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If like us, you have a relatively small Campervan (or even if you don’t) you may be wondering what is the Best Drive Away Awning as a way of extending your living space.
Or perhaps you want to include extra room for sleeping? Cooking? Relaxing? A good awning can be used for many things.
In this post, I will go through all the reasons for owning one, the different types, and what to look out for when buying one.
What is a Drive Away Awning?
Think of a drive-away awning as a Campervan Extension (or Caravan, or Motorhome). It is simply a tent-like structure that attaches to the side of your campervan.
When erected, either with air poles or normal tent poles, it adds extra living space. Simply put, you can get from your ‘van, and back again, without going ‘outside’.
The extra benefit is, that it easily detaches, and attaches again, to your awning without it having to be deflated, with a simple add-on called a drive away kit.
Main things to consider
Give it some thought before you take the plunge and part with hundreds of pounds for your Drive Away Awning.
- Cost – How much do you want (or how much can you afford) to pay?
- Ease of Use – How easy it is to set up. There are Pole Awnings, which have to be pieced together in the traditional way, or air awnings, that are erected by inflating air tubes within the awning itself.
We have always opted for the air awning, and while it is super quick to inflate, deflating it when you leave is not a fun job, especially if you have to squeeze all the air out of the tubes.
- Space – How much space do you want or need? Are you using it just for storage? As a living space? Maybe even extra bedrooms?
- Extra Rooms – Will you ever want to divide off the room inside? Look for a drive-away awning that has built-in clips/attachments to erect modules inside, to create another bedroom or private space.
- Its Use – What about cooking? Of course, it is never really advisable to cook inside an awning, so will you want a porch over one of the doors so you could still cook in inclement weather? The porch area may also be handy if you need to remove shoes or wet clothes in rainy conditions.
- Van Access – Think about how you are going to want to access the van once the Drive Away Awning is attached. Most have a door in the tunnel section of the awning, meaning you don’t have to go through the actual awning itself. There are the odd ones that don’t. The Isabella Air X-Tension for example.
- Orientation – And while we are on the subject of accessing the van, be aware that some awnings have doors at both ends of the tunnel, and others only at one end. Worth considering when you decide which way you park on your pitch at a campground.
- What is included – They say they are Drive Away Awnings, but in many cases, you may have to buy a drive-away awning kit separately. What about a carpet to make those summer evenings even more comfortable.
- Awning Height – Check the height of your van. Some awnings are branded Low (for a VW Campervan or similar) and High, for perhaps a full-size motorhome.
- Shape and Style – Think about the style. Square with little light, or hexagonal with 5 opening sides letting in lots of light? Do you want it to convert into a gazebo-style shelter?
The Benefits and Drawbacks of having a Drive Away Awning
There are many great reasons for buying a drive away awning. Of course, there are also some downsides to consider too.
While having the extra space is great, it is not without its drawbacks. In this section, I will go through the positives and negatives.
Let’s start with the Positives
Positives
Space – Let’s get this obvious one out of the way. A decent size drive away awning could substantially increase the space you have to live in.
Our VW California has about a 5-foot square area we live in, with the front seats swivelled. Add even a medium-size awning, and this could triple, even quadruple the size.
Privacy – It could be used as a dressing room in the morning, or perhaps even an extra bedroom if your campervan only sleeps 2.
Entertaining – Perhaps you want to use it for eating and relaxing in. As much as we wish it wasn’t the case, sometimes even warm summer days turn into cooler nights here in the UK. Having somewhere to relax knowing your beds in the Campervan are already made up would be a bonus.
Storage – Perhaps you have a car seat you would like to store somewhere. What about sleeping bags and duvets when you pack the beds up and go out for the day? A campervan drive away awning will solve all these problems, and give you more room in the van.
Shelter – Finally, if you are hanging out at the van, and the weather takes a turn for the worse, it would be nice to have a decent area to sit and watch the world go by. What if you get caught out in a shower when out and about? It is perfect for an area to change in, and somewhere to leave wet things to dry.
Negatives
Of course, there will always be a few negatives. The main ones we have found are as follows.
Transporting – You will of course have to store and transport the awning. And while that sounds like a trivial point, they are not small items. For instance, our drive away awning we have just purchased (more on that in another post) is 70cm x 40cm x 50cm when packed away.
And that doesn’t include the groundsheet protector or the carpet for inside to add that bit of luxury.
Storing it at home – You need space to store it at home. We store all our gear in our garage, and it takes up a decent size set of shelves. What if you live in a 3rd-floor apartment? Do you leave it in the van and carry it around everywhere? Lug it up the stairs?
Cost – These things are not cheap. Expect to pay £300 or £400 for a cheaper one, going all the way up to £1,350 for one near the top of the range (and I am sure there are more expensive ones than this!)
Time – They will add 30 minutes at least to your set-up and pack downtime. Therefore, consider that when you arrive at 7pm in the rain, or have to pack up to be out by 10 or 11 am.
Check the Warranty Before Buying
Before you take the plunge and fork out hundreds of pounds for your Campervan drive away awning, it is worth researching the supplier you buy it from.
During a previous show we visited, a stockist for Vango explained that some of their suppliers were ‘struck off’ and no longer allowed to sell Vango products as they were selling them at less than the RRP.
As a result, Vango would not honour the warranty on products from these suppliers.
I am not mentioning any names, and I have not been able to substantiate this claim. The stockist I spoke to had nothing to gain, as they did not have what we wanted in stock.
I just feel that as I have this knowledge, I want to share it with you, our readers, so you can make use of all the information we have.
Which Campervan Drive Away Awning did we look at?
We looked at several different awnings, below are the type of things we looked at.
We ended up going with the Vango AirHub Hexaway II Low, for the smaller van. There will be a full review coming soon on this awning.
Vango Galli III Air Drive Away 2022
Vango AirHub Hexaway II Tall (there is also a Low version for smaller vans)
Kampa Touring AIR LH Driveaway Awning
Isabella Air X-Tension
Currently unavailable at the time of typing.
Other Awnings to Consider
Here are a number of other awnings that you may wish to look at.
I have added these to give you the opportunity to see what other products and awnings are on the market.
Outdoor Revolution Cayman Cona Air Low
Outdoor Revolution Cayman F/G Cayman Low Top Drive-Away Awning 2021
Outwell Blossburg 380 Air Cruising Drive Away Campervan Inflatable Awning Tent
Kampa Cross AIR Driveaway Awning
Vango Faros II Low Drive-Away Air Awning
Videos about finding the right Drive Away Awning
Conclusion for choosing a Drive Away Awning
The two main things to consider are what are you going to use the Drive Away Awning for, and the cost.
We wanted something easy to put up, and something that was going to be a nice place to spend some time during those camping evenings.
This is why we chose the Vango AirHub Hexaway 2. But, there are cheaper options.
Our bundle cost us over £900. This included the Awning itself, the fitted carpet, a groundsheet protector and the drive away awning kit.
You can find a video of us unpacking and putting up our Drive Away Awning for the first time here.
We have used the awning on a couple of trips, and while we are still getting used to putting it up efficiently, we love it while it is up. However, once we get accustomed to setting it up quickly, I think it will serve us well in the future.
Summary
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