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Caravanette


A campervan (or camper van), sometimes referred to as a camper, or a caravanette, is a self-propelled vehicle that provides both transport and sleeping accommodation. The term mainly describes vans that have been fitted out, often with a coachbuilt body for use as accommodation.

The term motorhome is sometimes used interchangeably with campervan, but the former can also be a larger vehicle than a campervan and intended to be more comfortable, whilst the latter is more concerned with ease of movement and lower cost. For example, some campervans lack built-in toilets and showers, or a divide between the living compartment and the cab.

The United States term "recreational vehicle" (RV) is more analogous to motorhome than campervan.

Campervans may be equipped either with a "pop-up" roof which is raised during camping or a fixed roof, either shared with the commercial van that forms the basis of the vehicle (commonly a "high-top" model), or as part of a custom coachbuilt body.

Campervans usually have a small kitchen with a refrigerator (which is often powerable by a choice of gas, battery, or mains electricity) and a two-burner gas hob and grill. They generally have dual-voltage lighting which can work from either a dedicated battery (other than the van battery) known as a deep-cycle or leisure battery, or from AC power, supplied at a campsite via a hook-up cable. Larger models may include a water heater, space heating and air conditioning, a portable toilet and even an internal shower. Smaller models often carry a "porta-potty" portable toilet, and sometimes an external shower which operates within the privacy of an awning.

The term "Dormobile" is sometimes used generically in the United Kingdom thanks to a once highly popular conversion brand, and "Kombi" is used in Australia and other countries. The popularity of this type expanded in the 1950s after Volkswagen commissioned the Westfalia company to use the Kombi version of their Type 2 transporter as the basis for a campervan.


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