YOU do need to be a bit of a connoisseur to distinguish between the many ranges of holiday home available today! Is ABI’s two model range of that name – the Connoisseur  –  going to live up to expectations? From the outside, it’s unspectacular – though the cut-off corner would actually look quite good in a row of the same; that could work. Otherwise, take me inside to see whether I am going to be impressed.


LIVING SPACE

Once inside, I see the reason for the cut-off corner! The lounge seating needs it to make a very nice shaped seating arrangement. Comfortable seat-backs and a large padded storage stool to fight over. A double bed lurks in the seating somewhere, more or less hidden during the day.

The upholstered sitting area is more or less symmetrical with and opposite to a range of drawers and storage with TV unit, pebble effect electric fire, large mirror in silver-coloured frame, and seascape print. This arrangement is a little too boxy for me – but I know, I know! It’s fashionable. Fine.


STYLISH DINING

I very much liked the glass round table on wooden cross-over legs, a stylish addition. This is accompanied by four upholstered, ivory-coloured chairs. Round dining arrangements fit better in many holiday homes, less of a struggle to seat everyone and get past when needed. There is, however, the choice of a fixed wrap-around seating arrangement and rectangular table, if you prefer, with two stools on the other side.

The colour scheme in the Connoisseur is – you’ve guessed it! – beige. Nice and neutral, but with patterned window pelmets and curtains that offer some relief, and the fresh contrasting cream of the drawers in the storage unit.


BED-WARD

The Connoisseur has a good-sized twin bedroom with useful storage and a large mirror. It is a pleasing design with large fabric headboards, wood-effect surrounds and matching curtains.


WELL-SHAPED

Like the twin bedroom, the master, too, has plenty of storage, the over-bed units being shaped to good effect. Fitted Pullman-type lights are at either side of the bed.

The dressing side of the room is more than adequate, with cream doors to the cupboards and an ivory chair like those in the dining space. There is a particularly large, floor-to-ceiling window, surrounded by heavy satin curtains and matching pelmet.

A neat en suite toilet leads off one corner of the room and has further storage space.


CAPABLE KITCHEN

The Connoisseur kitchen is an open U, very easy for one or two to work at. Chrome features in switches and long modern door handles. The roman blind to the over-sink window echoes the fabric in the lounge area.

Everything you need in a modern kitchen is there, including four-burner hob and twin oven, electric cooker hood and integrated fridge-freezer. In this range, the kitchen is all in one piece, so to speak, compared with many now which have a split kitchen with a small range near the door.

The relatively small floor area of the Connoisseur kitchen is covered in vinyl, as distinct from the large area of carpet to both the sitting and dining areas. An interesting touch, before we leave the kitchen and dining areas, is a radiator cover with a glass front, and shelf over, finished in the same wood-effect as the rest of the holiday home. The main useful purpose of these covers is for elderly people, who may be afraid of falling onto them when they are hot. Otherwise, it’s a matter of aesthetics.


SHOWERING

Adjacent to the master bedroom, leading off the hallway, is the shower room, with a large shower and round basin with a modern tap. The latter combination is set atop a cupboard unit.


WHO FOR?

The Connoisseur shares most features with ABI’s St David (to be featured in a future issue). A few exceptions are that energy efficient lighting is incorporated into the St David but not the Connoisseur, a heated towel rail is an option in the Connoisseur, and so on. The two-bedroom Connoisseur is as big as the three-bedroom version,  at 38ft by 12ft, compared with the St David, which has a smaller 36ft by 12ft model for the two-bedroomed version. The St David has the option of a patio door, which is not feasible in the arrangement of the Connoisseur.

The St David uses the available space slightly more in favour of the bedrooms, and the Connoisseur slightly  more in the living space, so that might affect your preference. Other than that, no significant differences, and the price is similar, with the Connoisseur being around £1,000 more expensive at £27,200 for two bedrooms and £27,750 for three.

So it is a matter of taste, pure and simple. Those who have a view to be gazed at may prefer the seating arrangement of the St David, but if you are looking at the holiday home in front you may prefer to have your back to it, as in the Connoisseur.


OUR VERDICT

Along with some other manufacturers’ ranges for 2010, the Connoisseur is a careful balance of price and features. Note what is extra – allow, for example, around £3,000 for central heating, double glazing etc, and budget for that. To get these things as standard, you need to look at the ABI Ashcroft and above, and that is a leap in both price and features.

Remember, too, that sited prices will be at least £4,000 more than the ex-works retail in many cases, to cover costs of delivery, siting, landscaping etc. So a cosy, full-spec, sited Connoisseur is likely to cost you in the region of £34-£35,000.

ABI is pleased with this latest ‘baby’ and would like you to take a good look. Price-conscious customers, healthily more difficult to please perhaps than before the recession, will want to put it on their list and compare it carefully with others in the same price bracket. I’ve a feeling this one will come out of any comparison quite well.

Technical details
• Type: Single unit caravan holiday home
• Standard: BS EN1647
• Size: 38ft x 12ft
• Bedrooms: 2

Other versions
• 38ft x 12ft, three bedrooms

Main features
• Vaulted ceiling to living area
• Sofa bed in lounge
• Freestanding dining table and chairs
• Four burner gas hob with electric ignition
• Extractor hood
• Microwave shelf
• Integrated fridge/freezer
• Lift-up king-size double bed

Selected options
• Extra insulation
• uPVC double glazing
• Full central heating
• Fixed dinette seating
• Microwave
• Towel dryer/radiator
• Fold-under bed for twin bedroom

Price
£27,200 ex works (inc VAT)

CONTACT DETAILS

ABI (UK) Ltd, Swinemoor Lane, Beverley, East Yorkshire HU17 0LJ
Tel: 01482 678000 Email: abiuk.co.uk Website: www.abiuk.co.uk


This review was published in the February 2010 issue of Park & Holiday Homes magazine. To order our latest issue please click here.


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