Full review

Our Venus  640/6 review day started cold and damp. A chill wind spurred speed as we tackled the pitching routine. Mains cable connected, Truma heating on, corner steadies lowered, then kettle for coffee… The only twin-axle family caravan to be made in the Lunar factory was up and running in five minutes and we were inside.

This dull, chilly day brought into sharp focus the raison d’être of the latest Venus. This caravan is big. It has a long lounge, a separate dining area, a bedroom and a large kitchen. Plenty of space, therefore, for a family to spend time inside, when weather frustrates outdoor activities and all you want is to be toasty warm and cosy.

We imagined parents and four children in the 620, finding their own space for their own pursuits, and it didn’t take us long to appreciate the merits of going for a large caravan in the interests of family contentment in inclement weather. This is one caravan for which an awning is by no means a necessity; awnings are brilliant for the extra space you get but you don’t always want to spend time building one when you’re on a brief break.

It’s also a caravan to prove a really important point: twin axles don’t always mean heavy weight. At just 1530kg MTPLM, the 620 is within the tow scope of many mid-weight vehicles.

It doesn’t have a lot of competition, though, so there’s not a lot of choice if you decide to go down the route of big-is-best when you’re choosing your next family caravan. The new six-berth Venus is one of only three lightweight, twin-axle, long family caravans on the market. (The other two are in the Sprite range, the Quattro FB and EW).

By the time we write these words as our review day progresses, the Truma heating is doing its stuff nicely and there are mugs of coffee beside the laptop. Our shivering arrival half an hour ago at Little Orchard Caravan Park, Weeton, on the Fylde coast, has faded into unimportance.

But the tow here, from the Lunar factory where Venus caravans are made, near Preston, Lancashire, has not diminished in our minds, for the 620’s road characteristics are in themselves a reason to consider big caravans. That’s because four tyres making contact with the Tarmac create greater stability than two. The onset of a swaying motion is far less likely. And if it does begin, twin axles snap back into line quicker than single-axles. Which means the whole towing process is more relaxing and enjoyable.

We’ve commented on twin-axle advantages many times but the Venus 620/6’s credentials as a spacious, capacious, lightweight family option underline the importance of considering a twin-axle tourer.

So what of that spacious, capacious aspect of the 620?

At a first glance, storage is ample, sleeping options are impressive, the kitchen’s size renders it suitable for gourmet creations as well as simply keeping family hunger at bay… Now for the details…
 

Showering

There’s just one element of the 620 that won’t meet with universal approval. It’s the showering arrangements. The shower and toilet share a room. There’s a curtain (rather than a plastic door) to curtail cascades of water from drenching the loo and the area behind it. So the whole shower room will have to be dried after each shower, to avoid the discomfort of cold wet socks as you step through the shower tray to the loo.

On the plus side, there’s a rail for hanging towels or garments across the roof of the shower area. And there’s plenty of space around the wide, deep washbasin that sits up stylishly on a cabinet in the offside forward corner of the bedroom.

There’s a good-sized mirror, a light above it and a mains socket within hairdryer cable distance, at the foot of the bed… We’re already getting the feel of this caravan as far above its supposed budget status…
 

Sleeping

That’s especially true of the sleeping arrangements. A double bed with a deep, sprung, comfortable mattress for mum and dad. Two bunks, 1.7m long and 58cm wide, for the youngest. And two more single beds, fully adult sized, at 1.87m long, in the lounge. Is this a three-generational caravan? We think it’s one of only a few that could potentially fall into this category.
 

Storage

The double bed base rises on gas-filled struts. The aperture isn’t enormous, so reaching stuff at the far side would necessitate crawling inside (a job the kids will find fun!). Put up with that, though, because there’s a good reason why the bed doesn’t rise up further. It’s the generous (20cm) depth of the comfortable mattress, which makes contact with the nearside wall and stops the bed base rising further.

Full-length doors give you front access to the lounge bedding boxes. Top lockers are all around the lounge, above the dining area and on two sides of the bedroom. Keeping stuff tidied away would never be a problem in a 620. That’s another reason to consider a big caravan…
 

Dining

And dining would be yet another. The lounge is long enough for all six to dine together. Or two can grab the smaller dining “room”. Or you can leave that area made up as bunk beds. Or keep it set up with gadgets and other entertainment paraphernalia, as the “play room”. The more we analysed the 620, the more we became impressed by the options it offers.
 

Lounging

The amount of space in this caravan is perhaps best appreciated in the lounge. We love it. And we love its lounge looks, too, with the full-width single-unit window letting in so much light that even on our dull test day the lounge feels light and airy. The sprung seating is deep and comfortable. There are bolster armrests and big cushions to nestle into.
 

Kitchen

The 620 is a star performer in so many ways, especially in the kitchen. At 1.77m long, the amount of surface space is phenomenal. The design helps, too; the triple-burner hob occupies a triangle of space, leaving more surface available than would a square hob.

The oven and grill is a combined unit, which means there’s cabinet space below it. A second, double-doored cabinet containing a good-sized cutlery tray, is on the fore end of the kitchen, alongside the fridge. Two large top cabinets are at head-height, flanking the microwave. That’s a component of the Plus Pack which adds £449 to the price of Venus models. The pack also gives you alloy wheels, a hitch-head stabiliser, an under-slung spare wheel, a radio and an AL-KO Secure wheel lock receivers.
 

Towing

With such excellent towing manners, the twin-axle 620 is a caravan to go for if you’re planning lengthy cross-continental tours. It’s a caravan that makes towing as easy as it gets. Anything lacking? For our money we’d want an extra piece of kit, purely for peace of mind. That’s the ATC electronic stability control system. On a caravan that purports to be in the budget bracket, at £15,999, you wouldn’t expect ATC to arrive as standard. And, for sure, with twin-axle geometry it’s widely not regarded as necessary. But we’d buy it all the same, just for added security.

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