Great idea Ed.
We currently have 3 options:-
Fiamma F45S - this is our default and the awning we use the most, especially for 1 or 2 night stopovers, which most of our camps tend to be. It's main advantage is instant shelter over the sliding door and a nice shaded and/or dry area to sit and/or cook under for the 3 of us. It doesn't matter if you put it away wet as it will sort itself out next time you use it. Whatever the weather we peg the legs down and also use a tie down kit in all but the lightest of breezes. Even with the tie down kit, I am a bit nervous about using in winds above, say, 15 mph, especially if there are gusts much above this predicted and will never leave it out and/or unattended in strong winds. This is the only picture of ours in use that I can find ("cables" around the legs are Jo's obligatory lights):-
Vango Kela III - we use this for any stays of more than a couple of nights when it is just the 3 of us camping and/or we need a drier outside space. It's ample for 3 of us plus the dogs but we have had 5 comfortably taking shelter in there before. It's easy to put up, especially when connecting via the Fiamma as this makes tensioning the tunnel a lot easier and also helps avoid snagging the fabric when opening the sliding door (holds the top of the awning further away from the van than other connection methods allow). I like it but if buying an equivalent now and/or replacing with something new, I think I would be looking at the Gali II Compact or Airhub Hexaway (see below). Again, I only have limited pictures of our Kela in use - these are from Bala last May - the awning is not perfectly pitched as a result of the large crater we are pitched over but it still did the job:-
Vango Airhub Hex - We now use this when going away with groups of people, usually with the Fiamma providing a bridge to the van. At the time of purchase it was a toss up between this and something like a Coleman Event Shelter. It's a similar overall size to the Kella (and smaller event shelters) but the design does give us a lot more useable space to shelter more people. We also use it as a BBQ gazebo at home. If buying again I would be looking at the the new Vango Airhub Hexaway, in fact I am tempted to swap both of my current Vangos for one of these but can't currently justify it. My only criticism is the webbing straps across the bottom used to hold the shape (there is a clip in groundsheet that covers them) - when these get wet they take much longer than the rest of the awing to dry out and, unlike a sewn in ground sheet which you can just dry off with some kitchen towel, you have to let these dry out naturally to avoid getting everything else wet when packing away. First picture is set up at home, the other is in use at Busfest last year (
@Mick and the lovely Ed to the right of the photo):-
