Seasoned Beach Owners - 2 seat or 3 seats?

[Sunshine&Snow]

I have a two-seat bench & am occasionally frustrated by the lack of a fifth seat, but no way I'm adding a spare to lug in and out - they are *heavy* ...

• The box isn't that much use IMO, but it'd be good for a kettle and camping accessories.
• The two-seat bench bed is awesome (comfy and flat), and far lower than the three-seat bench bed. Having said that of course the space underneath it is also then compromised ...
• OP said four kids - is this plus two adults, or one? If you regularly need to transport five people total then it's a no-brainer to get the three-seat bench.

It's 2 adults and 2 kids.

New item by Philip Cunningham

photos.app.goo.gl

The wine makes the 3 seats look more homely! ;-) We live in central Switzerland and the alpine trips for a team is speaking our language.

 

[44danno]

The 3 seat bench for us is more flexible as we gain more storage underneath the rear of the bench (which works especially well with a 800mm sliding boot tray), still allows us fit the 2 additional seats when we need a 7 seater & the rear multiflex board is very easy to remove if we need to transport taller items.

Only downside is that downstairs bed needs a decent overlaid mattress if you want any sort of comfort, but the folding ones sit nicely on top of the MFB.

It’s best to go and have a look at a few, and decide exactly what equipment you will be taking with you and see how it all fits in between the 2/3 bench models.

Whichever you decide to go for, make sure it has the auxiliary heater fitted as this gives you another level of comfort.

Hi sorry to jump in. Could I please have more info on your 800mm sliding boot tray. Sounds interesting. Kind regards Karl

 

[Crell]

I used to do the setup @Amarillo shows in my Caravelle when away for race weekends. No multi flex so the 3 seater with the headrests attached was pushed all the way back, then one or two middle row seats in place. Worked OK with 1 adult and ideally just 1 middle row seat, but there’s v little room to move around when in that sleeping setup. We went for a 3 seat as we liked the flexibility of being able to carry 5 without having to load in a middle seat - they’re fairly heavy (and we bought a 7 seater though we’ve not used the middle row at all). If you buy a 3 seater though you DEFINITELY need a topper . I’ve slept a few times on the 3 seat without it and it’s not comfy.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Hi sorry to jump in. Could I please have more info on your 800mm sliding boot tray. Sounds interesting. Kind regards Karl

Hi, sorry it’s the 700mm that we have and it has enough space left to use the 2 removable seats if required, looks like they have revised the range/lengths a bit:

..

Calidrawer WIDE Heckauszug

Heckauszug für den T5/T6 California ohne seitliches Geschränk T5.1 Multivan, Multivan Beach, California Beach - T5.2…

shop.vwcamper.de

..

To order it’s best to use google translate on a desktop pc. Delivery took around 3/4 days, 30 mins to put it together.

Quite pricey at just over EUR 600 incl delivery, but works very well and can support a lot of weight.

 

[bdawg]

One thing to bear in mind is the length of the bed. The three seater is a fair bit shorter - about 1850mm versus 2000mm. Not an issue for most people, but annoying if you’re tall.

We’ve got a three seater, and I’m pretty tall, so we’ve had to to play about with mattress options to get a solution that works. We’ve ended up with a really nice one, that uses a small ply insert to make a rigid overhang. The only problem is the mattress is quite bulky, but it’s very comfy.

 

[Sunshine&Snow]

The multiflex really is useless but can be replaced. I'll post an image of our variation on existing solution when I remember (essentially a board hinged at the seat end, easily stowed against the rear of the seat with no silly cross beam that makes the boot unusable.)

We'd love to see your work around for the inflexible multiflex board. We looked today and was surprised at how much of a big heavy lump it looks. We're not sure though yet if it's one of the things changed on the 6.1. Thanks.

 

[Sunshine&Snow]

One thing to bear in mind is the length of the bed. The three seater is a fair bit shorter - about 1850mm versus 2000mm.

Aaahhh.... We're not that tall, but a shorter bed in the 3 seater might be really good. That would mean there's an extra 15 cm between the bottom of the bed and the drivers chair, which would give more space for a fridge/cupboard there when we use it as a camper. Hhmmm. That's very interesting and good news. Thanks.

 

[bdawg]

Aaahhh.... We're not that tall, but a shorter bed in the 3 seater might be really good. That would mean there's an extra 15 cm between the bottom of the bed and the drivers chair, which would give more space for a fridge/cupboard there when we use it as a camper. Hhmmm. That's very interesting and good news. Thanks.

yep, it absolutely could be an advantage if you’re not in need of the extra length. I’d agree with the comments about height as well - you can’t sit up in bed in the three seater. Like everything, it’s a trade off - there’s a finite amount of space in the van, so you can’t have everything. For us, needing to move 5 people is an absolute must, and we didn’t want the extra seat, so the three seater was the best choice. We’re very happy with it - the two seater looks great too though.

 

[44danno]

Hi, sorry it’s the 700mm that we have and it has enough space left to use the 2 removable seats if required, looks like they have revised the range/lengths a bit:

..

Calidrawer WIDE Heckauszug

Heckauszug für den T5/T6 California ohne seitliches Geschränk T5.1 Multivan, Multivan Beach, California Beach - T5.2…

shop.vwcamper.de

..

To order it’s best to use google translate on a desktop pc. Delivery took around 3/4 days, 30 mins to put it together.

Quite pricey at just over EUR 600 incl delivery, but works very well and can support a lot of weight.

Thank you for you kind help

 

[clarinetbcn]

One thing to bear in mind is the length of the bed. The three seater is a fair bit shorter - about 1850mm versus 2000mm. Not an issue for most people, but annoying if you’re tall.

We’ve got a three seater, and I’m pretty tall, so we’ve had to to play about with mattress options to get a solution that works. We’ve ended up with a really nice one, that uses a small ply insert to make a rigid overhang. The only problem is the mattress is quite bulky, but it’s very comfy.

Remove the headrests from the front row and attach them backwards to the 3 seat bench in bed position. It works perfectly for me, I’m 6’.

 

[bdawg]

Remove the headrests from the front row and attach them backwards to the 3 seat bench in bed position. It works perfectly for me, I’m 6’.

Yeah, we played about with that. It’s not ideal, but it does help a bit. Now we’ve got a rigid insert in a longer mattress, it’s not a problem any more.

 

[Rycorteen]

Three seater beach here. Kids aged 5 & 2.

Car seats are pretty wide but there is still enough space for my wife to sit in the middle of them legally for food etc when on long trips.
We also have TVs on front headrests so it lines up perfectly for them. It is our everyday driver also.
We don’t know yet if having another child so had to be the triple seat.

 

[LemonDrop]

View attachment 52251

Wow where is this?

 

[Perfectos]

Three seater beach here. Kids aged 5 & 2.

Car seats are pretty wide but there is still enough space for my wife to sit in the middle of them legally for food etc when on long trips.
We also have TVs on front headrests so it lines up perfectly for them. It is our everyday driver also.
We don’t know yet if having another child so had to be the triple seat.
View attachment 52251

Your kids eat your wife on long trips !

 

[Rycorteen]

Wow where is this?

Camping Jungfrau Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland. Great campsite and location!

 

[Rycorteen]

Your kids eat your wife on long trips !

Well they do chew her ear off if that counts!

 

[Brodger3]

Here are some snaps showing the versatility of the three seater bench version:

I was worried about losing the super picnic table when I swap my caravelle for a beach. This lost and these photos have changed that.