Full review

Pegasus has always been a game-changer for Bailey. With its inception in 2009 came the start of the caravan construction revolution; Pegasus launched the timberless-wall Alu-Tech construction system. And when Bailey introduced the current range of Pegasus in 2016 came another first, this time in lounge seating construction.

All seven models in the range have settees with high, curved backs, unlike those in any other make of caravan. And when you transform the lounge into a double bed you discover another unique feature, more on this later.

There’s a lot of Unicorn DNA in the Pegasus; woodwork, lighting, kitchen shape, the high-arching central front window which reaches into the roofline and the deep windowsill are all standard features. A key difference is that Pegasus models have the Truma Combi 6E heating system (6kw on gas and 1.8kw on mains power) whereas Unicorns are Alde-heated.

And Pegasus has its character, with exquisite fabrics that involve red and “gold” highlights in cushions and curtains.

Our review example of the range is the twin-bed Rimini, chosen because this model is the best-seller in the Pegasus range. It’s a caravan with the instant cosy appeal; as you step inside and take off your shoes the thick-pile carpet feels lovely, and the high backs of the settees look much more house than a caravan. We had two days of quality time in the Rimini to discover more.

Showering

The Bailey Pegasus Rimini is one of seven caravans on the British market to have its toilet mounted on the rear wall, and all of them are Baileys. It’s an original shower room layout that allows for a large wardrobe (on the offside), making this a decent dressing room.

The shower is a good 70x80cm size, with a shelf large enough for shampoo needs and an air-inlet shower rose to increase flow rate. The shower door is a nice bi-fold unit with an exceptionally attractive pattern that looks, well, like a cascade of water!

Floor space is only 78x88cm, but it’s fine. There are two towel loops, one on the wall alongside the wardrobe and one on the door, plus two hooks high up on the door; that’s ample provision for towels.

The wardrobe is well designed, with 70cm of hanging width, a 40cm-deep shelf above it and, below the metre of hanging depth, a big space opens up when you lift a section of the wardrobe base. It’s perfect for loads of footwear (so often a storage challenge in caravans).

Sleeping

The nearside bed is 1.9m long; the offside one is 1.84. Both are 70cm wide. The mattresses are DreamSleep Honeycore foam construction, 20cm deep and with an almost bouncy comfort feel.

The Rimini is of course primarily a couples’ caravan, but with lounge-bed capability.

The Rimini's Lounge is like no other lounge double bed, though – except another Pegasus. Slats roll out from under the chest of drawers, but that’s the only element of this bed that’s conventional. The backrests don’t form part of the mattress (they’re best stored under the bed once you’ve made the bed up). Each settee base comes in two sections. The thinner (5cm thick) sections lie one above the other to form the centre of the mattress while the thicker (10cm deep) sections form the outer segments. The real plus-point of this unique bed construction is that you can make it up in less than two minutes. In all honesty, we can’t say it feels as comfortable as a permanent bed; but it is big, at 1.9m long and 1.34m wide.

And in the morning? The thinner under sections attach to the top sections by two press-studded straps which means they follow the top section as you flip it over to turn it back into a settee. It’s all done in 30 parts.

Storage

The single beds are quite high, which means there is a generous 40cm of storage depth under them. The tops rise on gas-filled struts, with fingertip-flick ease.

The nearside storage box splits into two; the aft section has an exterior hatch and its floor Is fully covered by a plastic tray, so this is the ideal place for water containers which may be wet or muddy when you stow for towing. It’s a brilliantly practical arrangement. There’s a partial divider in the offside bed box, too; its function will be to prevent stuff from sliding around on tow.

The under-settee lids have spring hinges, but they need a hand to hold them up unless you remove the upholstery. That’s no problem; the chances are this storage area will get little use given the right amount of storage space under the beds.

Three head-height lockers are on each side of the bedroom; two of these have shelves. Four more top cabinets are above the lounge. The Rimini’s storage capability is excellent when you take the brilliant capacity of the wardrobeTaking into account.

Dining

For two-person dining, you need to look no further than the 70c wide, 38cm deep pull-out chest-of-drawers table. It’s 3cm lower than the windowsill, but that doesn’t matter because the 51cm depth of the sill forms an adjunct to the table.

For four-person dining, though, you have to raise the offside bed to extract the table from two runners mounted on the underside of the base. Although we’ve thrown several written brickbats at tables under beds and settees in the past, this one is much less awkward to replace and extract than any we’ve seen elsewhere. You do have to hold it at a precise angle to get it in its runners, though and that won’t meet with universal approval.

Lounging

The Rimini’s lounge is simply lovely. We could relax for hours against the convex backrests; they do offer excellent back support. The four scatter cushions get our praise, too, for their well-stuffed firmness. The Rimini doesn’t have armrests, but it doesn’t need them; these big cushions do the job very well. We also like the inclusion of two bolster-shaped cushions. You can use these in the lounge or on the beds, especially when you use them as daytime recliners. TV points are in the bedroom (but there is no TV bracket here) as well as in the lounge.

Kitchen

The Rimini’s kitchen is an unusual shape, with a surface that extends 87cm towards the centre of the caravan. That’s because of the gas housing, fronted by a cabinet containing three shelves and a cutlery drawer, is beneath it. (Storing gas cylinders close to the axle is a feature designed to lessen nose weight).

The kitchen surface is 73cm wide, with a further 30cm when you raise the extension. Its size and shape make for efficiency, especially when the sink cover is in place.

We love the tall fridge-freezer which gives you the option of taking out the freezer compartment to increase the chill space. There are lockers above and below, plus a 27cm-wide, two-shelf cupboard between the oven and the shelved cabinet. And there’s a surprise: a slender cabinet on the aft edge of the kitchen contains metal spring clips for two (wine?) bottles and shelf space for at least four more. Elegant!

Adding in the two top lockers alongside the microwave which give you ample space for tableware, the capacity of the Rimini’s kitchen, while not generous, is quite adequate.

Towing

If we bought a Rimini we’d go for the optional extra automatic ATC stability control; £399 is a small price to pay for enhanced tow safety. And on the blustery day of our A1-plus-lanes journey around the Grantham area, we were conscious of keeping the speed down on open stretches of road because ATC isn’t there. Sure enough, one squally gust did give us a tug, which served to reinforce our belief that all caravans should come with ATC as standard.

Also consider

Compass Casita 574 at £!7,999 and 1401kg MTPLM

Options to go for

ATC at £399; an AL-KO Secure wheel lock at £194, and a set of bedding to co-ordinate with the caravan’s fabrics, at £209.

Test location

Woodland Waters Holiday Park, Ancaster, Grantham