Full review

CHARISMAS are a success story for Swift. That’s because they hits the family spot perfectly. Now, for 2010, a newcomer arrives to give us a unique layout that’s impressive in its adaptability to several family needs.

Its unique feature is right in its centre. The 545 has a U-shaped dining area backing onto the nearside.

It’s spacious – you could easily seat six here especially if some of them were young and small.

And of course there’s dining space for four more in the front… A 10-seater dining caravan that only sleeps four? Not as ridiculous as you might think.

As many families and friends holiday in gatherings of two or more caravans, how great is it to have a caravan in which everyone can dine together?

And there’s more. For the central dining area makes into a bed. The clue lies in the single leg of the table.

Remove it and place the table between the fore and aft settes and you have a double bed. So, two singles or a double at the front, a double in the centre – and enough length, without making up the bed, to sleep two small children.

Ingenuity is everywhere. The freestanding front table stores under the back settee, thereby saving space in allowing for a vertical table store. It’s a bit of a fiddle to get it in and out, though.

And more space is saved by a drop-down television housing that forms part of the divider between lounge and dining area. Click a positive-catch latch and a section lowers. This contains the mounting bracket for a flat screen television.


Assets come thick and fast once you start to analyse this caravan. It has a full-width washroom – full marks for family practicality.

In a caravan of only 5.6 metres in body length with so many wonderful features there has to be space compromise.

It’s in the kitchen. Storage space is confined to a thin cupboard, with only one wire shelf. But there’s enough surface space – given that, with two tables, there’s somewhere to put dishes as you prepare them. It’s all about adapting…

Interestingly, while this is certainly a new layout, it’s a clever adaptation of a sister Charisma 550.

Where that magnificent dining area lies is, in the 550, a fixed bed. Everything else stays in its place; the room divider – even the small dressing table on the offside to the rear of the wardrobe.

But, while the 550 has its place and its appeal, the 545’s greater adaptability has to make it even more appealing to even more caravanners. Go and see one – we think you’ll agree.

Verdict

It’s unique. It’s practical. It’s adaptable. The 545’s family appeal is obvious. The twin-dining-area concept is repeated many times in many layouts – but this one is different. We think it will work well for many families.

There’s only one slight negative to consider: would the fiddle of extracting the free-standing front table from under the rear bed become a nuisance for you? If you think it would, think again, bearing in mind all the many good points of this caravan!

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