Image of our black campervan Wilma on a beach in Denmark.

Guide

Buying a Camper: What We Wish We Had Known Before

Reading time ~24 minutes

There are already plenty of guides telling you whether you should buy a campervan, motorhome, caravan, or expedition vehicle. And almost all of them will tell you the same thing: rent one first, try it out, and then decide what to buy.

That’s not what this guide is about.

This is our personal list of things we wish we had known before buying a camper. Things that seem insignificant on a spec sheet but can make a huge difference once you’re actually travelling. And features that sound fantastic in a showroom but might turn out to be completely wrong for the way you camp.

Because ultimately, that’s what matters:

Don’t buy a camper for the idea of camping. Buy it for the way you actually want to travel.

1. Before Thinking About Features: How Do You Actually Want to Travel?

It sounds obvious, but for us, this is the most important point of all.

Before thinking about battery capacity, solar panels, awnings, four-wheel drive, or fancy toilet systems, try to picture what your actual day-to-day travel life will look like.

Not that perfect Instagram morning beside a remote lake. Think about an ordinary Tuesday somewhere on the road.

Ask yourselves:

How often will we change locations?
Do we usually want to stay one night or an entire week?
Will we mostly use campsites, or do we want to be as self-sufficient as possible?
What does “off-grid” actually mean to us — two days without hook-up or two weeks?
Will we travel mainly in summer, or in winter too?
Which countries do we want to visit?
Will we spend a lot of time inside the camper, or mostly live outdoors?
Do we want to visit cities, drive narrow mountain roads, or mainly stay on large campsites and motorhome pitches?

The answers affect almost every purchasing decision that follows.

Vehicle size isn’t just about comfort

A longer vehicle gives you more space. Obviously.

But it can also mean fewer parking options, more difficult manoeuvring, and — depending on the country — restrictions on certain roads.

Once you get beyond roughly 6.5 metres, it’s worth thinking carefully about where you actually intend to drive the vehicle.

The vehicle’s maximum permitted weight can also affect road restrictions, regulations, tolls, and other costs depending on the country.

A bigger camper isn’t automatically better.

It’s simply bigger.

2. Outside the Camper: Everything Hanging Underneath Matters

When viewing a camper, most people immediately look inside.

Today, we’d also look underneath it pretty quickly.

You can learn a surprising amount about the quality and thoughtfulness of a conversion by looking underneath the vehicle.

Ground clearance matters more than you might think

Ground clearance immediately sounds like something only overlanders and expedition vehicles need.

It isn’t.

A steep ferry ramp, rough parking area, washed-out track, or slightly ambitious campsite entrance can be enough to make it relevant.

So look underneath the vehicle:

How low does the electric step sit?
Where is the waste-water tank?
How are pipes and cables routed?
Are there heating ducts underneath the vehicle?
Are there other components reducing the actual ground clearance?

After all, there isn’t much point in buying a raised vehicle if the electric step is the lowest point underneath it.

Underbody protection and build quality

Take a proper look underneath.

Are cables and hoses securely mounted? Are they protected? Does everything look deliberate and well designed, or as though somebody finished the job with a handful of cable ties on a Friday afternoon?

Pay particular attention to:

underbody protection,
cable routing,
water pipes,
waste-water pipes,
tank mounting,
heating ducts.

This becomes especially important if you intend to travel during winter.

Water tanks, waste water, and pipes: Look Beyond “Winterised”

An insulated waste-water tank sounds great.

But what about the pipes?

Where do the fresh-water and waste-water pipes run? Are any external pipes insulated?

And if a tank is heated: how is it actually heated?

Some campers use warm-air ducts running underneath the vehicle to heat tanks. If so, we’d check whether those ducts themselves are properly insulated.

If half the heat disappears underneath the camper before the warm air reaches the tank, that theoretically impressive tank heating system may be rather less impressive in practice.

3. Accessories: Do You Actually Need Them?

There’s an interesting tendency when buying campers:

More equipment automatically feels like better value.

But it isn’t necessarily.

Every additional component potentially means:

more weight, more cost, more maintenance, another possible point of failure, and sometimes less ground clearance.

Awning

An awning can be fantastic.

If you actually use it.

If you regularly spend several days on campsites or pitches, you may love having one.

If you move every morning and mostly camp away from traditional campsites, you might spend years carrying a surprisingly heavy tube around on the side of your vehicle.

Once again, it comes down to how you travel.

Bull bars, auxiliary lights, and other adventure accessories

They look adventurous.

But they don’t automatically make your camper more capable.

A front bar adds weight and, depending on its design, can reduce clearance or the vehicle’s approach angle.

