noise and causing disturbance and some will not hesitate even knocking at your vehicle and asking “Sir, may I see your vehicle from inside”.
- Would you like to have unwanted noise and lights of other taxis and vehicles driving into the parking lot?
- Parking of a hotel and resort or even in a camp is NOT at all a good idea – its an insult to the concept of caravan.
- With such a big investment to own a caravan, and parking it in a hotel parking or resort (as many are contemplating),its better to drive in your car and stay comfortably in a hotel with all those creature comforts.
- Remember, if you own a caravan then your travel radius will be reduced, as you will be compelled to travel within 1000 kms or so, only few may cross that “Laksham Rekha” (self created red line). You will not go out and explore destinations which you could do if you had no chains attached to your own caravan.
- Above all, Taurus is the best option with curated and escorted RV vacation – no worries of replenishment of water ration and veggies, parking, local liaison for parking.
- And if you are willing to get used to these hassles and can learn to manage all this then no looking back for the idea to own a motorhome of your own. Call us and we will design your caravan of your choice, you use it for your holidays and rest of the time we may consider to operate on a professional basis as your part time business.
- If you still wish to own a caravan then you must consult a professional (who has travelled in a carav) to even understand the basic concept and design of a caravan. You will certainly save quite a bit of money, otherwise you will burn your fingers and learn what we have already learnt; you will have to alter your caravan a few times after each trip and waste time and money. The professionals like our team who have travelled in self-designed caravans have burnt their fingers many times, you pay for that and save your own and get a mature design.
- Best is hire a caravan and enjoy your vacation.
REMEMBER: Only a designer with long experience of caravaning can advise you for the design of your caravan.
Following are the glimpses of the complexities where a seasoned caravan designer who has designed/ fabricated and travelled, burnt his fingers many times, did extensive research in the last 22 years or so (20 years of usage).
- Water storage issue needs ultimate attention and it sounds very easy but very complex to have foolproof reliable system. Our team has gone through it many times.
- Water Pump has to be selected as per the needs and the size of your caravan and then the budget.
- Water filter: must have potable water which is 100% safe. We have used many filters and tested and junked before we finalised what are the best choices.
- Toilet: its not that easy as in the houses, buy a WC and connect with cistern and pipe to flow out black water. There are many solutions: basic to advance, top brands to basic. Never ever compromise on this – if you design poorly or install wrong components and it starts emitting foul smell in side the caravan, you can image! We have the best solutions!
- Sleeping: Its can’t be designed like a bedroom but you still need enough space to be comfortable for a good sleep.
- Aircon: many think pick up a domestic split A/c and connect with a genset
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