The Adventura Radiance is set for a life on the road.
Adventura Caravans is one of the newer manufacturers to enter the Australian RV market, and its products are aimed squarely at those demanding luxury from their vans. The family business launched in early 2007 from its showroom in Salisbury Plain (on the outskirts of Adelaide), where each caravan is hand-made onsite by a skilled team.
The Ritzau family are passionate about their products and make a point of using the latest European design and technology. At the same time, the company sources products and services from local businesses where possible and has a real can-do attitude when it comes to individual needs and custom requests.
Speaking with Adventura’s managing director, Michael Ritzau, I learned that the firm’s aim is to “provide customers with their dream caravan, ready to drive to their holiday destination safe in the knowledge that it’s been assembled to the highest possible standards.”
According to Adventura Radiance owners, Nick and Debbie Handy, who recently collected their new caravan for a major Australian trip, Adventura has got it spot on.
SOLID START
I caught up with the travelling couple on SA’s Fleurieu Peninsula. “We lost a caravan last year in an accident,” Nick explains, “and set out to find someone to build us a true custom replacement. We’re experienced caravanners, knew what we wanted, and Debbie did a lot of research to make sure we got it right. We liked what we saw on Adventura’s website and were soon talking with Michael and Gwen.”
While it might be true that some caravan companies will try to limit the extra work they carry out at the request of the customer, whatever Nick and Debby asked of Michael, he said he could do it.
“We insisted on extra wardrobe space; a tri-fold table that didn’t wobble; a very comfy lounge and a high-quality contemporary finish throughout. After all, it’s our home and we wanted it to be perfect,” says Nick.
The result has both Nick and Debbie delighted, and they eagerly showed me around their Adventura to highlight all its clever and well thought-out aspects.
Starting with the basics, this is a van with a 6.5m (21ft 6in) interior measurement and full ensuite. Adventura produces vans with interior sizes ranging from 5.3m (17ft 6in) to 6.85m (22ft 6in), so Nick and Debbie’s purchase is one of the larger offerings. Their van, like the others in the range, is built on a SupaGal chassis with load sharing leaf spring suspension (Simplicity suspension is an option).
Construction is of heavy-duty main chassis rails with a pre-coated, glued and screwed timber floor, and it rides on alloy wheels with light truck eight-ply tyres. Standard for the range are electric brakes to all wheels, a spare wheel, an 8in jockey wheel and fully enclosed wind-up corner jacks.
Also common across the range are Mabel fibreglass wall panels that comprise thermal insulation and extreme weather protection – ideal for Australia’s wide-ranging climatic conditions. Double-glazed windows and very low, aerodynamic-profile Dometic reverse cycle air-conditioning further enhance traveller comfort.
The van bought by Nick and Debbie is a large unit with a Tare of 2700kg and an ATM of 3380kg. This means it is only towable by the bigger 4WDs, but the trade-off is a large living space and room for the appliances desired for a life on the road.
THE ADVENTURE BEGINS
Step inside Nick and Debbie’s Adventura and you’re hit with the quality on show. The level of finish injects a sense of style.
Plenty of thought has gone into colour coordination and choice of fabrics by the company’s interior designer, which will appeal to the discerning purchaser.
The cabinetry has been designed and crafted in SA to a high level, and style again is apparent with the choice of brackets, handles and supports. And the likes of curved overhead and bathroom cupboards make you feel like you’re in a swish hotel rather than a caravan.
The kitchen area is a delight, with the work surface offering plenty of space when the hatch is put over the Smev four-burner cooktop and oven. The laminate is Creastyle AR+, which is abrasion resistant with a high gloss finish; Nick and Debbie chose the Café Noce colour, which looks as classy as it sounds.
The same laminate is found in the bathroom and at the all-important dinette. “A good tri-fold table was a priority,” Nick says, “and this one has a good steel leg support so there is no wobble.”
The attractive table easily folds away for relaxing with drinks on the lounge, and is of a good size when meal times come round.
The dinette struggles to seat four for dinner due to its location above the invasive wheel arch, but for a travelling couple, this isn’t a major issue. The lounge is made from Dunlop high density foam, and the covers are Warwick Lustrell Nova. This is a leather lookalike made of polyurethane and PVC that apparently has excellent abrasion and tear resistance. It certainly passed my comfort test.
To anyone who has spent any length of time in a caravan, an inadequate number of powerpoints is a cause of frustration. “You can never have enough of them,” Nick says, “so Michael always put in a double rather than a single when building the van. Cleverly, there are powerpoints under the table so we can work from our laptop there.”
As mentioned before, adding custom elements – as Nick and Debbie have – is welcomed by the manufacturer. “We asked for extra wardrobe space, and I was really keen on a DVD recorder and surround sound from the TV,” Nick explains. “Michael said he could do it, so we left it with him to do all the complex electronic stuff.”
Entertainment is clearly of importance to Nick and Debbie, proved by a clever CD storage rack built into the vacant space under the dinette table.
Perhaps not as enjoyable, but no less important, is the optional custom slide-out ironing board that emerges from one of the kitchen drawers. It is an innovative way of storing such an awkward item, and with the extra wardrobe space beside the fridge, the shirts and dresses can quickly and comfortably be ironed and stored.
WELL APPLIED
As is expected of a van to be lived in year-round, there isn’t much more to wish for. The fridge is a large three-way Dometic AES 225L, the microwave an 1100W Sharp Carousel and the bathroom features a squeezed-in Dometic front loader washing machine. The standard kit that comes with an Adventura includes a 19in flatscreen LCD TV that swivels for viewing from the dinette or bedroom, and can be relocated outside for watching under the Dometic awning.
There is ample lighting throughout using LEDs, and as a shower model it receives a pair of 9kg gas cylinders (mounted on the A-frame) and two 95L stone-guarded water tanks. The hot-water system in this instance is a dual 240V and gas setup with electronic ignition.
The shower itself is much appreciated by the owners. “It’s a proper large one,” Nick says, “and more like one you’d install in a house.” It is just part of a very appealing bathroom area with ample storage, a large mirror and exceptional design. The basin is a ceramic round top with a Novelli flick mixer tap that oozes style, while the toilet is a Dometic vacuum item, so no chemicals are required.
Finally, the bedroom area continues the style of the rest of the caravan, with a queen-size bed that can be raised on gas struts. Adventura offers a range of mattresses according to your budget and taste, again suggesting this company’s appreciation of all our differing wants and needs.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Adventura may be a relatively new player in the caravan building game, but with the Radiance we sampled, first impressions are very positive. Having feedback from the van’s owners as they were on the road was ideal, and Nick and Debbie seemingly couldn’t be happier.
The Radiance has all the features you’d expect from a van in this price range – $89,000 in this instance – and the scope for personalisation and true bespoke work really does add to its appeal. As a small, family-run business Adventura allows a more personal approach, and to some buyers this is very important when choosing their caravan.
If you are such a buyer, and deem a quality finish with a dash of style very important, Adventura is very much a company to look out for.
I liked
- An excellent level of style throughout.
- Overall finish.
- Slide-out ironing board.
- High level of standard kit included in the purchase price.
I would have liked
- A dinette that comfortably sits four
Adventura Caravans, Unit 1 & 2, 164a Park Terrace, Salisbury Plain, SA, (08) 8285 8380. For more information, visit www.adventuracaravans.com.au
By Iain Curry, as featured in Caravan World issue 436, March 2009.