A Bumble About in North Yorkshire

When I told my Husband, we were camping for an Outdoor Bloggers weekend there was a look of dismay that briefly crossed his face. Our tent hadn’t survived the last camping trip and we had a weekend with rain and gale force winds, re-pegging in the middle of the night. It wasn’t fun. I did however have a surprise up my sleeve. The lovely people from Bumble Campers, had agreed to lend me one of their cute Bumble buses for the weekend, meaning we would be dry and comfortable.

With a rental base in Manchester (there’s one in Peterborough too) it was convenient for us to collect the Bumble Bus, load up our belongings at home, then set off to Thornton-Le-Dale and the start of our child free weekend.

I chose the two-seater, two-sleeper, a converted Toyota Previa with kitchen at the rear, and enough space inside the campervan to convert into a full length double bed. With cool box, self-lighting camping stove, small sink, on-board power and lots more, there wasn’t too much we needed to pack ourselves. We did fit everything in, but I did wonder later if I should have asked for one of the add-on roof boxes. The Bumble Bus had automatic transmission and despite me being worried about driving an automatic for the first time, it was super easy to drive. A bit like a go-kart I was told, and thankfully it was, as for the first few minutes we were deluged with torrential rain. Where were the wipers again?!

What I loved about our campervan was that on arriving at the campsite there was no faffing about. Handbrake on, made sure it was in park (about a hundred times just to make sure!) and there we were, pitched beside the most gorgeous babbling brook.

The local wildlife came for a look too!

Having met our fellow campers for the weekend, we cooked our dinner at the back of the van. Luckily the rain had eased, but the boot lid became our kitchen roof to give us some protection.

Converting the bed inside the campervan was easy, a table and wooden slats made the bed base for the comfy sofa bed. Blackout curtains with window suckers, gave the campervan some privacy and blocked out the light. Sitting around the campfire later we realised we had forgotten to put the curtains up. In the dark we fixed these on and by pure chance found the right ones for the right windows!

I really enjoyed our stay in the campervan, the weather wasn’t kind and at least in the campervan we were shielded from the elements. I think if we hired one again I would also add-on the canopy awning for a little extra shelter and space. We did have a few moments of sunshine and I took the opportunity to decorate the Bumble Bus. My outdoor blogger friends looked horrified as I started to graffiti the bonnet and back of the van with chalk! I hadn’t completely lost the plot though; the campervans have chalkboard paint and even a supply of chalk to play with. If that’s not enough to play with there’s a card inside the van to play ‘Bumble Bingo’.

Rental starts from £19 per day making it an affordable alternative to camping in a tent. Our kids were really jealous and loved the look of the Bumble bus, and there are bigger versions in the fleet that seat four and have a roof tent to sleep in too. We might have to hire one again, so all the family can Bumbleabout!

Check out Bumble Campers to see their fleet and for booking details, you can even buy gift vouchers to treat someone else.

We were kindly lent a Bumble Camper for our weekend; however, all views are honest and my own.

 

7 comments Add yours
  1. I really want to try out a campervan, they look so cool and I secretly like the idea of turning up and not having to faff about and pitch a tent. Looks like a great way to spend a weekend and I hope you get to take the kids next time-bet they were very jealous! Thanks so much for linking up #AdventureCalling

    1. It was a lovely change and we were grateful not to have to faff with a tent in the torrential downpour that greeted us. Yes the kids were really jealous! Thanks for reading.

  2. This sounds brilliant and affordable. I love the sound of the chalkboard paintwork and being able to decorate it. Our kids (ok, me too) would love that and it sounds like it was perfect given the weather.Thanks for joining us and apologies my comments are a little late this week, I’ve had an Ofsted inspection at my school so life has been a little hectic. #adventurecalling

    1. Hope Ofsted went ok, is it half term next week for you too? The Bumble bus was so much fun and I was gutted when it rained and I couldn’t play with the chalk on the first day!!

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