New Coast owner in South Wales

[Saesneg Shaun]

Thanks @Zooks. Looking forward to taking it for a Tredegar Park/Twmbarlwm outing when restrictions allow.

Ogmore is right on your doorstep

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Looks great , enjoy , reckon you'll be seeing a fair few Cali's in South Wales when we are all back on the road .

Thanks @NLB. We’ve seen loads of VW campervan conversions around here, but only became aware of Californias back in the summer, and we’ve not had much chance to see them since. Good game to play with the kids though - is that a California or a conversion?

We had a Bongo before, and the equivalent forum (Bongo Fury) made us aware of a special hand signal that Bongo drivers share when they see each us other on the road. Does a similar signal exist for California drivers?

 

[kurienp]

Thanks @kurienp. What’s been your best adventure in the California?

In my own Cali - Portugal last year - read more on here - https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/portugal-2020.37198/

In a rented Cali - A tour we did in 2018 - titled Christmas Market Tour 2018. Not sure if I wrote up on that ... but that was UK >> Strasbourg >> Innsbruck >> Prague >> UK - across 10 days - Peak winter.

2021 - if all is well - then it is Norway. If interested join the chat on here - https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/north-norway-finland-proposed-meet-up-september-2021.36922/

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Ogmore is right on your doorstep

View attachment 73007

Yep - we’ll be there as soon as we are allowed!

 

[RobertCalifornia]

In my own Cali - Portugal last year - read more on here - https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/portugal-2020.37198/

In a rented Cali - A tour we did in 2018 - titled Christmas Market Tour 2018. Not sure if I wrote up on that ... but that was UK >> Strasbourg >> Innsbruck >> Prague >> UK - across 10 days - Peak winter.

2021 - if all is well - then it is Norway. If interested join the chat on here - https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/north-norway-finland-proposed-meet-up-september-2021.36922/

Thanks - will check those out!

 

[Stu@rt]

View attachment 73006
After many months of lurking on this forum (what a great way to kill time in Lockdown!), our new Coast arrived today. We’ve kept it pretty basic (mattress topper, Bay Leaf Green paint, towbar prep and bike rack) and can’t wait to start using it (today our First Minister raised the prospect of tourism opening up at Easter, so here’s hoping!).

The kids are as excited about it as I am, and can’t wait to sleep in the roof. They’ve christened it ‘Baby Yoder Shrek Robert California’ (based on the colour of the first two, and a character in The Office (US), our pandemic feel-good staple, for the third). My wife is playing it cool (note the look of slight bemusement/disdain in the photo) and is making a show of not getting excited - she can’t understand how I have convinced her to spend so much cash on a van (our last one was a Bongo that cost less than the extras we have bought on this one!) nor why I have spent so much time on this forum!

For those looking to buy or in the process of waiting, we ordered back in September and after some yo-yoing with the build dates it actually arrived earlier than the dealer predicted.

Thanks to everyone on this forum for sharing their wisdom and experience. I’ve lost count of the decisions made, the mistakes avoided, and the money saved based on my research on here!

Congratulations. Our Coast order is still in the queue. Can I ask what type of mains socket your's came with? Are the UK models shipping with UK 3 pin sockets, or continental style? I've seen previous posts suggesting that it might be down to the dealer to swap Euro for UK 3 pin ones. Many thanks

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Congratulations. Our Coast order is still in the queue. Can I ask what type of mains socket your's came with? Are the UK models shipping with UK 3 pin sockets, or continental style? I've seen previous posts suggesting that it might be down to the dealer to swap Euro for UK 3 pin ones. Many thanks

Thanks @Stu@rt.

I didn’t notice that yesterday - will have a look for you now.

 

[Disco]

Hurrah! I'm in the same boat having taken delivery of our first camper two weeks ago. The children (7 and 3) are super excited about sleeping in the roof and I'm trying to figure out where we might be able to go for our first night away once restrictions ease. Nice to have something so exciting to occupy my mind during this challenging time

 

[WelshGas]

Yep - we’ll be there as soon as we are allowed!

Nash point is nice and you can stay overnight for a £5, no shower but loo and washing facility. Little cafe as well for bacon butties

 

[Ladymuck]

Thanks @Ladymuck. I’m sure she will come around. She loves camping and is impressed by the vehicle, but we’ve never had a new vehicle before so can’t quite believe the expense. I’ve done all the budgeting so she is rather taking it on trust!

That’s a great tip re the cover less duvets - we’ll check that out.

First time new vehicle here for us too, I don't why but i feel so guilty about such an expense but it won't stop me enjoying it

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Thanks @Disco. Ours are 8 and 6, and very excited. Hoping the magic lasts! Definitely good to have something to look forward to!