The same applies to auxiliary lighting.

Before adding more lights, ask yourselves when you’re actually going to use them.

Roof-mounted lights have another effect that may not be obvious beforehand: in heavy snowfall, they can illuminate the snow directly in front of you and seriously impair visibility.

More light isn’t always better light.

4. Tyres: Bigger and More Aggressive Isn’t Automatically Better

Large all-terrain tyres look great on a camper.

But today, we’d make the decision based less on appearance and more on how we actually travel.

AT tyres can be noisier and, depending on the tyre, perform worse on wet roads than good road or all-season tyres.

So ask yourself: how often do you genuinely need their advantages?

For many travellers, a good set of all-season tyres may be the much more sensible everyday choice.

And think about something considerably less exciting:

How easily can you replace that tyre somewhere abroad?

An unusual tyre size can become a real headache when you have a puncture in another country.

Snow chains are another consideration. In some countries and conditions, they may be mandatory. Certain large wheel and tyre combinations can make fitting snow chains difficult or even impossible.

That’s something we would check before buying.

5. Do You Really Need Four-Wheel Drive?

4x4 is one of those features that sounds incredibly appealing on a camper.

But today, we’d ask a different question first:

Do we actually need four-wheel drive, or do we mainly need decent ground clearance?

Again, your travel style should determine the answer.

Four-wheel drive can be fantastic. But depending on the vehicle, it can also mean additional weight, complexity, cost, and sometimes increased fuel consumption.

If the most challenging terrain you regularly encounter is a gravel campsite, it’s at least worth asking whether you really need it.

6. Weight: 500 kg of Payload Is Surprisingly Little

This is one of those things we don’t think can be taken seriously enough:

Calculate your payload.

Don’t estimate it.

Calculate it.

500 kg sounds like quite a lot.

Then add:

driver and passengers,
water,
gas,
bicycles,
food,
clothes,
camping furniture,
cookware,
tools,
cables and adapters,
electronics,
an awning,
perhaps another battery,
future upgrades,
and all the random stuff that accumulates over time.

Suddenly, 500 kg isn’t very much at all.

Make sure you know what your actual vehicle weighs and how much genuine payload remains once it has been fully equipped.

A brochure figure isn’t much help if your finished vehicle is significantly heavier.

7. Pop-Top Roofs: A Dream Feature With Compromises

Pop-top roofs look fantastic.

You suddenly gain another bed without having to drive a huge vehicle. Wake up in the morning, unzip the canvas, and you’re practically sleeping outdoors.

But there’s another side to it.

They can get very cold in winter.

They can get very warm in summer.

The mattresses are often thin, and sleeping comfort isn’t necessarily comparable to a proper fixed bed.

And if you need the toilet during the night?

You have to climb down.

None of this means a pop-top is a bad idea.

But we wouldn’t judge one solely on how wonderful it feels on a sunny afternoon at a dealership.

8. Panoramic Roofs: Light Versus Storage

Large panoramic windows above the cab look fantastic and bring a huge amount of light into the camper.

But in return, you also get:

more heat in summer,
another large surface that needs to be blacked out at night,
another potential source of leaks,
and, particularly in panel vans, the loss of valuable storage space above the cab.

So the question isn’t whether a panoramic roof is beautiful.

Of course it is.

The question is:

Is it worth the compromises for you?

9. Interior Layout: Plan for Real Life, Not the Showroom

Almost every camper works in a showroom.

You sit inside for five minutes, fold out a table, and think:

“Yeah, this will be fine.”

Instead, try to simulate your actual daily life.

What happens when it rains for three days and both of you are stuck inside?

Does the layout still work?

Do you really need four seats?

Do you need a television?

Or are you going to watch everything on a tablet or laptop anyway?

Where do your jackets go?

Where do two pairs of wet shoes go?

Where does the backpack live when you’re not using it?

A good layout doesn’t just look good.

It works when people actually live in it.

10. Never Compromise on the Bed

If there’s one point we’d particularly emphasise, it’s this:

Lie on the bed.

Not for ten seconds.

Actually lie down.

Together.

In your normal sleeping positions.

Is it long enough? Wide enough? Can you turn over? Do you have to sleep diagonally? Can one person get up during the night without climbing over the other?

And most importantly:

Is the mattress comfortable?

“It’ll be fine” is, in our opinion, a fairly reliable way of turning your dream camper into a collection of sleepless nights.

A beautiful camper is worth very little if you wake up with back pain every morning.

11. Heating: Don’t Just Look at the Specification

When it comes to heating, we wouldn’t only ask which heater has been installed.

Look at where the warm air actually comes out.

