Your Custom Campervan Journey

A Beginner's Guide for UK Adventurers

Commissioning a bespoke campervan is incredibly exciting, but knowing where to start can feel daunting. From choosing a base vehicle to configuring the electrical system, the choices you make now will shape your future adventures. This guide breaks down the essential choices to help you build a van that fits your lifestyle perfectly.

Choosing the Right Van Size

Your vehicle size dictates your layout options, where you can travel, and your overall comfort. Here is how the most common UK van choices stack up:

Van Size / Type	Pros	Cons
Micro & Small Campers (e.g., VW Transporter, Ford Transit Custom)	Fits easily into standard UK parking spaces and multi-storey car parks. Excellent fuel economy. Doubles easily as an everyday daily driver.	Very limited living space. Cannot stand up fully inside. No room for a fixed internal bathroom.
Wider MWB/LWB Vans (Fiat Ducato, Peugeot Boxer, Citroën Relay)	Wider body (approx. 18cm wider than Sprinters) allows a 6-foot bed to be fitted widthways, saving massive floor space. Squarer profile provides more upper cabinet room. Higher payload capacity.	French-built mechanical builds can be more prone to issues depending on maintenance history. Extra width requires extra care on tight, winding UK country lanes.
Longer MWB/LWB Vans (VW Crafter, Mercedes-Benz Sprinter)	German-built engineering tends to be highly robust and reliable. Longer build profiles (e.g., LWB is ~7m compared to Ducato's ~6m) make it much easier to fit a full shower and bathroom toilet.	Narrower internal body limits widthway bed layouts for taller individuals. Long 7-metre length makes city parking and tight turnarounds challenging.

Layout Configurations

How you arrange your interior defines how the space feels. Consider these popular layouts:

1. Fixed Rear Bed with 'Garage' Space

• Pros: No need to assemble your bed every night. Massive storage space underneath (the "garage") for bikes, outdoor gear, and large water tanks.
• Cons: A permanent bed eats up a large chunk of your daytime living and seating area.

2. Convertible U-Shaped Seating Area

• Pros: Fantastic daytime layout. Offers a massive, comfortable social area for hosting guests or relaxing with panoramic views out of the rear doors.
• Cons: You must assemble and disassemble your bed every single day, which means managing moving cushions and bedding.

3. The Dedicated Internal Bathroom Layout

• Pros: Complete off-grid privacy with a hot shower and toilet. Ideal for long-term travel or cold UK winters.
• Cons: Takes up a massive amount of physical space, meaning you must sacrifice kitchen or seating size, and requires a larger vehicle profile.

Sizing Your Off-Grid Electrical System

To avoid dead batteries in the middle of nowhere, you need an electrical setup designed around your actual usage. Sizing your system comes down to a simple daily calculation: