Full review

Light, impressive storage and with two dining areas, the Compass Casita 586 is a six-berth caravan with lots of practicality

Photos by Richard Chapman

The Spanish word “casita” means “small house”. It’s a cute name for a caravan. That is appropriate for the 586 model. Why? Because, it’s not the biggest family caravan in the six-model Casita range. That's the eight feet wide 866. It is because the 586 accommodates its brood with excellent use of its modest length.

Three neat, clearly-defined areas give you fixed bunk beds. Plus, you can convert two more bunks from the offside two-seater dining area. It has a lounge long enough to use as single beds if you should wish. Best of all, this caravan’s MTPLM is only 1460kg, which makes it one of Britain’s lightest six-berths.

Compass re-launched the entire range for 2017. The company produced new names and new positioning in the marketplace. The Casita is the lowest-spec of the three Compass ranges and the most affordable.

Compass mirrored the range in layout, price and weight by the six Avanté models. If you’re seeking a single-axle six-berth you’d be well advised to look at both the Casita 586 and the Avanté 586.

Which you choose will depend on your tastes. Their woodwork and fabrics create different characters.

The Avanté and Casita 586 owe their existence to the success of the same layout in the lower-priced, lower-spec Xplore range. The Explorer Group, which has a big choice of layouts (12) designed for families, now gives buyers more choice with this practical layout. if you want higher spec than the Xplore, here it is…

Both Casitas and Avantés have full-sized ovens (compared with the Xplores’ combination oven-grill units). And, they have a more powerful 4.3kw Whale blown air heating system, controlled from the Whale iVan touch screen panel. It exhibits a series of symbols and it’s easy to find your way around the functions.

So, we’ve switched on the heating, the warmth is whirring its way around the caravan and we start exploring…

Showering B

The shower room shape is rather like a triangle with two of the corners cut off. It occupies half of the width of the caravan. The circular shower is in its nearside corner. The toilet and washbasin are against the offside wall.

Most shower room layouts conform to a pattern. But this one is different and it works well. It has enough space for family washing and clothes-changing, too. Two cabinets and five shelves just about enough accommodation for necessities.

There is only one towel provision, though, of one loop. If we bought a 586 we’d be asking for more loops, hooks or bars, so that everyone’s towels could hang up to dry in the little room.

Sleeping B

Kids love bunks, especially when they’re secluded. The bunks in the 586 are almost concealed by a part wall at the end of the kitchen. That's even before you draw the curtains around them. They’re long, at 1.82m; no chance of the kids growing out of these for a while, then!

The lower bunk that makes up in the dining area is almost as long, at 1.8m (the upper bunk is shorter, at 1.64m). And there’s a neat arrangement for the curtain. It provides privacy when the bunks are in use; its track takes it into the wardrobe!

The lounge makes a two-metre long double bed that’s 1.3m wide. And, if you go for the £210 option of a U-shaped lounge, your double bed is even bigger.

Storage A

The wardrobe has a 50cm-wide rail, full hanging depth and two large shelves beneath it. Seven head-height lockers plus two drawers (at the front) give ample space for small items. Then there’s the under-seating space to consider… There’s a lot of it.

There is a completely clear area under the nearside settee (with a full-length door). You will find space in almost all the offside under-settee space. The fuse box and charger grabs a little space here. And, when you remove the dining area seats the bases lift up on self-supporting hinges to reveal more storage.

The base of the lower bunk lifts to reveal another big storage area, although you have to hold this one up. It doesn’t have self-supporting hinges. Their absence means that reaching stuff at the far end of the bunk would be a little awkward.

But there’s so much storage space in the 586. It would be easy to avoid using the under-bunk area for anything other than sleeping bags and pillows, which are easy to pull out.

Dining A

Family dining options make for family harmony and the 586 ticks that box. All six can eat in the lounge, especially if you extend the chest-of-drawers-top and use this as well as the table. The table lives in its own slot in the cabinet that divides the lounge from the side dining area.

Or four can eat in the lounge and two more in the – one could say – kitchen-diner. The only debate is who eats where…

Lounging A

By the time our analysis focuses on the lounging arrangements the Whale heating has done its job. The 586 is toasty. We’ve turned the heating system onto its quieter “night time” setting to test the difference. The whirring is now at a level that you would hardly notice when everything is quiet after bedtime.

Fleece jackets have been off for some time and the cosy ambience of four gold-thread-patterned cushions is working its charm on us. The sofas are 1.75m long; ample for stretch-out reclining as we make time to notice the lighting style.

A neat white strip of light is set flush into the white woodwork that borders the top of the front windows. More white light streams from above the top lockers. And three spotlights are set into roof to emphasise the skylight.

Kitchen A

We love Casitas’ large, circular sinks (40cm in diameter). No need to take the dishes to campsite washing-up sinks if you get a 586! And the black gloss enamel surface is almost certain to survive years of caravanning without scratches or stains.

With the sink top in place, there’s a 92cm-long surface. And if that’s not enough when you come to putting food onto plates, the small table is nearby.

The hob has a hotplate as well as three burners. The microwave is set quite high; short-height cooks may consider it too high but it’s fine for us…

Two deep drawers are ideal for utensils and more. A third, shallower drawer has fitments for tableware. A cupboard 33cm wide and 50cm deep sits between the oven and the fridge. The lounge-dining area divider creates a cabinet with four shelf spaces alongside the table housing.

And two large cabinets hide behind ultra-modern matt doors (with two metal bands to add more style). Kitchen storage space is adequate for the needs of satisfying six holiday appetites.

When you’re cooking after dark, two big, pure white spotlights set into the top cabinets create and spread of light. They shine down onto the hob and surface.

Towing

At 1460kg MTPLM the 586 is an ideal partner for a good range of vehicles lighter than our test towcar, a SsangYong Rexton . And, we found the Casita 586s on-the-move manners to be stable. And we’re pleased to see that ATC stability control is a standard feature.

Verdict

It is light, with hidden-away bunks, two dining areas and a well-designed spacious shower room. The 586 has an excellent layout for a young family.

Whichever soft furnishing and woodwork scheme appeals to you, the 586 is first rate. It is a quality-build home-from-home “small house” on wheels.

Options

AL-KO Secure wheel lock at £230; wrap-around seating at £210