Tear Drop Trailers

[Niborn]

Wild camping in Norway, with a Caravan behind, will be self limiting for the best places.

Could be yes , do you have in mind some actual places you went to on your trip where a Cali towing a little Eriba would have been not possible ?

 

[WelshGas]

Could be yes , do you have in mind some actual places you went to on your trip where a Cali towing a little Eriba would have been not possible ?

Many places I spotted were sized for cars, possibly with small trailer, to keep out the big Motorhome.

Numerous picnic spots were one way road with car sized parking spots off it. Ideal for the Cali but difficult for anything else.

Ferry charges depend on total vehicle + Caravan/trailer length.

Saw very few Caravans in Norway, mostly big whites.

 

[GrannyJen]

The door on the variety of places that you can stop at slams very loudly shut when there is a caravan on tow.

A couple of times now I have cursed as I passed a couple of Brtstops that I would have gladly stopped off at had I been on my own and of course Aires are all off-limit, just popping into a road sized lay-by is a lot more difficult with a total train length of 10.5m and of course there are a lot of roads you do not want to be diving down, unless you enjoy reversing a mile or so with a trailer on the back.

Reminds me of the CC site at Woolacombe, the number of caravans that turn right just before it thinking the entrance is "a few yards down there" ... and a mile later the tractor is hauling the caravan into a field so it can be turned round ....

 

[WelshGas]

Could be yes , do you have in mind some actual places you went to on your trip where a Cali towing a little Eriba would have been not possible ?

Also make sure you have good tyres for the conditions, Don't have winter tyres on the California and summer tyres on the caravan or trailer, and don't forget a Spare, especially if it is an unusual size. Tyre shops are not common in Norway out in the sticks.

 

[Hotel California]

Could be yes , do you have in mind some actual places you went to on your trip where a Cali towing a little Eriba would have been not possible ?

Usual it's not allowed for caravans to use camperspots.

 

[Trebor]

Wild camping in Norway, with a Caravan behind, will be self limiting for the best places.

Can you elaborate please WelshGas ? We’re on Sept / Oct Northern Lights Trip for 7 weeks .

 

[Trebor]

Can you elaborate please WelshGas ? We’re on Sept / Oct Northern Lights Trip for 7 weeks .

I Should have read the rest of the post first WelshGas . Guess it’s very limiting .

 

[Trebor]

Usual it's not allowed for caravans to use camperspots.

What is a camperspot hotel California ? Am I being a bit stupid ?

 

[Hotel California]

What is a camperspot hotel California ? Am I being a bit stupid ?

Free aires , places made up for campers and campervans .

 

[Trebor]

The door on the variety of places that you can stop at slams very loudly shut when there is a caravan on tow.

A couple of times now I have cursed as I passed a couple of Brtstops that I would have gladly stopped off at had I been on my own and of course Aires are all off-limit, just popping into a road sized lay-by is a lot more difficult with a total train length of 10.5m and of course there are a lot of roads you do not want to be diving down, unless you enjoy reversing a mile or so with a trailer on the back.

Reminds me of the CC site at Woolacombe, the number of caravans that turn right just before it thinking the entrance is "a few yards down there" ... and a mile later the tractor is hauling the caravan into a field so it can be turned round ....

So overall is that a yes or no GrannyJen ? You seem very positive towing an Eriba but is it a lot more confined to booked sites ?

 

[Trebor]

Free aires , places made up for campers and campervans .

Thanks hotel california . What about small camper trailers ? Think we’re seeing you in Denmark in Sept ?

 

[Hotel California]

Thanks hotel california . What about small camper trailers ? Think we’re seeing you in Denmark in Sept ?

The spaces are usual not that big , a Cali with a trailer might fit in most places allthoug i stood on free aires with just the space of a normal parking .
In general you simply don't see people with a caravan go to those free aries / camperspots where you park for free or a small fee for one night . Those places are usual in a parkinglot , near a sportfacility , firestation , marketsquare,...
Some have signs "only campers"
You could try doh .

 

[GrannyJen]

So overall is that a yes or no GrannyJen ? You seem very positive towing an Eriba but is it a lot more confined to booked sites ?

Still very much a yes but the free and easy lifestyle of the Cali is curbed. I would not leave home towing s caravan without having somewhere booked in advance.

 

[Niborn]

Very good discussion, thought provoking, although I’m still not sure if to take Eriba or `trailer or not to Norway .. there another consideration, although v. unlikely it could snow a little in the last part of the trip .

