Carado campervans: range overview

This is the smallest model in the Carado campervan family, measuring a very car-park-friendly 5.41m in length. This model offers a transverse rear bed measuring 1.95m by 1.33m, narrowing slightly to 1.30m at the foot – that’s a healthy 6ft 4in by 4ft 4in max in old money. There’s storage below, but, if you need to move bulky items, the mattress and slatted base can be moved to enhance the available area. There’s also a wooden lower panel that helps contain kit here as well as being removable for loading longer items.

At the opposite end, the lounge offers two rear travel seats (with those aforementioned Isofix points). The cab seats, with upholstered armrests for extra comfort (Basic Package option), swivel to face this and the table has a swing-out section (also part of the Basic Package) to allow the person sitting in the driver’s seat to dine.

The central kitchen may be compact, but it offers a good level of facilities. The compressor fridge holds 84 litres; being located at the end of the kitchen unit means it’s easier to access. Above, the combined sink and piezo ignition hob unit creates a decent area for food prep.

Opposite, the washroom maximises the space available, with an all-in-one room offering toilet, fixed basin and a shower tray with a central drain hole; a shower curtain is provided, too, as part of the optional package.

This is primarily a two-berth only, but you can specify a third bed in the lounge as an option. The price starts from £51,000, but the Basic Package adds £1,520 and provides a window in the washroom, rooflight above the lounge, a wide entrance step and a flyscreen door, as well as the other options already mentioned. Other packs add driving assistance aids and base vehicle style details.

Moving up to the long-wheelbase Fiat chassis, the CV600 measures 5.99m long. Again it’s a two-berth with a third bed as an option, and, like the CV540, there’s a transverse double bed at the rear. However, if you sleep sprawled out, this might be the better choice as the bed width stretches to 1.57m – that’s a tad more than a domestic king size.

There’s also proportionately more overhead and underbed storage, too.

While the kitchen and lounge are roughly similar to the smaller model, the washroom is different. The sink sits within a furniture unit that doubles up as the wardrobe, with access from the main aisle. As per the smaller model, you can have this as a simple washroom if you plan to mainly use site faciltiies to shower, or you can specify the Basic Package that added the extendable shower hose, curtain, guide rail and holder as well as a window in here.

Prices start at £51,900 for the 140bhp Fiat Ducato with 15in wheels and trims, but, as already stated, there is a healthy options list to tailor this to your needs and style requirements.

The largest model in the range measures in at 6.36m long – that’s the extra-long Fiat Ducato.

Up front this model mirrors the layout of the CV600, but, instead of a transverse bed, you’ll find two singles at the rear. The longer one on the offside (1.91m) is slightly narrower (74cm), while the nearside one adjacent to the washroom is 1.82m by 0.85m. An infill cushion makes this into a super wide double and you could even sleep across should you wish.

Both bed bases (fully slatted) fold up against the wall to enhance your storage space in the rear for bulky items like bikes or more adventurous sports kit.

As with all other models, there are USB sockets in the lounge for charging your devices. The standard model is white, but there’s a grey metallic as well as a lighter flat grey exterior. Plus, for greater driving comfort, you could upgrade to the nine-speed automatic or the fully digital dashboad...

Prices start at £53,400 for this model.