Does anyone have experience with both boats and motor homes/vans?

[tombom]

Since I decided to quit living in a house a couple of months ago I keep reading about both boats and vans. I ended up being thirsty for a boat and hungry for freedom a van can give. Soon I will die from indecision. My position is that I can financially afford only one. Which one would you recommend to someone in their late twenties with a fair exposure to outdoor life, with some financial buffer and no too strong ties to one particular place?

[MtB]

Van anytime.

[Hoose]

Go the stealth camper route mate, keep it low key and you can park up anywhere

[Stilllearning]

We have had both, though now only have a motorhome. Canal boating was for a very long time my preferred way of life, and only came to motorhomes in the last 3 years, but I would say that motorhomes do give even more mobility than boats, but it isn't a really fair comparison, you are not comparing like with like.

Both hold their value quite well, unlike cars, which is a bonus.

If you want to stay in the UK then a boat would be my choice, motorhomes really are not well catered for in the UK other than on campsites. In France most towns have places where you can park up for the night free or at minimal charge and get some services.

As has been said, a van that doesn't look like a camper is more welcome in the UK.

[mrsmelly]

Since I decided to quit living in a house a couple of months ago I keep reading about both boats and vans. I ended up being thirsty for a boat and hungry for freedom a van can give. Soon I will die from indecision. My position is that I can financially afford only one. Which one would you recommend to someone in their late twenties with a fair exposure to outdoor life, with some financial buffer and no too strong ties to one particular place?

 

If it were down to me I would have a converted bus they are awesome

 

Tim

[magictime]

I'm a boater who doesn't even drive, but for what it's worth...

 

I guess there's no doubt a van is going to give you more freedom in terms of mobility. On a gut level, I'd just rather wake up every morning on the water somewhere rather than by the road somewhere, and I relish the limitations of canal travel - the enforced slowness and the fact that you're always connected to your surroundings rather than just going from A to B. If you don't feel the same sort of emotional "pull" one way or the other, I suppose it's either going to boil down to practicalities (like finding places to moor vs. places to park, finding places to empty the toilet and top up with water, etc.) or on how important it is to you to keep your options really open in terms of travelling. If you want to be able to answer a sudden urge to visit somewhere hundreds of miles away (and maybe nowhere near a waterway), a canal boat is not where you want to be. If you're happy to "go with the flow" and limit yourself to the slow exploration of a mere 2000 miles or so of waterways, they're a great place to be.

 

And if you really can't decide, I guess there's always the option of a Caraboat...

 

[Delta9]

I've lived in both a van and a boat. I definitely prefer the van but only if you are outside of the UK. I tried the van in the UK for a while and found it to be a huge pain in the ass, as stilllearning says, vans are not well catered for in the UK.

[Guest]

I agree with what some of the others have said. The UK is not particularly motor home friendly (we are currently doing a lot of research into the subject!). The continent is a different matter all together, particularly France.

 

So if you go the van route go for something more van like and less motor home like to avoid silly height restrictions on car parks and the like.

 

Cost wise, well I can't see running a motor home coming close to running a boat. The van will also give you much greater freedom and you will be able to get to parts of the country side the waterways don't get to and you will be able to find equally tranquil spots as you can on the waterways.

 

However it is a bit like comparing apples with oranges, at the end of the day if boating is really engrained in you nothing else will suffice, if you want a leisurely laid back lifestyle either would do, but boating is boating and motor homing is motor homing.

[Paul's Nulife4-2]

Hi Gang.

Yes had Both at different times in my life, and to be honest, Liked both, But that was in the days when you could stop for several hrs in service stations, without occurring a overstay fine, and there was less overhead barriers in out the way carparks etc.

I also would worry about where you would stay in a Breakdown or accident situation if Liveing' in a camper !

[Southern Star]

You really can't compare the two. I live on the road in my job, since Sunday lunchtime I've covered 1,772 miles, and I've been living like that 5-6 days a week for nearly 30 years. I could quite easily live in a motorhome, and I'd have far more space than I do in the cab of my articulated lorry.

 

However, the fact that neither a truck nor a boat are a house is where the comparison ends. You either want to be able to cover 300 miles a day or you want to cover 15 miles a day. You either want to travel at 60 mph or 3 mph. You either want to live on tarmac or on water. Martin said it's like comparing apples with oranges, I'd go even further and say it's like comparing apples with curry.

