FIRST LOOK – Avante Apex 550 caravan

Dark upholstery is a rarity in caravans. So the new Avante Apex 550 stands out from the crowd easily.

It’s smart, beautifully styled, with leather-effect tops and sides to the backrests and edges of the seat sections, and brown flecked fabric for the main sections. Above all, it’s practical.

Two of the cushions are dark brown velvety fabric and the other two have an eye-catching pattern of browns and greys on a cream background.

Top lockers, that’s two in the lounge and a double-doored cabinet above the kitchen, are finished in pale ivory, and so is the kitchen surface and hinged extension. The sink is large, and its shiny black makes a contribution to the décor. Two small drawers and a cabinet sit between the fridge and the oven. Opposite, alongside the door, is the cabinet that hides away the table and there is storage space alongside it.

The 550 is one of six models in the new-for-2026 Avante Apex range.

The 550 layout gives you a double bed at the rear. The door of the toilet/washbasin room closes across the caravan to divide this area from the kitchen. The shower is shaped rather like a traditional corner cabinet, and opens into the bedroom. There’s a corner dressing table with lower and upper cabinets on the forward corner of the bedroom. The wardrobes each have three drawers beneath, and there are two large lockers above the bedhead. 

The toilet/washbasin room is larger than you might expect given that this is a mid-sized caravan, at 5.7m in body length. Unusually, the washroom has a full height cabinet containing five shelves. There’s also a double-doored cabinet under the washbasin. 

Apex models can be regarded as up-specced Avantes, taking the second echelon up from the new entry-level Whirlwind range. Standard spec includes heavy-duty corner steadies, solar panels, alarm systems and trackers, Al-Ko Secure wheel locks and external showers.