Money-Saving Tips for Caravan or Motorhome Holidays

As a caravanner with two children and a mortgage, I’ve discovered several things to help stretch our budget. Something that’s as relevant now as it was when we bought our first caravan.

With the cost of living continuing to rise, there’s never been a better time to see how owning a caravan or motorhome can actually help you save money.

This guide shares the tried and tested ways our family saves throughout the year; tips that can help any caravanner or motorhomer travel further for less.

Top Tip: Join a Club

Joining a caravan or motorhome club is one of the simplest ways to save money on your holidays.

Most folks join The Caravan and Motorhome Club or The Camping and Caravanning Club to access the relevant site network, but did you know both clubs offer significant member savings on much more than just campsite booking?

Both clubs provide savings across a wide range of categories, including:

• Discounted site nights: Members can save up to 30% compared to non-member rates, with even further seasonal offers throughout the year

• Ferry Travel: The clubs can bag you reduced fares on selected crossings, which means that one ferry trip can easily recoup your annual membership fee

• Leisure vehicle equipment: Savings on accessories, security products, and maintenance items

• Days out and attractions: Many popular UK destinations offer discounted entry for members

As for days out, using Beaulieu as an example, members are eligible for ticket discounts as high as 33%. Before buying or booking anything, check if a relevant deal is available via one of the clubs.

For me, just one ferry trip recouped my annual membership fee and a battery retailer’s discount scheme extended to motorcycle batteries, allowing me to save a fiver when treating an elderly Honda to a new battery.

If you’re not already a club member, joining one (or both) is one of the most reliable ways to save on travel and equipment costs year-round. Even with modest use, most owners find that the membership quickly pays for itself.

Insurance Discounts

It’s always worth checking with your caravan or motorhome insurance provider to see if you qualify for discounts.

Many leisure vehicle insurance providers offer discounts for security devices, and with some items attracting a 10% premium discount, it’s worth checking security arrangements with your insurance company or broker.

While many caravanners are aware that approved alarms, trackers, and wheel locks can attract savings, there are several less obvious items that it’s worth checking, too.

• Tyre pressure monitoring systems (TPMS)
• Trailer control systems (e.g., AL-KO ATC)
• Reversing cameras
• VIN Chip identification systems
• Secure storage arrangements, such as locked compounds or monitored sites

Querying available discounts only takes a few minutes and can save a tidy sum upon renewal.

Contact your insurer or broker directly to ask:

1. Which safety and security features qualify for a discount?
2. What percentage savings do they offer for each?
3. Do they provide additional benefits for multiple security upgrades?

It only takes a few minutes to ask, but the savings can be significant, especially when renewing your policy.

Site Fees

Even though caravan and motorhome site fees remain excellent value for money, there are plenty of ways to make your budget stretch further if you know where to look.

Both clubs offer member savings of up to 30%, a discount that’s automatically applied to member bookings. However, both clubs – The Caravan and Motorhome Club and The Camping and Caravanning Club – have smaller, often rural sites that offer incredible value for money.

For even better value, consider staying at the clubs’ smaller 5-site networks:

• Certified Locations (CLs) – run by The Caravan and Motorhome Club
• Certified Sites (CSs) – run by The Camping and Caravanning Club

These are privately owned and plentiful in number. Each venue has a limit of just five caravans or motorhomes, and although prices have increased slightly in recent years, some sites still offer caravan owners per-night fees of less than £10.

Facilities vary between sites, but many offer:

• Hardstanding pitches
• Electric hook-up
• Shower & wash blocks (some to the standard of a large club site) , with some offering hardstanding pitches and a wash block to rival the fanciest club site, but t

The individuality of these CL and CS sites must be admired. Prices also vary and usually reflect each site’s investment, although most of these smaller sites are an absolute bargain.

Rallying

If you’ve never tried rallying before, it’s one of the most enjoyable (and often most affordable) ways to make the most of your caravan or motorhome.

Rallies are organised social gatherings for caravan and motorhome owners.

Rallying is almost as old as the earliest caravan and comes in many guises, ranging from large-scale festivals to small local meet-ups.

They can include everything from family entertainment and live music to simple weekends of relaxation with like-minded people. Without exception, the organisers and attendees have been some of the nicest people we’ve ever met.

Typically, rallies are organised by a crack team of volunteers through the major clubs and owner groups, with events covering various locations and interests. As a family, we have attended:

• The Caravan and Motorhome Club’s Clubfest
• The Camping and Caravanning Club’s Torchlight Festival
• The Bailey Owner’s Club Rally
• Several other rallies that include panto visits, etc.

With with some of the smaller events having per-night costs of just a few pounds, it’s a great way to keep costs down while meeting new people.

If you’ve yet to try a rally, and own a Bailey caravan or motorhome, get in touch with the Bailey Owner’s Club.

Timeshare Caravan

Buying a caravan or motorhome is the first step to limitless holidays, although taking the plunge can seem like a big step. But sharing ownership with family can make it far more affordable and practical.