On the pro side of adding the Eriba to the Cali my wife ( she’s French and knows very well the villages / parkings and aires etc ) ... also who is never wrong .....lol .....thinks that many places in France would be ok with a small caravan trailer like the Eriba .... probably the only way to know is try ...I pick up my Eriba in Worksop next Friday ... I’ll tow it down though France the following week and then to Italy / Croaita and back to France ....At the end of all that probably will be able to make a informed opinion..

 

[5i1ver8ack]

We must all make our own decisions of course. But, if the question is one of extra space for dog food and camera equipment etc, then I would take my trailer to Norway but not the Eriba. It's been a long time since I visited Norway, but I think I would find a caravan would limit my travelling / camping options.

When my own Grand Plan for a return trip to Norway eventually materialises in a few years, I hope to be able to do it without towing anything. I'm quite content living in and out of the Cali. I don't want to tow an extra sitting room and bedroom unless I need to. Our Eriba was bought only with my daughter in mind. After eight years resigned to a wheelchair, she has finally arrived at a point where she is making a real effort with her physiotherapy. If she is able to come on the Norway trip, I have a tiny hope that she may be able to do so without the Eriba. But unless she is able to make very considerable progress, both physically and mentally, she won't be able to come at all. So I think it will be with or without the trailer, but almost certainly without the Eriba.

Excluding considerations of my daughter, I wouldn't even own the Eriba let alone consider taking it anywhere. It works very well for her, but I don't need it. We use the Eriba as a static base. My daughter can stay in bed as necessary when we go out and about in the Cali. (At present her body can't cope with constant travelling.)

All of which rambling is simply to say, I would almost certainly not take the Eriba to Norway. If I can't get everything I need in the Cali, I'll take the trailer as a last resort.

But after I've enjoyed seeing the forthcoming photos of your Norwegian trip - wirh Eriba in tow - I may change my mind.

 

[Niborn]

We must all make our own decisions of course. But, if the question is one of extra space for dog food and camera equipment etc, then I would take my trailer to Norway but not the Eriba. It's been a long time since I visited Norway, but I think I would find a caravan would limit my travelling / camping options.

When my own Grand Plan for a return trip to Norway eventually materialises in a few years, I hope to be able to do it without towing anything. I'm quite content living in and out of the Cali. I don't want to tow an extra sitting room and bedroom unless I need to. Our Eriba was bought only with my daughter in mind. After eight years resigned to a wheelchair, she has finally arrived at a point where she is making a real effort with her physiotherapy. If she is able to come on the Norway trip, I have a tiny hope that she may be able to do so without the Eriba. But unless she is able to make very considerable progress, both physically and mentally, she won't be able to come at all. So I think it will be with or without the trailer, but almost certainly without the Eriba.

Excluding considerations of my daughter, I wouldn't even own the Eriba let alone consider taking it anywhere. It works very well for her, but I don't need it. We use the Eriba as a static base. My daughter can stay in bed as necessary when we go out and about in the Cali. (At present her body can't cope with constant travelling.)

All of which rambling is simply to say, I would almost certainly not take the Eriba to Norway. If I can't get everything I need in the Cali, I'll take the trailer as a last resort.

But after I've enjoyed seeing the forthcoming photos of your Norwegian trip - wirh Eriba in tow - I may change my mind.

Thanks for the helpful opinion, sorry to hear your daughter is having a tough time , hope she does make progress . We send our best wishes to you all .
We reckon the only way is to try it and see how we feel about it ....with our type of holidaying and little get away we will discover then when the Cali and Eriba will work or when the Cali alone is best.. our last trip in Spain we had a good time in the Cali and there wasn’t anything we couldn’t do , however as we stayed on campsites it would have been easy to bring ( we think ) the Eriba and we would have been more comfortable plus we might of driven off in the area more than we did and returned to the Eriba . Last week I went away alone to the Luberon and it was just a few nights , I think just the Cali was ok .
Ive manage to get a good deal on a nearly new one with a very high specification, only used for 7 months . If it doesn’t work out I’ll just sell it, seems they go quickly , I’ll try it on the forthcoming Italy / Croatia holiday . , suppose that’s the only way to know , just before buying the Cali wr hired one for three months on a good deal from Kamper Hire 1500£ ... i guess I’ll loose that amountif I resale the Eriba , so it seems a good call to try and see. They like Cali’s don’t depreciate very fast apparently. Given your opinions and Welsh Gas too we will think long and hard along with the experience we will have if going to Lapland with it will be a good idea .
Yes we will be posting a lot of pictures and keeping a blog too... I think one of our group Mike has volunteered to do that ...