Where are the vents?

Does enough heat reach the bathroom?

Is the sleeping area properly heated?

Are there obvious cold spots?

And importantly:

Turn the heating on.

How loud is the fan?

How strong is the airflow at each vent?

The best heater in the world isn’t much use if the fan beside your head drives you mad at night or barely any warm air reaches the furthest outlet.

12. The Bathroom: Do the Reality Test

Personally, we don’t need a huge bathroom.

But we do want a usable one.

So during every viewing, we recommend a slightly ridiculous test:

Sit on the toilet.

Then stand in front of the sink and pretend to wash your face.

You may be surprised how many campers fail this incredibly simple test.

Some camper sinks are perfectly suited to washing the sink itself.

Unfortunately, they’re less suitable for washing your face.

How much work is it to take a shower?

Do you need to spend twenty minutes converting half the bathroom before you can shower?

Or can you simply get in and use it?

Also look at the drains.

One drain works perfectly — as long as the vehicle is parked at exactly the right angle for the water to reach it.

Several sensibly positioned drains can make a surprisingly big difference in everyday camper life.

A bathroom window matters

For us, a window in the bathroom is a must.

Showering produces a lot of moisture in a very small space. Being able to open a window and get that moisture outside quickly is extremely useful.

It’s one of those little details we’d immediately check during a viewing today.

Shower curtains and the famous “it’ll be fine”

Maybe it will.

But compromises like this always seem to work brilliantly in theory.

Then you’re standing inside a tiny wet room with a shower curtain stuck to your body.

And the modifications begin.

A magnet here. A cord there. Another clip.

Suddenly, having a quick shower has become a small engineering project.

If a solution already annoys you during the viewing, there’s a good chance it won’t magically improve after six months on the road.

13. Water Systems: Submersible Pump or Pressure Pump?

The water pump is another detail that receives very little attention when buying a camper.

But it’s worth understanding the system.

Submersible pumps are relatively simple.

Pressure pumps can provide strong, consistent water pressure.

But you should understand how the system is protected and what happens if something fails.

A pressure pump running unintentionally can, in the worst case, pump water into the one place you definitely don’t want it:

inside your camper.

14. Electricity: Calculate First, Buy Second

It’s incredibly easy to spend a lot of money on a camper electrical system.

Our recommendation:

Use one of the many camper power-consumption calculators before deciding what to buy.

Work out what you genuinely consume.

Which devices do you use?

For how long?

How often?

Again, your travel style matters.

Learn about the differences between AGM and LiFePO4 batteries, and don’t focus solely on the headline capacity.

A huge battery doesn’t automatically solve your power problems.

A big battery has to be recharged

This is something we think is surprisingly easy to overlook.

800 Ah of battery capacity sounds impressive.

But how are you going to put that energy back in?

And how long will it take?

For travellers who move frequently and travel during winter, a powerful DC-to-DC charger can be extremely important.

Solar alone won’t always solve the problem.

15. Solar: Where Are You Actually Going to Park?

It’s summer.

35°C outside.

You can choose between a parking space in full sun and a beautiful spot underneath some trees.

Naturally, you choose the shade.

Congratulations:

Your rooftop solar panels are now in the shade too.

That’s why solar has to match the way you travel.

Rooftop solar generates electricity automatically whenever conditions are suitable — including while you’re away from the vehicle.

Portable solar panels can be placed in the sun while the camper stays comfortably in the shade.

But you need to set them up and pack them away, and they usually aren’t producing anything while you’re driving or have left them safely stored while shopping.

Perhaps a combination of both is the right answer.

But it should be a conscious decision.

16. USB-C: Don’t Skimp Here

For us, USB-C outlets are essential in a modern camper.

And you need:

enough of them,
in sensible locations,
with sufficient power.

A USB-C socket isn’t much use if it can’t charge your laptop.

Today, we’d look for powerful connections delivering at least around 40 watts where appropriate — and considerably more for devices that require it.

Also pay attention to where the sockets are installed.

Beside the bed?

At the table?

Near the places where you might work?

Somewhere your devices can actually sit while charging?

These are tiny details that you’ll notice every single day.

17. Inverters: Do You Really Need 230V?

Personally, we now see a large inverter as something we’d rather avoid if we don’t genuinely need one.

A huge number of devices can now run directly from USB-C or 12V.

Phones, tablets, laptops, cameras, and even certain Starlink setups don’t necessarily require a conventional 230V outlet.

Of course, the equation changes if you absolutely want a powerful coffee machine, air fryer, hairdryer, or induction hob.

Then you need the appropriate inverter and battery capacity.