 

You'd probably find it easier to remain in one place on a boat for 14 days for free than you would a motorhome, particularly if you want to stay somewhere agreeable.

 

Personally, if I ever did decide to live in road vehicle (other than my truck) then I'd buy an ex mobile library and convert it, they are massively cheaper than purpose-built motorhomes. Or,if I was letting my heart rule my head, an ex-service double decker bus.

[rasputin]

There is also the boat on the sea option.

[Arthur Brown]

First essential question is "what driving licence groups do you have" some vans are 3.5t which is standard car, some are 4.2t for which you need group C (extra test for most people) AND you may need CPC and tacho. The biggest mobile homes are certainly HGVs/LGV so extra again. The bigger the diesel the more issues there are with emissions, soon London will be modern Euro5 only diesels, Loads of diesel vans cannot enter the M25 for their emissions.

 

Add to that the issues of parking there are things to consider.

[Graham Davis]

First essential question is "what driving licence groups do you have" some vans are 3.5t which is standard car, some are 4.2t for which you need group C (extra test for most people) AND you may need CPC and tacho. The biggest mobile homes are certainly HGVs/LGV so extra again. The bigger the diesel the more issues there are with emissions, soon London will be modern Euro5 only diesels, Loads of diesel vans cannot enter the M25 for their emissions.

 

Add to that the issues of parking there are things to consider.

 

Not if it is a Private Vehicle!! Only needed if used for business.

[Tony Brooks]

No idea how old the OP is but if getting close to 70 there are medical inspections to overcome if the van is above a certain weight. It can involve money to both your doctor and a hospital.

[Guest]

No idea how old the OP is but if getting close to 70 there are medical inspections to overcome if the van is above a certain weight. It can involve money to both your doctor and a hospital.

 

Although it may affect the op restrictions actually depend on when you passed your driving test and Motor-home weight. Most are plated up to 3,500kg for this reason. Hence most people over 70 aren't affected even after they reach that age, but younger drivers even now would need to take an extra test in some circumstances.

 

Motrorhome and driving one when over 70 linky.

Edited May 2, 2015 by MJG

[Murflynn]

Take into account that living on a boat is considered reasonably normal, and there are clear guidelines about where you can stop, and for how long.

 

In a van, unless you want to be restricted to friends' front yards or various types of caravan sites/parks, you can't safely stay anywhere on the road or in a quiet hideaway for more than a day or two without attracting unwelcome attention from farmers, residents or vandals.

[Jerra]

No idea how old the OP is but if getting close to 70 there are medical inspections to overcome if the van is above a certain weight. It can involve money to both your doctor and a hospital.

In post #1 the OP did say he was in his late twenties!

 

I have no experience of living permanently in either but a thought crosses my mind (not often I hear Jenlyn say ) but mention has been made of being more able to stay for 14 days in one place in a boat. I think it would be sensible to point out that it will be easier to say within striking distance (and keep within the rules) of anyone place say work with wheels. Well IMO anyway.

[Guest]

Take into account that living on a boat is considered reasonably normal, and there are clear guidelines about where you can stop, and for how long.

 

In a van, unless you want to be restricted to friends' front yards or various types of caravan sites/parks, you can't safely stay anywhere on the road or in a quiet hideaway for more than a day or two without attracting unwelcome attention from farmers, residents or vandals.

 

There is a degree of truth in this, especially in popular areas like seaside resorts and honey pot country side locations. The ability for the authorities to move you on is stronger and more quickly enforceable than CRT generally can achieve too.

[charlie_p]

back in the 60s id left Ireland in a Bedford van, a pottie and camping gaz stove with kettle , got a far as Ceuta, I lived in that van until I arrived back in Derry 4 years later , still had the kettle and pottie but along the way I had acquired a Spanish wife and our first daughter,

[Murflynn]

back in the 70s I spent a year in Derry (not in a van) and acquired a wife.

[balenbalen]

I am in the same situation as magictime....the sam thing is for me

[Bee]

I prefer a boat, not in the UK though, too restrictive.

[colinwilks]

We bought a motorhome and have travelled the UK and Europe fairly extensively, particularly Spain where we have family. And then we bought our boat! We're lucky in that we still have both, but if it came to a choice, we'd definitely keep the boat.

 

You sound like you've made a life changing decision and are looking to move on both literally and metaphorically. If you're content to stay in the UK, life on the cut would give you a lot more thinking time.

[DHutch]

Converted coach?