Weird caravans

To say that something comes in all shapes and sizes might be something of an overworked description. When applied to some of the caravans that might be encountered, however, nothing could be truer. Ranging from the minute, to the imaginative, the creative and the downright bizarre, it is amazing how weird some of these objects of desire may appear:

Caravans ahoy!

  • the Daily Mail newspaper has posted a story about a caravan strapped onto the bed of a catamaran – an amphibious invention of an octogenarian pensioner in Kent, the boat has been seen navigating the waterways of the Swale and Isle of Sheppey;
  • powered by an outboard engine, the craft even has an – admittedly fairly rickety – fence around the caravan’s floating “pitch”;
  • pictures were published in the Telegraph newspaper, however, of the purpose built Sealander – a small boat camper combination that has a sun roof, large windows and a bed that folds away to make room for up to six people sitting;

Style and luxury

  • the same newspaper also describes a humble caravan that – through the clever and stylish use of canvas – resembles a miniature version of the iconic Sydney Opera House;
  • quite apart from the camper’s stylish good looks is a well-appointed interior that boasts an incredible array of features;
  • these include its own gas supply to supply hot water to the kitchen and shower as well as warm air heating, an espresso bar, a chilled wine cabinet, a ceramic toilet and even a teak veranda;
  • offering the style and luxury you might expect from the Mercedes-Benz marque, the new Horizon MCV Vito campervan sports a roof that can be raised and lowered electronically, a BBQ point and two-ring burner hob, quartz granite work surfaces and a pulldown, flat screen television;
  • producing results that conjure up a cross between the inside of a space ship and a modern art gallery, the Austrian company Mehrzeller produces what it calls a multicellular caravan which allows customers to design and configure the finished version from a very wide range of geometric possibilities;

Back down to earth

  • back down to earth – quite literally in a weird kind of way – is a novel take on a landed helicopter;
  • a holiday park in Lancashire has converted a 1977 Westland Lynx XZ262 now out of active service from the Royal Navy into a – well grounded – caravan capable of sleeping up to 4 people in the two double beds installed in the fuselage, which also has a micro-kitchen and sitting area – but it is a trek along to the communal block when you want to go to the toilet or take a shower;

Is it a house or is it a caravan? 

  • one of the weirder in this collection of weird caravans is a concept from Danish designers of a modular dwelling system for people who want “to live a peaceful nomadic life” in a structure that literally walks – on its own six legs – from one place to another;
  • only from Scandinavia perhaps could there come a house designed to move at the walking pace of a normal human being because according to the designers, walking “concentrates the thoughts and creates a mental state that enforces mobility of the mind”;
  • it is probably not often that you have thought of your caravan in such terms;
  • and neither, we have to confess, is it the kind of caravan we have ever given a great deal of thought to insuring here at Cover4Caravans – but there is always a first time for everything, so if you come by such a walking house just let us know;

Tiny is as tiny does

  • the art of caravan design has long focussed on the desire to pack as much in the way of living quarters into as small a space as possible;
  • there are a number of notable examples that take follow this quest to results that give an amazingly specious feeling within a tiny floor area and also look quite appealing too;
  • the products are indeed miniature versions of more or less regular houses – take the Amish-style barn raiser, for example – that have been mounted on wheels;
  • others, such as the Mica, are more utilitarian in appearance but remain nevertheless surprisingly well-appointed inside;
  • innovation in space saving caravan design is not just a trans-Atlantic phenomenon, however, since the Maringotka (a Czech word for caravan) takes a floor area of just 258 square feet and transforms it into a light, airy and seemingly much more spacious living area

Cool

  • describing itself as a “seriously cool” caravan, the i-hut can in fact assume more than generous proportions – big enough, for example, to accommodate up to six people, two in its own double bedroom, a loft, a living room a kitchen and dining area, all heated by way of its own log burning stove.

If it is a question of being weird and wonderful, tiny, luxurious or cool, caravans might easily win the prize. Best of all, though, is that any one of these mobile homes gives you a chance to lay your head and enjoy the comforts of a holiday away from home.