Not strictly a caravanning book but we had to start off with it because it's had us all in stitches! With a subtitle like "My Family's Disastrous Attempts to go Camping in the 70s" it strikes a chord with those of us who went through the same trauma. The link takes you to the publisher's website.

Random House

A straightforward DVD to give to someone just setting out on the caravan journey or who hasn't decided whether to go for it yet. DVDs are great for actually showing people how to do things, better than books in many respects. This one's for sale at Caravan Tech shop's website.

Caravan Tech Shop

For those who prefer books for learning, here's an excellent beginner's guide. Having praised DVDs, the benefits of books are that they are easier to carry with you and flick through to find a specific point. It's written by a former editor of Practical Caravan and Caravan magazines.

Book Depository

For those who are already well into caravanning these Overseas Touring Guides from the Caravan Club are well-researched and feature sites that have been visited by Club members. Full of helpful information about the various countries on the Continent they'll be well received and at the time of going to press are on sale for only £3.50 each.

Caravan Club

Regardless of what you think of the current 'glamping' trend, it has generally raised the standard of sites across the UK. This series of books was set up to provide guides that offered a little bit more than just a directory of sites.

Cool Camping website

There don't seem to be many recent books on vintage and classic caravans which surprised us (please inform us if you know differently) apart from Andrew Jenkinsons' "The Touring Caravan". Unfortunately that's out of stock at the publishers (link below) but you can ask them to email you when it's back in stock. You can also find a number of older books on Amazon and eBay.

The Touring Caravan

An excellent initiative from the Camping and Caravan Club published this year, this book has information on farm shops, farmers' markets and food festivals near to C&CC sites. It makes a great touring companion and helps people to support local businesses wherever they go, with recipes too.

Camping and Caravanning Club

Now approaching fifteen years old but still relevant, this DVD hosted by Suzy Perry is an excellent overview of towing caravans. It covers hitching up, setting up on site and everything else in between.

Caravan Club

There are a few DVDs on classic caravans about, although like the books, none seem to be very recent. Most of them have been filmed at rallies and shows around the country and are from around 2003 and 2004 but new copies are still on sale. The page we've linked to is actually a canal website, but it has the main three that we've discovered.

Canal shop

Monica Rivron writes about cooking for Caravan Magazine and her Caravan Cookbook features recipes that are easy to do in a confined space. They are quick, use fewer pots and pans and create less washing up, so the whole family is a winner! It's also hardback so will stand up to many years of touring cooking.

Foyles