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Nash point is nice and you can stay overnight for a £5, no shower but loo and washing facility. Little cafe as well for bacon butties

Thanks @WelshGas. That’s a great tip. We often walk there, and love the local pubs. Didn’t know you could stay overnight, so we’ll definitely be doing that at some stage.

We quite liked the Heritage Coast site a little further down the road too.

 

[Vagophile]

What’s the best book(s) that people would recommend for inspiration/route-planning?

I've used Rough Guides for inspiration relating to what to do and see and ACSI for planning where to stay.

 

[RobertCalifornia]

I've used Rough Guides for inspiration relating to what to do and see and ACSI for planning where to stay.

Thanks @Vagophile. Is ACSI just an app, or do they produce a book?

 

[sapto]

Thanks @sapto.

On the subject of fun, I want to start planning some major trips to Europe for when we are allowed to travel (which I appreciate may be some time in the future). There some great threads on here (I particularly liked ‘View from my van’. What’s the best book(s) that people would recommend for inspiration/route-planning?

As you said we also like to scroll through "travel section" on here and get inspired, mix it with our wishes where to go and what to do. For us at the moment it's important to have something for our youngest (almost 3) and us at the same time.
Search for "yes we camp, kids special" for some Germanbooks from Pincamps: https://www.pincamp.de

 

[sapto]

Thanks @sapto.

On the subject of fun, I want to start planning some major trips to Europe for when we are allowed to travel (which I appreciate may be some time in the future). There some great threads on here (I particularly liked ‘View from my van’. What’s the best book(s) that people would recommend for inspiration/route-planning?

As you said we also like to scroll through "travel section" on here and get inspired, mix it with our wishes where to go and what to do. For us at the moment it's important to have something for our youngest (almost 3) and us at the same time.
Search for "yes we camp, kids special" for some Germanbooks from Pincamps: https://www.pincamp.de

 

[WelshGas]

Thanks @Vagophile. Is ACSI just an app, or do they produce a book?

Both. You also can get the ASCI ID card and Discount card.
The app is free and you pay a few £ for the data for the countries you visit.
Archies Camping is another totally free app. 32,000 campsites for EU and UK. Basic information for each site but includes contact info + website links and GPS coordinates all overplayed on Google maps. Very useful.

 

[Vagophile]

Is ACSI just an app, or do they produce a book?

WG beat me to it!

 

[WelshGas]

WG beat me to it!

 

[SusiBus]

Hate sleeping bags, we just use the home duvets. They are good quality duck down, which helps them to roll down tightly, held with two straps and stored in an IKEA bag. Excellent!

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Thanks @Stu@rt.

I didn’t notice that yesterday - will have a look for you now.

We only have one, I think, and it is a UK 3 pin. Quite a few USBs and cigarette lighter ports.

 

[Stu@rt]

We only have one, I think, and it is a UK 3 pin. Quite a few USBs and cigarette lighter ports.

Great thank you for taking the time to check. That's good to know.

 

[Karlos]

View attachment 73006
After many months of lurking on this forum (what a great way to kill time in Lockdown!), our new Coast arrived today. We’ve kept it pretty basic (mattress topper, Bay Leaf Green paint, towbar prep and bike rack) and can’t wait to start using it (today our First Minister raised the prospect of tourism opening up at Easter, so here’s hoping!).

The kids are as excited about it as I am, and can’t wait to sleep in the roof. They’ve christened it ‘Baby Yoder Shrek Robert California’ (based on the colour of the first two, and a character in The Office (US), our pandemic feel-good staple, for the third). My wife is playing it cool (note the look of slight bemusement/disdain in the photo) and is making a show of not getting excited - she can’t understand how I have convinced her to spend so much cash on a van (our last one was a Bongo that cost less than the extras we have bought on this one!) nor why I have spent so much time on this forum!

For those looking to buy or in the process of waiting, we ordered back in September and after some yo-yoing with the build dates it actually arrived earlier than the dealer predicted.

Thanks to everyone on this forum for sharing their wisdom and experience. I’ve lost count of the decisions made, the mistakes avoided, and the money saved based on my research on here!

Looks fantastic.

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Looks fantastic.

Thanks @Karlos!

 

[RobertCalifornia]

Hate sleeping bags, we just use the home duvets. They are good quality duck down, which helps them to roll down tightly, held with two straps and stored in an IKEA bag. Excellent!

Thanks @SusiBus.
That’s what my wife would prefer but I’m worried about getting nice bedding muddy.

In fact, my number one issue so far is how we handle muddy shoes (mostly kids, but also adults). Do people have special shoes for wearing in the van? And if so, where do you store dirty shoes? There’s no way my kids can be relied upon to clean their shoes adequately before getting inside.