But we’d reverse the usual thinking.

Instead of:

“We have an inverter — what can we run from it?”

Ask:

“Which devices do we actually need — and do they require an inverter at all?”

18. Internet: How Connected Are You on the Road?

There’s no universal answer when it comes to internet access either.

Someone who occasionally sends messages and uses Google Maps has very different requirements from someone who works remotely or streams films and TV shows every evening.

A permanently installed 5G router with an external antenna can make a lot of sense.

Starlink can also be an interesting addition, particularly in remote areas.

But it comes with compromises.

Starlink needs a reasonably clear view of the sky, has an ongoing subscription cost, and consumes electricity.

With the right USB-C setup, its power consumption can be integrated fairly efficiently into a camper electrical system — but it still needs to be included in your energy calculations.

19. Gas, Diesel, or Electricity?

Gas works.

But for us, gas also means:

another resource you have to think about.

Bottle empty?

Now you need to find a replacement or somewhere to refill it.

International travellers will also discover that gas bottle systems, availability, and connectors aren’t identical everywhere.

A diesel heater can therefore be attractive because the fuel is already carried by the vehicle.

Electric cooking is tempting too.

Induction is convenient, but it requires substantial electrical power and therefore usually a powerful inverter and a battery system designed to support it.

Suddenly, you’re building an enormous electrical system around an appliance that might run for ten minutes twice a day.

That can absolutely make sense.

But it doesn’t automatically make sense.

20. Toilets: The Subject Nobody Wants to Talk About

But you should.

Because after a few days on the road, the toilet becomes fairly relevant.

Chemical toilets

The traditional cassette toilet works.

But it needs to be emptied regularly, and you need suitable disposal facilities.

Depending on usage, emptying it every two or three days may be completely normal.

If you plan to spend a lot of time away from campsites and service points, ask yourself whether that suits the way you travel.

Bag-sealing toilets

The concept sounds brilliant at first:

Use the toilet, seal the bag, done.

But you continuously produce waste.

Those sealed bags need to be stored somewhere until you can dispose of them.

You also rely on consumables — and if you run out, you need a Plan B.

Then there’s the question of whether you really want to seal a new bag after every single use.

Again, there isn’t one correct answer.

But it’s worth thinking about beforehand.

Dry separation toilets

We chose a dry separation toilet, and we couldn’t be happier with that decision.

The urine is collected separately and can be emptied into a suitable toilet. With two containers, the two of us usually manage around five to six days.

The solids container generally lasts us two to three weeks.

For the way we travel, it works brilliantly.

And that last sentence is the important part.

21. Storage: The Number of Litres Tells You Very Little

“Lots of storage” sounds good.

But is it actually usable storage?

Open the cupboards during a viewing.

Will your plates fit?

Your pots?

Your frying pan?

Your food?

Are there useful drawers, or will you have to crawl around on your knees every time you need something from the back of a deep cupboard?

Where will the shoes go?

Where do you put wet jackets?

Where do the things you use every day live?

And if there’s a rear garage:

Can you reach the important items without unloading five other boxes first?

Storage isn’t good because there’s lots of it.

Storage is good when you can actually get to your stuff.

22. Serviceability: Something Will Eventually Break

No matter how expensive your camper is:

At some point, something will stop working.

That’s why we’d pay much more attention to serviceability if we were buying again today.

Where is the leisure battery?

Can you actually reach it?

Where do the electrical cables run?

Are the fuses accessible?

Can you get to the water pipes and connections?

Can you replace a pump without dismantling a cupboard first?

Is there enough room to add another battery, charger, or other equipment later?

A beautifully concealed technical compartment looks great in photos.

Until you need to fix something inside it.

23. Furniture: Open Everything

Open the cupboards.

Pull out the drawers.

Move the doors.

Test the catches.

Do it more than once.

Hinges are a classic weak point.

How solid does everything feel?

How are doors secured while driving?

How are the bathroom doors designed?

Does anything rattle?

Are the edges and joints properly finished?

Remember: a camper is essentially a tiny house experiencing an earthquake while travelling down the motorway at 100 km/h.

Furniture that only just feels acceptable in the showroom is going to have a much harder life on the road.

24. The “Off-Grid Package”: Off-Grid for Whom?

One of our favourite phrases in camper sales:

The off-grid package.

Sounds fantastic.

But how does the dealer know what off-grid means to you?

Do they know your electricity consumption?

Do they know whether you want to stay in one place for three days or three weeks?

Whether you travel in winter?

Whether you charge two laptops every day?

Whether you use Starlink?

Whether you make coffee every morning with a 1,500-watt appliance?

