With an estimated 320,900 caravan vacation homes distributed throughout more than 4,700 holiday parks in the UK, deciding on the best location for your luxury static caravan can be challenging.
To ensure that the park is appropriate for your family, assess its size, location, and popularity, as well as onsite facilities, local attractions, and accessibility. And this is before you even consider a caravan holiday.
To assist you in making the best decision, we’ve put up this helpful guide to selecting a caravan holiday park.
So, are you looking for a beach vacation? A rural retreat?
Let us find out.
How do you choose an ideal location for a luxury static caravan?
1. Usage
How you intend to use your luxury static caravan will eventually determine a number of aspects, including its location. If you want to use your static for vacation purposes, chances are you’ll want to locate it in a setting you’ll love visiting, which, of course, is a no-brainer.
If you intend to use your static caravan for work reasons, such as an on-site home office, you should probably locate it on or near your job site. If you intend to live in your static caravan, you’ll eventually want to have it sited somewhere around your land. It becomes even more prudent if you decide to spend a vacation with every utility in-store.
However, even though caravans (whether static, lodge, or touring) are classified as transportable buildings, you must obtain the necessary licenses from your local municipality if you want to use your static caravan as permanent living accommodation.
2. Private land or a static caravan park?
When finding a new location for your luxury static caravan, caravan owners must decide whether to park it on a specialized static caravan site or their property. Both options have advantages and disadvantages, and the decision is entirely up to personal preference.
Holiday Parks
Holiday parks will charge varied levels of site fees and restrict the use of your static caravan while requiring you to have a separate primary house. On the other hand, residential parks allow for year-round residence, but they may demand significant site fees, and you must observe any rules and regulations imposed by the park.
The advantage of both options is that they are dedicated locations for static units and, hence, have the necessary infrastructure to facilitate the positioning and commissioning of your static caravan.
Private Land
If you opt to park your static caravan on private or agricultural land, you will not be required to pay site fees or comply with any rules and regulations that are not your own (or those of your local council). However, you will be entirely responsible for all aspects of your siting and commissioning, from constructing a proper concrete block base with axle stands to connecting your static toilet facilities (if any).
When setting up your static caravan, follow the correct measures to guarantee your and others’ safety.
3. Transportation and Access
Once you’ve settled on a place for your static caravan, you’ll need to consider how it will be carried out and whether your chosen site currently has adequate access to your unit.
Relocating a luxury static caravan to a location with limited roads or barriers, such as bridges, can make the operation significantly more complicated, necessitating extensive planning prior to the travel. This should be handled by the person offering your sitting services as soon as possible.
Your chosen site must also provide adequate access for your chosen unit; no matter how fantastic your sitting company is, a 40-foot unit will not fit in a 30-foot spot. Consider that a 12ft wide static caravan will require 14ft broad access; thus, when choosing your place, it is best to:
- Walk or drive the planned route.
- Measure the access points.
- Ensure that there is room for maneuver.
- Consider whether your driver may need to cross the soft ground.
In this case, it may be essential to create additional (temporary) infrastructure or to postpone the siting process until the site is ready for HGV access.
4. Base
Suppose you have decided to pitch your luxurious caravan on vacation or in a residential park. In that case, you should not be concerned about this section because parks will have already erected a suitable base. However, if you have decided to have your caravan sited on private land, you must consider the following:
- Is a civil engineer required to design an appropriate sub-base?
- Which material do you intend to use to build your basis – a concrete base is the most typical but may require planning clearance.
5. Expenses
Finally, consider the price of having your static caravan sited. For example, an average static caravan removal costs start at around £700+ VAT and can reach £5000+ VAT for twin units. Scrapping a caravan that has reached the end of its useful life costs typically in excess of £1500 + VAT. Then, you’ll need to consider the site fees charged by most parks or the cost of hiring civil engineers and building companies to build a sufficient foundation for your static.
There will be costs associated with any option, but after your unit is sited and commissioned, you will have a new home, vacation house, or office to enjoy for many years. Note that prices are subject to change at any time and vary depending on the caravan companies and holiday parks.
In the end!
Siting a luxury static caravan is a significant decision that demands considerable planning and consideration. Not only do you need to plan the setting to surround your static home, but you also need to ensure every paperwork has been dealt with, if any, was required in the first place. Once you’ve decided on an ideal spot, it’s on you to make lasting memories.
Happy caravanning!