First Time Touring in a Caravan? A Beginner’s Guide to Your First Caravan Holiday

Thinking about taking your touring caravan away for the first time?

Buying your first touring caravan is exciting, but that first trip can also feel a little daunting. You might be wondering how difficult it will be to tow, what you need to take with you, how to set everything up when you arrive, or even whether you’ll know what to do when you reach your pitch.

The good news is that caravanning really doesn’t need to be complicated.

At Hungerford Farm Touring Caravan & Motorhome Park in Pembrokeshire, we welcome both experienced caravanners and complete beginners. If this is your first ever touring caravan holiday, here are our tips for making that first trip as straightforward and enjoyable as possible.

Start With a Short First Trip

If you’ve recently bought your first caravan, you don’t necessarily need to head hundreds of miles from home on your first adventure.

A short weekend away is a great opportunity to learn how everything works.

You’ll soon discover how long it takes you to set up, what equipment you actually use and, inevitably, the few things you forgot to pack!

A two or three-night stay can be the perfect introduction to touring before attempting a longer caravan holiday.

Practise Towing Before Your Holiday

One of the biggest worries for new caravan owners is towing.

The reality is that once you’ve had some practice, towing normally becomes much less intimidating.

Before your first holiday, familiarise yourself with hitching and unhitching your caravan and practise manoeuvring somewhere with plenty of room.

Make sure you’re also familiar with your caravan and tow vehicle’s weight limits and loading requirements.

Before setting off, check things such as:

• Caravan and car tyre pressures and condition
• Wheel fixings
• Road lights and indicators
• Hitch and breakaway cable
• Mirrors
• Windows and roof lights
• Caravan handbrake
• That cupboards, doors and loose items inside are secured

It’s much better to spend an extra ten minutes checking everything before leaving than wondering whether you’ve forgotten something once you’re on the road.

Don’t Take Everything You Own!

It’s very easy to overpack your caravan on your first trip.

You’ll probably discover after a few holidays that you need far less than you originally thought.

Some useful basics include:

For setting up your caravan

• Electric hook-up cable
• Fresh water hose or water container
• Waste water equipment
• Levelling ramps or blocks
• Wheel chocks
• Corner steady winder
• Suitable awning pegs if you’re bringing an awning
• Basic toolkit
• Torch

For inside

• Bedding
• Towels
• Toiletries
• Cooking equipment
• Crockery and cutlery
• Washing-up equipment
• Toilet chemicals
• First-aid kit
• Phone chargers

And perhaps most importantly — tea, coffee and something nice to drink once you’ve successfully set everything up!

Choose the Right Campsite for Your First Caravan Holiday

Your first trip probably isn’t the time to choose an isolated campsite reached by miles of tiny country lanes.

Look for somewhere with straightforward access, good facilities and people around who can help if you’re unsure about something.

A quieter campsite can also make your first experience much more relaxing.

At Hungerford Farm, we’re a family-run touring caravan and motorhome park in a peaceful location in the Pembrokeshire countryside.

Our hardstanding pitches have electric hook-up and individual grey water drainage, while our fully serviced pitches also have mains water.

For someone taking their caravan away for the first time, a fully serviced pitch can make life particularly easy.

Arriving at Your Pitch

Don’t feel that you have to rush.

When you arrive, take a moment to look at your pitch and decide where everything needs to go before unhitching.

If you’re unsure — ask us.

We’d much rather help someone get positioned correctly than watch them struggle!

Once your caravan is in position, you’ll generally need to level it, secure it, lower the corner steadies and connect your services.

Your exact routine will depend on your particular caravan, so it’s worth keeping your manufacturer’s handbook handy during your first few trips.

You’ll quickly develop your own arrival routine.

Before long, something that took an hour on your first holiday might take you a fraction of the time.

Electric Hook-Up

Connecting to campsite electricity is straightforward, but make sure you know how your caravan’s electrical system works before travelling.

Your electric hook-up cable should be completely unwound rather than left tightly coiled.

At Hungerford Farm our standard pitches have a 10-amp electric hook-up, while fully serviced pitches have a 16-amp electric hook-up.

Remember that campsite electricity isn’t quite the same as being at home. Using several high-powered electrical appliances simultaneously can overload your supply, so get into the habit of thinking about what you’re using.

