Interior layout

[bucketyr]

I am sure that this must have been talked about before, but looking through the previous posts is a minefield!

I can't understand the predominance of fixed double beds in a 4 berth caravan. I assume that the market for a 4 berth is a couple and 2 children. Assuming it's late Autumn, or early Spring, and I don't want to freeze in the awning, when my 6 year old and her 8 uyear old sister want to go to bed at 9 o'clock, and the sitting area is converted into 2 bunks, what are my wife and I supposed to do?
Go to bed early?
Stand in front of the hob and wear ourselves out?
I caravanned as a child and 40 years ago caravans had a small seating area for 2, (which made up into beds), a very small toilet, and a seating area for adults for the time after the kids had gone to bed.
Where are they now?
I can understand a 2-berth layout as that, but a family, no way.

Does anyone have any advice?

 

[Brasso530]

Get yourself off to a couple of dealers and go in all different layouts.Take the whole family and see what suits.Dont discount any layouts,we changed our minds several times.
Personally we didn't want a fixed bed layout as we saw it as wasted space.If you did go fixed bed the front lounge can be used as two singles for the girls and you use the main bed.A caravan is only so big,so you'll be on top of one another anyway no matter what layout.hope this helps.

 

[timhowarduk]

Our older van (1993 Abi Marauder) is more or less as you describe, a double bed/dinette with curtain one end, and a huge dining area/bed the other end. Bedtime is therefore no problem. As we have four kids, two of them go in £20 halfords pop up tents inside the awning (this avoids arguments with wardens about pup tents!)

There are some modern layouts which I can imagine working for families, mostly involving fixed single beds and mid bathroom.. Maybe have a look at http://www.myidealcaravan.co.uk/ which has a series of questions to get some ideas. Also as suggested above getting to a showroom to see for yourselves is a good plan!

 

[Martin24]

There are many family friendly models on the market of varying cost and size. Many will include Fixed bunks away from the adult sleeping/seating area. Depending on weight restraints and size issues, from single axle four/five berths and some six berths through to large twin dinette twin axles, fixed bunks away from seating areas similar to their smaller cousins. As a family of five we have never struggled to find a family friendly layout and indeed our fixed bed family layout we now have has suited us better than any previous one.

 

[Raywood]

We had the layout you refer to on caravans from Trophy and Coachman many years ago and it worked very well for us. It seems to have almost disappeared these days. Lunar did make a Quasar up until a couple of years ago, but I think only Adria have that one in the range now.
Given that it was dropped from the ranges of almost every maker I can only assume it was not selling that well but it is a pity.