From Sandpits to Sat Navs: 15 Years of Level-Ups in Our Motorhome Life

What started as a dustpan-wielding tent trip with five kids on Benone Beach has, somehow, become a memory foam mattress, cold beer, and projector setup. This is the story of how our motorhome life evolved from marshmallow campfires and forgotten toothbrushes to on-board TVs and dodgy generators.

2011 – Tent Life at Benone

Fresh into a newly blended family, we kicked things off with a 9-man tent and all the kids in tow. Benone Beach was our go-to, with campfires, BBQs, ghost stories, and the essential tool of any beachside camper: the dustpan and brush. Sand was the enemy. But the kids? They remember the marshmallows by the fire.

The Caravan Adventures

The caravan gave us two things: privacy for visiting teenagers and a ‘getaway’ with the younger kids. Trips to Portrush and Tollymore Forest helped us realise caravanning was restrictive because you could only ever use it on a camp site.

So, we took the decision to sell it on only having to go back to the buyers that night because we forgot our pots and pans. Kathy wasn’t buying new ones.

The DIY Disaster Van

Enter the VW T4 Caravelle. A Frankenstein’s van made with parts sourced from a bloke in Aberdeen and my wild imagination. We even had joiners build cupboards and a cooker shelf. It was creative, chaotic, and completely impractical.

The Talbot Express: A Big Step in Our Motorhome Journey

Our first real motorhome: a 1996 Talbot Express 2.8 diesel. No turbo. Slow as a sleepy snail. But we loved it. We drove it from Derry to Cobh, across the Mourne Coastal Route, and it became a true family memory-maker. It had a 12V TV, a dodgy leisure battery, and Pot Noodle stains that outlived its upholstery.

Upgrades Over the Years

We learned fast. USB chargers for the kids’ endless device needs. 12V entertainment systems. DIY fixes. And a healthy distrust for onboard petrol generators that ‘might’ power your aircon. It only every seemed to work when I was testing at the house before setting off, never when we actually needed it.

The Packing List Shift

Once we packed kiddy toothbrushes, colouring books, and pyjamas. Now it’s just dog food, spare clothes, and a quick Tesco run. The kids have moved on. It’s just us, the dogs, and the road. Bittersweet, but a lot calmer.

No, I’m actually going to add to this bit (the post is already published, so I’m editing it). We take for granted those innocent moments, watching our children playing with their buckets and spades, or colouring-in their colouring books, sometimes coming off the page and accidentally drawing on the table. The Pot Noodle spillage the day, the actual day we’d just gotten the seat covers re-done at a cost of £600 (looking at you Gemma), in the moment, yeah, not great, on reflection? That’s a different thing all together. I miss it, I miss them, at that age, wrecking the place, the late night squabbles “Mammy, Rebecca feet are touching me”, typically childhood stuff. At the time however, yeah, as parent, when you look back, I wish I was more relaxed.

We eventually sold the second motorhome because the kids hated going away in it. They enjoyed the destination, but getting them into it caused more fights than enough. So, we gave up, and sold up. Didn’t make a loss on it, even though we’d had it for 2 years, which is one of the benefits of these motorhomes, they do tend to retain their value. 

But, resigning ourselves to never staying in a van again just never sat right with me and Kathy. We had to get back out there, so, there was a Bongo, and. massive Iveco long-wheel-base thing, then the VW Camper build, having spent years watching YouTube videos of other builders creating their own dreams, this was an itch that needed scratching.

Would We Go Back to Tent Life?

Absolutely not. Give me my gas heating, running water, fridge beers and projector every time. The awning is as close to the outdoors as I’m getting now.

But, and there’s always a but. I wish I could have slowed time down, to enjoy those moments for even longer, to be conscious of the fact that these days don’t last forever and we’ll regret their passing over time. I have the memories, for how long, who knows, but for now, I’m glad the journey happened and that we had a chance to make those memories in the first place, and isn’t that what it’s all about at the end of the day?

Making memories…

Affiliate Picks: Our Must-Have Gear

– USB Charging Ports
– Portable 12V TV/DVD
– Dustpan & Brush (Yes, really)
– Marshmallow Roasting Kit
– Power Bank / Inverter
– Projector for Van Movie Nights
– Folding Camp Chairs & Table
– Portable BBQ
– Gas Heater