 

[5i1ver8ack]

Our Eriba was also less than a year old and when we bought it we also had in mind the supposed high second hand value.

Our tentative first trips have, however, been a great success We have a week planned for the end of this month and a two week trip planned for the summer. Already, family members are suggesting that Provence would be a possibility.

So this may be the start of a long period of ownership!

 

[Trebor]

Very good discussion, thought provoking, although I’m still not sure if to take Eriba or `trailer or not to Norway .. there another consideration, although v. unlikely it could snow a little in the last part of the trip .

On the pro side of adding the Eriba to the Cali my wife ( she’s French and knows very well the villages / parkings and aires etc ) ... also who is never wrong .....lol .....thinks that many places in France would be ok with a small caravan trailer like the Eriba .... probably the only way to know is try ...I pick up my Eriba in Worksop next Friday ... I’ll tow it down though France the following week and then to Italy / Croaita and back to France ....At the end of all that probably will be able to make a informed opinion..

What model / bed arrangement did you go for in the end Niborn ?

 

[Gazellio]

Going for a look tomorrow I am thinking of buying now and having lower silver part wrapped in my colour Candy Red....

Then when the Rockabilly is available in 2019 I can trade the 2018 for the 2019 simples in man maths...

 

[GrannyJen]

We pick our all white one up on Tuesday. Then off to my nephew who is in a wrapping business ...

I might to might not, we could well be wanting another one next year

 

[Gazellio]

Do you have a fixed bed or Lounge/Bed?

 

[westfalia]

We pick our all white one up on Tuesday. Then off to my nephew who is in a wrapping business ...

I might to might not, we could well be wanting another one next year

Is he a wrapper or a rapper. lol.

 

[Gazellio]

Do you have a fixed bed or Lounge/Bed?

Any answer?

 

[Gazellio]

OK so I visited Automotive Leisure today to view their huge stock of (Hymer) Eriba Caravans....

I struggled to fall in love with any in any way other than exterior and concept :-(

Having owned several Top end Dethleffs, Frankia and Hymer Motorhomes I was very disappointed in the interior feel and design. Its VERY old fashioned and seemingly quite flimsy (I accept weight is an issue). Its not a place that looks or feels luxurious or even comfy so I was not impressed enough to buy or order.

I have a 2017 Hymer Motorhome in stock and interior is fabulous and makes you want to live in it so this was a major contrast with their Eriba brand. They still look/feel like the 1995 models.

The Rockabilly may be a different story as its leather seats and generally upgraded material throughout. They will have one in two weeks so I will wait until I have seen that one before making a decision...

 

[Niborn]

What model / bed arrangement did you go for in the end Niborn ?

Hiya Trebor , I’ve been out of contact for a few days as totally immersed in trip North to pick up the Eriba . It’s a 2017 Eriba Triton 430 gt with most of the extras , including choice of two heating systems gas or electric , larger water tank , shower , hot water , upgraded chassis and motormover .
I’ve never towed before and drove it down through Lincoln centre to my daughters . We think it’s fabulous. In contrast to other review here , maybe because it’s a newer model ? , we think it’s well made ( the joinery certainly no less then the Cali kitchens units ) it was ok to tow , but it’s not the same as driving with nothing attached . The body of the Eriba and all the bits fitted is well made for sure .
Last night we slept in it and we had the best sleep ever , also we used the loo and loved that . We ate breakfast in the Cali with the roof up and loved that too . During the night it rained hard , we had both the Cali and the Eriba roofs down , it’s possible to walk around the Eriba ok with the roof down . We awoke there was not a hint of condensation anywhere.
It’s not the same experience of freedom with another 5m in tow but at about the same width as the Cali we didn’t have to worry much going down narrow lanes or past cars going in the other direction . At 50mph on a straight ish road we did just about forget it was there .
Clearly for longer holidays or when one has a lot of stuff ( 350 kg payload in Eriba ))or a group of 4 people , it’s ideal ... we love it for little trips or in my own probably won’t bother .
The test will be the next few weeks , we are taking down to south of France , Italy and then Croatia. By the end of that we will really have a story to tell .
One thing we have found out is it’s easy to park in two small bays , something a 6 or 7 m motor home can’t do !
Here it is parked up at my daughters and we didn’t even use the motormover to get it in there .