Rear view of our pitch, showing parking space.
Choosing Pitch & Caravan
Once we had decided on Thorness Bay we looked at our pitch and caravan options given during our sales visit.
Pitch
The majority of owner pitches at Thorness Bay are situated at the top of the site. Obviously you are limited to pitches that are free and the best pitch sites are always in high demand.
When looking at pitches they may be occupied or vacant at the time of viewing. In our case our trail buy caravan was already sited on the pitch that we took.
We really liked the peaceful setting and you could really tell that the caravans were well cared for. We opted for vacant pitch 54 in the Solent Breeze area as it was located in an excellent location near new Luxury Lodge development. Our selected pitch had a sea view beyond the tree line which was fantastic. This area also has a handy road that runs adjacent to the park allowing direct access without having to drive through the whole park, important in busy peak season.
This location is some distance from the main facilities pool / bar, however we considered the benefits of the view and peace and quiet to be more important to us.
We liked the fact there was a car parking space behind the holiday home, remember to check the parking near your pitch and access rules.
For those with mobility issues it would mean driving down to main park facilities and beach, as the owner’s field is located at the top of a very steep hill.
Caravan
We were advised for our trial buy requirements and budget we needed to look at second hand caravans. This is often a good option for 1st time buyers as a first step to ownership.
Why Second Hand
• Cheaper than new
• Less depreciation
• You can always upgrade later
• Opportunity to check ownership is right for you before buying new?
• More for our money (we needed 3 bedrooms)
• Available – no waiting time as already located on the site
• Fully furnished
Park Resorts had a large selection of used and nearly new static caravan holiday homes.
Unlike buying a car it is difficult to obtain an independent valuation on used static caravans (such as the Parkers vehicle guide). A second hand caravan price is made up of the ‘’trade’’ value for the caravan and the value of its placement on the pitch on the Holiday park.
Our final choice was a Mirage 35 x 10 2003 3 Bedroom model.
The caravan was in excellent external and internal condition with modern kitchen and living area. Our van had electric heaters and a main gas fire in living room, but no double glazing.
As with any major purchase there some other initial costs and optional extras such as;
• Outside Storage Box
• Alarm
• Veranda