This may sound a bit leftfield, but splitting the purchase cost between family members can make a lot of sense, as the timetable of retired folk is often different to younger family members, especially those with jobs and children.

As an experiment a few years ago, I towed our caravan to a site one Friday evening and spent the weekend with my wife and children. With my working week beckoning, my in-laws spent Monday to Friday at the caravan until we returned once more the following Friday. Again, we had a great weekend and towed the caravan home on Sunday evening. If you have a family member whose schedules complement yours, it can be a great way to offset costs.

A timeshare caravan isn’t like one of those formal timeshare scheme. Instead, it’s a family-based approach to sharing the purchase and running costs and usage of a caravan, motorhome or campervan.

This may sound a bit leftfield, but splitting the purchase cost between family members can make a lot of sense. This is particularly true for multi-generational caravanners, as the timetable of retired folk is often different to younger family members, especially those with jobs and children.

As an experiment a few years ago, I towed our caravan to a site one Friday evening and spent the weekend with my wife and children.

With my working week beckoning, my in-laws spent Monday to Friday at the caravan until we returned once more the following Friday.

Again, we had a great weekend and towed the caravan home on Sunday evening.

If you have a family member whose schedules complement yours, it can be a great way to:

• Lower ownership costs: Splitting the purchase and maintenance costs between more people just makes it less of a burden for everyone.
• Make more use of the vehicle: Different family schedules make it easy to share time evenly, and if the vehicle is used more there’s more likelihood of keeping it well maintained.
• Get more value: The caravan is used more often instead of sitting around not being used for more of the year.

Food and Drink

Leisure vehicle owners contribute approximately £6 billion to the UK economy each year, with many food & drink establishments relying on our annual spend.

Our budget only allows us to eat out once per trip, and we try to make additional savings by transferring the contents of our fridge at home to the fridge in our caravan.

Also, rustling up a sandwich en route instead of searching for the Golden Arches at a service station is cheaper and healthier.

Maintenance

Following the correct servicing and maintenance schedule for your car, caravan, or motorhome not only keeps the warranty in check but also improves efficiency.

Between service intervals, simple tyre pressure checks not only make travel safer, the reduction in rolling resistance rewards you with more miles per gallon.

Gas

Gas is one of the essentials for touring, but it’s also one of the most significant running costs for many caravanners and motorhomers.

Propane and butane gas prices have spiralled recently, with limited supply exacerbating the problem.

The double-whammy of supply and demand has seen increased numbers of caravanners and motorhomers looking at refillable bottles to solve the problem.

Once purchased, these bottles can be refilled at service stations across the UK and Europe with an LPG point.

With 7kg butane and 6kg propane Calor being UK-only, a refillable gas system also makes extended European tours easier due to an LPG network that stretches far and wide.

Two of the most popular refillable systems are:

• Gaslow: A permanently fitted refillable system that connects directly to external LPG pumps.
• Safefill: A portable refillable cylinder with a built-in safety valve, allowing users to fill it themselves at designated stations.

Having used a Gaslow system on the Arctic Adventure and Bristanbul trips; they are straightforward to use.

The up-front cost is an investment, with most users reporting that significantly cheaper refill costs recoup the initial outlay.

Off-Peak Pitches

Significant savings can be had if you can travel outside of peak periods. Many campsites and clubs offer substantial off-peak discounts, and you don’t need to be retired to make the most of them.

Keep an eye out for:

• Midweek half-price deals
• Free child places during term time
• Loyalty discounts for returning visitors
• Off-season membership offers from clubs and sites

You may think this restricts savings to retired folk or parents with pre-school children, but I’ve often taken advantage of mid-week discounts.

Both my children are in full-time education but booking a seaside site less than an hour from home allowed us to commute to and from the caravan, feeling the sand between our toes less than an hour after school pick-up.

The Caravan and Motorhome Club Shop

When it comes to saving money on essentials, The Caravan and Motorhome Club Shop is one of the easiest ways to stretch your budget.

With orders fulfilled by Prima Leisure, Caravan and Motorhome Club members can save up to 10% on a wide range of leisure vehicle essentials.

For example, the 5% Avtex sat-nav discount saves a whopping £19, and even toilet chemicals are discounted.

It’s worth visiting The Caravan and Motorhome Club Shop  if you need anything for your next trip.

Money-Saving Apps & Websites

There are plenty of apps and websites that can help cut costs on fuel, equipment, and travel essentials.

The petrolprices.com app (and website) allows users to find cheaper fuel locally or when away in their caravan or motorhome. When travelling further afield, or enjoying an extended tour, a few pence per litre adds up.

Another app/plug-in worthy of mention is Honey.

It automatically scans the web for discount codes and applies them at checkout. Best of all, the service is free, and colossal savings can be had.

For example, during a recent off-grid trip to the Isle of Wight, my leisure battery conked out. Finding a replacement during a Bank Holiday weekend was cheaper than expected as Honey found and successfully applied a 25% discount code.

If you have a refillable gas system and want to know your nearest LPG filling point, the Autogas website lists location and pricing.