Before buying an “off-grid package”, work out what you actually need.

Otherwise, you may be buying a very expensive answer to a question you never asked.

25. Air Conditioning: Ask When It Actually Works

“The camper even has air conditioning.”

Great.

Now ask the more important question:

What powers it?

Many conventional habitation air-conditioning systems are primarily designed to run when connected to shore power.

Of course, air conditioning can also be powered by large battery banks and appropriately sized inverters.

But then we’re talking about a completely different level of energy consumption.

Before treating air conditioning as a major selling point, ask:

How long can it run without shore power?

How much power does it consume?

What size battery and inverter would you need?

And how are you going to put all that energy back into the battery afterwards?

26. The Base Vehicle: The Latest Technology Isn’t Always the Most Practical

When buying a camper, it’s easy to focus entirely on the living area.

But underneath it all, you still have a vehicle.

And that vehicle needs servicing and repairing.

Modern technology can be fantastic: more efficient, more comfortable, cleaner, and equipped with excellent driver-assistance systems.

But it can also mean greater complexity.

So before buying, we’d look more closely at questions such as:

How common is this base vehicle?
What is the service network like in the countries we plan to visit?
How readily available are spare parts?
What routine maintenance does it require?
Can we check basic things ourselves?
Are there known issues with this particular engine and gearbox combination?

A simple example is a vehicle without a traditional oil dipstick.

It sounds like a tiny detail.

Until checking the oil level or carrying out a simple oil service becomes less straightforward than expected.

27. Our Camper Viewing Checklist

If we were viewing another camper today, we wouldn’t just walk around the interior getting excited about how nice everything looks.

We’d test it systematically.

Exterior and underbody

Look underneath the vehicle
Check the actual ground clearance
Find the lowest point underneath the vehicle
Check the step
Inspect the underbody protection
Check how cables and hoses are routed
Inspect fresh-water and waste-water pipes
Check the location and protection of the tanks
Check whether external pipes are insulated
Inspect the routing of any external heating ducts

Weight and running gear

Find out the vehicle’s actual weight
Calculate the real available payload
Include the weight of planned upgrades
Note the tyre size
Check how easy that tyre size is to find
Check snow-chain compatibility
Decide whether AT tyres are genuinely necessary
Decide whether four-wheel drive is genuinely necessary

Sleeping and living

Actually lie on the bed
Check the bed length
Check the bed width
Test the mattress
Simulate getting up during the night
Try all seating positions
Test the table
Imagine how the interior would work during three days of rain

Bathroom

Sit on the toilet
Pretend to wash your face
Try the shower
Check how much conversion is required before showering
Check the number and position of the drains
Check the window and ventilation
Take a critical look at the shower-curtain solution

Heating and winter use

Turn the heater on
Check the fan noise
Check airflow from every outlet
Check outlets around the sleeping area
Check how well the bathroom is heated
Understand how tanks and pipes are protected from freezing
Decide whether the insulation matches your intended travel style

Water

Find out which type of pump is installed
Test the water pressure
Check access to the pump
Check access to the water pipes
Understand what happens if something fails

Electricity

Calculate your expected power consumption beforehand
Check the battery type
Understand the genuinely usable battery capacity
Check the DC-to-DC charger and charging rate
Consider solar in relation to how and where you camp
Check the location and output of USB-C sockets
Decide whether you genuinely need an inverter
Check whether there is space for future upgrades

Storage and furniture

Open every cupboard
Try every drawer
Check the hinges
Test all catches and locks
Work out where shoes will go
Check where jackets can be stored
Check whether kitchen cupboards are actually usable
Test access to the rear garage
Make sure frequently used items can be reached easily

Technology and maintenance

Find the leisure battery
Find the fuses
Check access to the electrical system
Check access to the water system
Look for space for future upgrades
Research the base vehicle and service network
Understand the base vehicle’s maintenance requirements

28. Perhaps the Most Important Thought of All

When people buy campers, an incredible amount of attention goes into equipment.

How many watts of solar?

How big is the battery?

Four-wheel drive?

Awning?

Panoramic roof?

Air conditioning?

TV?

Diesel heater?

All of these are perfectly reasonable questions.

But there’s another question that should come first:

What problem in our actual travel life is this feature supposed to solve?

If you don’t have an answer, you might not need it.

In our experience, a good camper isn’t the one with the longest equipment list.

It’s the one that, after months on the road, makes you think as rarely as possible:

“Why on earth did they design it like this?”

And that’s why, if we were buying another camper today, we’d pay much less attention to everything the vehicle has — and much more attention to how well the things we genuinely need have been designed and implemented.