Is it possible to buy a LHD motorhome in Ireland for long-term travel in Europe?

armabelle

Hi there!

We (my family) are considering buying a camper here in Ireland and driving across to mainland Europe for a gap-year holiday. We are absolutely clueless about what this would involve and I would really appreciate any advice from anyone so that we can make it happen. We would be looking for a LHD campervan as it will be for mainland europe and I am able to find some used ones for sale on the websites here in Ireland. My questions are:

1) How does insurance work for long-term travel in the EU? Can you get insurance here in Ireland for all the months of travel abroad even for a whole year?
2) How easy is one of these things to drive if you are only used to hatchbacks?
3) Are there lots of free places to park them in countries like SPain and Italy or is it expensive?


Thanks for the info and helping out

piuswal

Very likely, I bought one about 5 years ago from Donaghey Motorhomes in Letterkenny, but there are plenty of others;

for just a few see ( a google search will quickly show you wall the dealers)


Carroll & McAuley Motorhome | Dublin Campervan Hire | Irish ...
www.cmca.ie/

New and Used Motorhomes UK, Northern Ireland and Ireland ...
www.thompsonleisure.com/
...
Anchor Point Motorhomes Ltd
www.anchorpointmotorhomes.com/
AnchorPoint Motorhomes are sole agents for Burstner in Ireland. Supplying a

Donaghey Motorhomes
https://donagheymotorhomes.ie/
The largest motorhome dealership in Ireland located in Donegal, supplying new motorhomes, caravans and van conversions.

www.pathoranmotors.com/


www.motorhomedepot.ie/



I'll address some of the other questions later but there are plenty of users more knowledgeable than me who will happily give you advice.

Look up Aires in France and Stellenplatz in Germany for a start.

digger58

Plenty of LHD's available here, as regards licence, if under 3500Kgs car licence, Insurance is usually a set fee for campers, I get mine for about €330, 12 months and I have had no problem getting green card cover for outside EU, Haven't seen any restriction on time spent abroad, again there is a huge difference between telling lies and being economical with the truth, if they don't ask about length of holiday time why tell them? Again they can be a bit sticky about a green card for longer than 90 days but I had insurance in mainland Europe a few years ago and a green card was standard for the full 12 months of the policy, I'm sure if you questioned them they will relent and give it for longer. I got mine for 4 month without too much hassle and a threat of a complaint if i didn't get it.

Irish Steve

If you are used to a hatchback, there will be a number of issues. The LHD aspect will be a short term transition, the gearchange being on the opposite hand is confusing for a while.

It won't be easy to drive on minor roads in Ireland or the UK because of view issues at junctions, and it will be a LOT wider and longer and higher than the hatchback, and on motorways, even at speed, it will be more susceptible to wind and turbulence from other vehicles. It won't have anything like the performance of a hatchback, especially pulling away from a standstill, or pulling out to pass another vehicle.

The most likely issue, depending on what you get, will be the rear overhang, I was driving one this week that was close on 2 metres from the back axle to the back, so even something as simple as pulling out of a parking space or moving away from a kerbside parking space has to be done with extreme care, as it is very easy to tear the side out of a car beside you, or tear the back end panels or lights off on a lamp standard if you use significant lock.

Moomat

Irish Steve wrote: »

The most likely issue, depending on what you get, will be the rear overhang, I was driving one this week that was close on 2 metres from the back axle to the back, so even something as simple as pulling out of a parking space or moving away from a kerbside parking space has to be done with extreme care, as it is very easy to tear the side out of a car beside you, or tear the back end panels or lights off on a lamp standard if you use significant lock.

Good point on the overhang.

I previously ran commercial vehicles with large overhangs. As part of the driver's induction, I would place cones quite close to the nearside rear. I'd then get the driver to lock hard to the right. The majority would be shocked at how far left the back corner moved when turning right. It's absolutely lethal when cyclists are sneaking up your inside or you are turning right and cars are passing on your inside.

Moomat

armabelle wrote: »

Are there lots of free places to park them in countries like SPain and Italy or is it expensive?

Lots of free or inexpensive places to stay on the continent.

France Passion is a scheme that allows you stay on 1000's of private vineyards, farms etc for a yearly fee of less than 30e. I think they are in the process of rolling out the model elsewhere too.

There's lots of free resources and apps to guide you towards places that wild camping is accepted.
park4night seems to be decent

As someone mentioned already. There are a large network of Aires etc in Europe. We stayed literally on the shores of Lake Garda for around 10e per night.

ED E

Having navigated thousands of kms in a LHD 8m long camper(tractor for revenue) ill throw in my two cents.

You're going from a car to a truck. The handedness really doesnt matter. You wont do small roads, you wont be overtaking so your roadview isnt that relevant. You're also as high as if you sat on the roof of your car to drive so get a top down aspect.

Of the two drivers one used to race cars and boats, the other just had average Joes experience commuting etc. For the former it was a short learning curve, the latter persistently challenging.

If you're going to do it long term remember for a few days at a time you won't move it, so all shopping/excursions will be by bike/foot/other. Having a set of decent tourers/a cargo is a great investment so you're not back and forth to Carrefour all day.

We purchased in Germany and sold at cost in Ireland years later. To do this you'd want to spend six months doing your homework and be mechanically minded so you can perform a cursory inspection yourself.

HTH.

digger58

I suppose from trucking in a previous life I tend to forget that people are not used to the bigger vehicle, very useful tips above, the other thing I have come across is people complaining about the drive, as pointed out you are not going to accelerate or more importantly STOP like a car, the handling is completely different so don't even try and compare. Just think slower and heavier, gear changes will not be as fast etc. The one place I do see damage on campers is where people get caught by the height, BE VERY CAREFUL!!!! Last year in Spain I ended getting blocks to raise a guy away from an overhanging tree that he had come too close to! Some sites have lots of trees for shade and not all are very tall! Toll plazas if in RHD in Europe and LHD here! (Mind your mirrors) It's a learning curve and take your time, what's the hurry after all!

CelticRambler

ED E wrote: »

You wont do small roads, you wont be overtaking so your roadview isnt that relevant.

While I agree with everything else you've written, my journeys would be completely scuppered if I didn't drive on small roads and know how to overtake!

Prior to buying my MH, I took the precaution of doing the training and test for a C licence. I'd asked about C1, was persuaded to go that bit further, and am really glad I did.

Apart from the physical challenges of manoeuvering a bigger, heavier vehicle (with a rear overhang), compared to driving an ordinary car, you have to pay a lot more attention to road signage. In your hatchback, other than "no entry" and "no left/right" turn, there's little that will affect you. In an M/H, though, you'll have height, width, length and weight restrictions that may or may not govern your onward progress.

What I found most useful from my training (which was conducted in a full-size rigid truck on small country lanes :P ) was learning to keep calm - and position the vehicle correctly - when you come to a junction where every route ahead, left and right seems to be restricted in one way or another.

Another aspect to consider regarding your usual driving habits is that you'll have no rear-view mirror and must use your wing mirrors a lot more than you would in a car. You also won't see the kamikaze French driver who's been tailgaiting you unless you keep an eye out for shadows and other indirect clues to his presence.