Water and Waste Water

Another thing that can initially confuse new caravanners is water.

Depending on your caravan and pitch, you’ll normally need a method of supplying fresh water and disposing of grey waste water from your sinks and shower.

At Hungerford Farm, all of our pitches have their own grey water drainage point.

Our fully serviced pitches also have mains water, which can make your first touring holiday particularly convenient.

Most caravans at Hungerford Farm find around 4 metres of grey water pipe covers most situations, and we also sell grey water pipe on site if required.

Putting Up Your First Awning

If there is one job almost guaranteed to test the patience of first-time caravanners, it’s putting up an awning!

Our advice is simple:

Practise at home first.

Trying to work out which pole goes where while reading the instructions for the first time on your pitch isn’t the most relaxing way to start your holiday.

Take your time and don’t be afraid to ask another caravanner for advice. Most experienced caravanners remember their first awning and will be sympathetic!

At Hungerford Farm, awnings are positioned on the hardstanding, and rock pegs or grippa-type pegs tend to work best.

Don’t Worry About Asking for Help

This might be the most important piece of advice in this entire guide.

Nobody starts off knowing everything about caravanning.

Every experienced caravanner you see reversing perfectly onto a pitch once had their first trip.

If you’re struggling with something, ask.

One of the things we enjoy about running Hungerford Farm is helping people who are new to touring. We’ve had guests store their first caravan with us and gradually learn how everything works, as well as people choosing us for their very first touring holiday.

There really is no such thing as a silly question.

Give Yourself Time to Relax

Once you’ve pitched up, connected the water and electricity and finally put the kettle on, there’s only one thing left to do:

Enjoy it.

That’s what caravanning is really about.

You have your own little home with you and the freedom to explore somewhere new.

Hungerford Farm’s quiet countryside setting makes it an ideal place to slow down after the excitement of your first journey.

There’s free Wi-Fi throughout the park, modern toilet and shower facilities, family shower rooms, laundry and dishwashing facilities, plenty of open space and facilities for four-legged visitors including two dog-walking paddocks and a dog shower.

Explore Pembrokeshire From Hungerford Farm

Once you’ve mastered setting up your caravan, it’s time to explore.

Hungerford Farm’s central Pembrokeshire location makes it a convenient base for discovering the county without having to move your caravan again.

Nearby destinations include:

• Carew Castle & Tidal Mill – approximately 4 miles
• Folly Farm Adventure Park & Zoo – approximately 5 miles
• Narberth – approximately 6 miles
• Saundersfoot – approximately 6.5 miles
• Tenby – approximately 8 miles
• Manorbier and Freshwater East – approximately 10 miles

You can spend the day exploring Pembrokeshire’s beaches, castles, countryside and coastal towns before returning to the peace and quiet of your caravan in the evening.

First-Time Caravanner Checklist

Before leaving home for your first caravan holiday, run through this quick checklist:

✓ Caravan correctly hitched
✓ Breakaway cable connected
✓ Road lights working
✓ Tyres checked
✓ Wheel fixings checked
✓ Mirrors fitted correctly
✓ Windows and roof lights secured
✓ Caravan handbrake released
✓ Cupboards and internal items secured
✓ Electric hook-up cable packed
✓ Water equipment packed
✓ Waste water equipment packed
✓ Levelling equipment packed
✓ Awning and suitable pegs packed, if required
✓ Caravan keys packed
✓ Booking details and directions checked

Then you’re ready to go.

Make Hungerford Farm Your First Touring Caravan Trip

If you’ve just bought your first touring caravan and you’re looking for a beginner-friendly caravan site in Pembrokeshire, we’d love to welcome you to Hungerford Farm.

We’re a small, family-run site, so don’t worry if you’ve never stayed on a touring site before or aren’t completely confident about setting everything up.

Just ask — we’re always happy to help.

Hungerford Farm is open throughout the year, meaning you don’t have to wait until the main summer season to try out your new caravan.

Once you’ve completed that first trip, you’ll probably wonder what you were worried about.

Ready for your first caravan adventure?

Check availability and book your stay at Hungerford Farm Touring Caravan & Motorhome Park, Pembrokeshire.