First of all, an awning will literally double the size of your caravan.  Your awning will attach on to the mount which runs along the edge of one side of your caravan, so it will match your dimensions and extend outwards.  With a variety of sizes available for most awnings, you can decide how much space you need or how luxurious you really want your caravanning experience to be.  My suggestion is of course to go for the biggest – why not?  The price differences aren’t usually that drastic and it’s better to get the awning you want now rather than wishing you’d had a bigger one a year on when you realize how much you love it.

The awning is a space solution.  Even though you will have to pack your caravan up as normal when you go on holiday, as soon as you set up your awning you will have a space for an extra table, more chairs, a barbecue, and all the kids’ gear as well.  If you have two or more children, it could be fun for them to sleep in the awning rather than in the actual caravan.  They’ll feel like they’re camping, but they will still be close in case of any problems.

Finally, a quality awning is actually suitable in all weather conditions.  Even high wind won’t take it down so you can rest assured that your awning will still be there in the morning.  When it’s nice out, you can open all the windows and doors to enjoy your sun patio.  When it’s raining, the zippered shut windows and doors will keep the rain out and you will still have more space for sitting virtually outdoors.

With a choice of fibreglass or steel poles, you can determine how sturdy your awning needs to be for the type of travelling you normally do.  A seasonal awning is the perfect purchase as you only need to mount it on the side of the caravan in the spring and take it down in the fall.  If you don’t want the hassle of putting up a tent, don’t worry; an awning is not nearly as difficult!

In short, there are virtually no disadvantages to owning an awning – and I think you’ll be very happy with your purchase once you’ve taken it on a holiday.

It wasn’t our first awning so we didn’t have any trouble at all putting it up, but I think the instructions would be easy for beginners to follow as well.  Our Opus has the Carbon X fibreglass frame which seemed very sturdy even though it was lightweight, so it was easy enough for us to put up.  It held up pretty well even though Scotland was quite windy while we were there.  We had no trouble with it staying upright and I was frankly amazed at how little I felt the drafts from outside.

Something else I really like about the new awning is that it’s got big windows on the front, so I can feel as though I’m in nature without actually have to be in it.  Even when it rained, we kept the ventilation covers open as the brochure suggested but we kept an eye on them to make sure they didn’t leak.  They didn’t on this trip so I think that’s a good sign!

I also really appreciated the little touches, the obvious attention to detail from Isabella, like the cute curtains and the special nets on the side windows so we could see out but others couldn’t see in.  My husband and I really appreciated those privacy features!  It’s also quite an attractive awning, no shame in having it on my nicer caravan.

All in all I was really impressed by the quality of this Isabella awning and I know when I want to “upgrade” I’ll be sticking with them.

Overall I’m delighted with my awning, it looks modern and contemporary and I always have people asking me where I got it from and how much it was. It’s a bit of an eye turner!

My top consideration is how easy it is to put up an awning and the Inaca Elba is extremely simple.  It has lightweight fibre glass poles, so even though I’m not built I have no trouble putting it up.  Everything fits together perfectly and it’s only a 20 minute job to get it up.  It looks nice and it doesn’t get stuffy because it’s made of a nice breathable material.  It also has a lot of options for staying open or closed, depending on the weather.  I can seal it up against the rain or leave it open and let the sunshine in.  It’s a seasonal awning, so I only have to mount it on the actual caravan once a year, and take it down in the autumn.

Even though I don’t have kids, I think this awning would work perfectly for a caravanning family.  There are several doors in the awning, more if you have a bigger caravan than me, so the kids can run back and forth with easy access out.  The zippers slide easily so the awning definitely won’t tear or pull.  The windows also come with mosquito netting, so there won’t be many unpleasant bug bites at the end of a trip.  This is much appreciated for someone who attracts them like me.

I’m very glad I discovered this awning; it’s made caravanning much easier. It has really freed up space and made even the British weather irrelevant.

I got it from Discover on this occassion as they had it in for the best price. Click on the following link to get yours as well - Awning Repair Kit.

When you consider what the alternatives to the kit are as well, a new awning which can run well into the thousands, or an awning that will eventually have a new unwanted door appearing in the side, it may well be the best £10 investment you ever make. In terms of whether the kit will last and how long term a replacement it is, im really not sure. Anyone had any good experiences of the kit or any horror stories about how it has not worked for them after taking the awning out a week after repairing it.

I decided to get the awning on 2 grounds. The first was that I never had a place to put the barbeque, chairs and bikes after we used them, especially when it was raining and 2 I just wanted some more space. My awning has really done me well for the last 5 or 6 trips away. I don’t know how I’d survive my trip without it. Harrington awnings have been around since 1924 and I must admit I can understand how they’ve been around for so long. I’m a big believer in tried and tested, so a company which has proven itself over the years is always a good indicator to the quality of their products. My awning was voted awning of the year in 2008 by practical caravan magazine, which was one of the main reasons why I bought it.

If anyone is a keen on caravanning and want to make their holidays a little bit more relaxing get an awning! I can’t say it enough; the space makes any caravan a home from home.

Mrs. Wellbeck
York

The Fiamma Caravanstore awning offers a convenient and realistically priced alternative to the traditional caravan awning. The Fiamma Caravanstore can be fitted as required or secured permanently. The awning rolls neatly away into a soft vinyl zippered case and the awning bag slides into a rope track on your Caravan. After unzipping the bag, you manually roll out the awning and your ready to go.