Caretta Off Road caravan test

In the last week of July, thanks to the courtesy of Rafał Bieżuński - the exclusive distributor of Caretta trailers on the Polish market, I had the opportunity to test the Off Road off-road model. We traveled with two adults and a two-year-old child. We spent seven nights in the trailer at two different campsites and drove 400 km on different (Polish) roads, which allowed us to learn about the advantages and disadvantages of the trailer.

Small tear drop trailers are particularly close to my heart. I have a similar trailer and have been traveling with it for two years. I believe that a small and, above all, light trailer, especially in combination with a small bus, is the perfect set. In the article below I will try to present my subjective opinion about this Caretta Off Road model, but also to present the advantages of traveling with such a small trailer, based on my own two-year experience. We wrote about this trailer in February 2017, when the first model appeared in Poland - you can read the article here: Caretta Off Road now also in Poland .

Unique design on big wheels

The streamlined and at the same time small shape of the trailer, suspended high on large off-road tires, with a spare wheel and a shovel on the roof, attracts attention from afar. Massive piping around the perimeter of the trailer will certainly prove useful when driving off-road and will prevent costly repairs to the sheathing.

Its appearance is so unique that when driving through Łeba or Jastarnia I felt like I was driving the latest Lamborghini model. At the campsite, we had the opportunity to meet most of the guests in person, because the desire to see the trailer up close attracted whole families to us.

The trailer was built on an AL-KO chassis with independent suspension of each wheel. The chassis is equipped with an overrun brake, which I definitely recommend. I believe that even with such a light trailer (own weight approx. 600 kg), it greatly improves driving comfort and safety. In my opinion, the stabilizer that the trailer is equipped with can be skipped, but on the other hand, it is possible that it was thanks to it that the trailer held on to the car pulling it so well on winding and narrow roads.

At the front of the trailer, there is a streamlined laminate trunk with a battery, an Eberspacher D2 heating system and a diesel tank. Heating will definitely be useful during trips in colder periods. The one installed in the tested model effectively makes us independent of access to electricity, which may prove to be very important during field trips.

The remaining space in the trunk is enough to hide various camping accessories or a vestibule, which can be useful for enlarging the seating area (especially during rain). Unfortunately, I am not entirely convinced by the material from which the case is made - it gives the impression that it could easily crack or be damaged in any other way, especially when driving off-road. With this type of trailer, I would prefer a solid steel box that I could even stand on to mount something on the roof rack. Rafał Bieżuński, however, assured me that neither the clients nor himself have suffered any damage so far, although he regularly drives the trailer into difficult terrain.

Kitchen

When I tell anyone that in this trailer, apart from a bed, there is also a kitchen equipped from A to Z (well, maybe without a dishwasher), they don't believe me. But as soon as I open the tailgate, this is what they see:

As you can see, the kitchen is equipped with many cabinets and compartments that can accommodate much more than just dishes and provisions. There should be a refrigerator on the right side - unfortunately, it was removed during the tests because it required service. On the left side, under the countertop, there are two cabinets. In one of them there is a small tourist gas cylinder that powers a single-burner stove. The bottle will be enough for the whole season, unless we plan real culinary revolutions during our trips.

Behind the cabinets there is space for a 60-liter clean water tank and a 50-liter dirty water tank. Water was supplied to a small but practical sink located right next to the stove. I consider it an ideal solution, sufficient for basic toileting, cooking and quick washing of dishes.

Living room and bedroom in one

What seems to be the biggest surprise is hidden inside this tiny trailer - and this is the sleeping area. It consists of a quite large bed in which our son and I slept very comfortably. And I know people who traveled with this trailer as a 2+2 and were also satisfied.

There are spacious cabinets above the legs, where you can store enough clothes for a short trip. If someone needs more space for clothes, remember that we are towing the trailer with a car in which we can also transport luggage.

An additional, quite roomy storage compartment is located behind the headrest and, when closed, can be used as a practical shelf for books or a telephone.

The very wide doors are an undoubted advantage of this trailer and allow for comfortable entry and exit. The doors are equipped with a practical storage compartment and sliding windows, which, when opened from both sides, efficiently ventilate the interior of the trailer. However, a better solution would be windows that tilt upwards, which will protect the interior from rain and at the same time allow for ventilation.

The roof has a hinged window made of transparent material, which both illuminates the trailer and, unfortunately, also heats it up. A better solution would be to use a full window that could be opened if necessary to ventilate the interior - but this would not cause overheating. Unfortunately, although roller blinds are installed in all windows, they only allow for slight shading of the interior, but do not block the access of light. This can be especially troublesome during trips to warmer parts of the world. A nice solution are mosquito nets installed in each window, so we don't have to worry about insects, even if we sleep with the windows open.

The entire trailer has very good and atmospheric lighting powered by a battery located in the trunk at the front of the trailer. In the sleeping area, you can't complain about the lack of 12 V and USB charging ports. However, I missed a 12 V output in the kitchen area to connect the coffee machine - but thanks to it I could make coffee without leaving bed.

The installed radio with speakers didn't really work in our case. We have all the music and cartoons for the child on the tablet, and we connect to our portable speaker via Bluetooth. Unfortunately, the installed radio lacked such a function.

Summary

As I mentioned at the beginning, such a small trailer combined with a van is the perfect combination for us. We don't need a toilet or bathroom in the trailer because we always use camping sites and there are always toilets there.

A small trailer allows us to travel quickly on roads without significantly increasing the car's fuel consumption. Since our bedroom is in a separate cabin, if necessary, we can leave it at the campsite and explore the area by car.

If it rains, we hide under the awning or in the car, where we have a table and swivel seats - we can comfortably spend many hours there, even for four people. However, if someone does not have such a large car, they can add an inflatable vestibule to the trailer, which unfolds in 3 minutes. This way, we will significantly enlarge the living space in which we can hide during the rain.

I can recommend Caretta to anyone looking for a small but comfortable trailer. And if you also like to drive off paved trails, want low insurance costs and no need to carry out annual technical inspections, this will definitely be the perfect trailer.

I liked:

• design,
• dimensions and weight,
• wide door,
• AL-KO chassis and overrun brake,
• Eberspacher heating,
• kitchen.

I would like it more if:

• blinds were installed in the windows to provide more shade to the interior,
• door locks were of better quality,
• there is a 12 V output in the kitchen,
• bikes could be mounted on the drawbar or roof.