"Glamping"

That's short for glamour camping; parked up in suburbia with access to a shower & lovely home cooked meals.

 

We arrived in Napier to a typically hot summer's day that Hawkes Bay is famous for. With all the measurements done well before we arrived, we knew we'd be able to squeeze the van in down the side of Mum & Dads' house. We easily removed the carport canopy & steel poles on the side which Dad had allowed for when he orginally laid the concrete pad. The van fitted like a glove with the rear comfortably overhanging the vege garden without doing any damage.

 

We even had our own little flower garden out to the side and could pick Dad's runner beans out the side window.


Dad fancied his car could pull the van. Not likely!

Mum & Dad held a BBQ in honour of our new lifestyle; mainly for extended family & friends who have been following the news and updates since we made the decision to "hit the road" A lot of these families also camp out in various modes of accommodation; caravans, tents & motorhomes, and they were of course very keen to check out the towing vehicle & the interior of the van only having seen brochures up to this point.

 

They were also all very keen to offer all manner of helpful information & tips. It's great to get "inside information" as it can take years to gain this sort of experience. Not only information about living in the van but great tips on camping sites, fishing, walks, where to see what & what to buy where. Although we're not entirely "greenhorns", having spent many years boating and living for a few weeks at a time on the boat. Many of same principles apply; weight is critical, use minimal water, dump stations for waste water, no power(in most cases), gas cooking, fishing, etc, etc. It was great to catch up with everybody & we gave the van a makeover just to look the part (you can see by the presentation we used to sell boats; photo shoots for magazines were the norm)



Dining & Lounge

Forward Cabin- And in case you're wondering; we have a base board insert & zip-together matteresses for
 when we want to get cosy :)
The toilet cubicle is to my left and the shower to my right.
And yes, there is plenty of headroom.

This is with the "slide-out" out, a nice sized area. The slide-out contains the dining area & sofa.
 It's also possible to walk down the aisle to the sink if the slide-out is in.

The Galley- plenty of cupboard space & a nice big fridge.