Beginner's guide to your first night away in your motorhome

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First Night Away in Your New Motorhome?

Here is a simple, reassuring setup routine for beginners

You have just arrived at your campsite for the night. Normally there will be a designated space for you to pull into whilst you visit the site reception office but if not, try to pull into the reception area in such a way as to not block the entry and exit barrier area.

You may have paid for your pitch already; if not, do so now and whilst you are at it, acquire the access codes for the barriers and the facilities block. Armed with a map of the site and where motorhome service points and rubbish disposal areas are found, you are ready to go find your pitch.  

At some sites, the team will allocate you a specific pitch and there may be rules on how to park on it! At others, you are encouraged to go choose one from those available and come back and let them know which one you have chosen. 

In today’s post, we look at

·       How to choose a good pitch

·       How to park and position correctly

·       Routines for safely connecting up to your electrical hook up bollard

·       Getting an easy, repeatable, first night routine established

·       What quick checks you might want to do on your first night out in your new motorhome

·       How to disconnect correctly from your hook up bollard when departing the pitch

·       A pre-departure routine to help you get away safely and quickly in the morning

As always, if you have any tips or things to add; if you think we have got something wrong – then just drop us a comment at the end of the post and we will add your experiences and knowledge to the post.

So, without further ado, lets dive in ……. Tips for your first night away in your new motorhome

 

 

1. Choosing a Good Pitch

Picking the right pitch makes your first night smoother and far more enjoyable. Go on …. ask us how we know …. never mind!  But if you want to read about our first few nights away in Bryony, and how we got stuck on our pitch – you can find the link here: https://wherenexthun.blogspot.com/2020/11/our-first-ever-overnight-in-bryony-at.html

 

What to Look For when choosing a pitch

• Level ground Saves time with levelling ramps and makes sleeping more comfortable.
• Close - but not too close - to facilities. Handy for showers and water, but avoid being right next to the door where foot traffic is a constant irritant.
• A firm surface Grass is fine in summer; hardstanding is better in wet weather.
• Good access for your cable Make sure the hook‑up bollard is within easy reach of your EHU cable. Know the length of your cable and seek a pitch where you don’t have to negotiate thorny bushes to lay it out!
• Shelter from wind Hedges or fences can make a big difference on breezy nights.
• A pleasant view You’ll appreciate it when you open the blinds in the morning.
• A sunset or sunrise orientation – know where north is! Do you want the sun streaming through the windows in the morning, or do you want to see the stunning peaches, tangerines and amber glows of a sunset at evening time?

Things to Avoid

• Under large trees Dripping sap, bird mess, and falling branches aren’t fun. And bouncing pine cones all through the night – we learned the hard way at Rovinji, on our recent 2026 Croatia tour!
• Low‑lying or boggy areas; or pitches which have ‘dips’ in them - You don’t want to sink into soft ground after rain.
• Sloping pitches Levelling becomes a chore and can affect fridge performance.
• Right next to the children’s play area Lovely if you have kids; less lovely if you don’t.
• Exposed pitches – ones where you will be battered from all directions if the winds pick up!

 

 2. Arriving and Setting Up the Motorhome

  A. Park and Position

• Pull onto the pitch and check you’re roughly level. We use a spirit level on the kitchen work surfaces – you are looking to be level side to side and nose to end.
• We carry two levelling blocks – one for each side. Depending on pitch and slope, we normally put them under the front wheels. Remember chocks raise the motorhome. But, at times we have used both on the wheels on just one side; we’ve used just one block under one front wheel; and on a nightmare site in the mountains in Southern Spain, we had to use them on the rear wheels. 
• Whether you reverse back onto them or drive up onto them, do it slowly! You might find that one chock has to be closer to one wheel whilst the other is slightly further away.

Tip: if it has rained a lot during the night, rainwater often pools on the roof. When you pull off the chocks in the morning – a waterfall forms somewhere around the motorhome – so having a slight angle left – stops this from happening.

• Adjust position so your EHU cable reaches comfortably.
• If needed, drive onto levelling ramps - small adjustments are easier than big ones.

 B. Secure the Van

• Handbrake on
• Engine off
• Keys out
• Open a window or roof vent for airflow

  C. Connect the Electrical Hook‑Up

We have another more detailed post about using your electric hook up for the first time and you can find it here: https://wherenexthun.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-beginners-guide-to-using-electrical.html

A simple, safe sequence:

1. Turn off appliances inside the van (Kettle, heater, microwave, charger if you want to be tidy.)
2. Turn off your RCD/MCB/ECU box if you have one and any panel above the door
3. Plug the cable into the motorhome FIRST This avoids holding a live cable.
4. Fully uncoil the cable Prevents overheating. DO NOT underestimate the importance of this and don’t let old hacks tell you that in all their years they have never bothered. You only need to see one EHU cable fire to understand the importance of FULLY UNWINDING it!
5. Plug into the site bollard Push firmly until it clicks.
6. Switch on the bollard (if it has a switch)
7. Turn on your motorhome’s RCD/MCB/ECU panel Your onboard charger will start topping up the leisure battery.

Tip: never leave excess cable in tight coils beneath your motorhome – lay out the cable the length of your motorhome and in a way that doesn’t cause a trip hazard or restrict your access to the toilet hatches and other external lockers.

 

3. Inside the Motorhome: Your First‑Night Routine

    A. Switch on and check the essentials

• Start with the gas – you may have a bottle – turn on the tap; you may have an underslung tank. I turn off the internal gas taps when Bryony is in storage – so those are the first things I sort before departing our storage site. Check that the cooker hob works if it is gas.
• Interior lights
• Water pump
• Fridge (set to mains if on EHU)
• Heating/hot water (gas or electric depending on pitch amperage)

This builds confidence without pressure.

    B. Fill the fresh water tank – we normally do this when we enter a site – it depends on whether water is available at your pitch or not. You can select your pitch, leave a sign or something on the pitch to show that it is in use, and then go get water from the water services site.

• If your pitch has it, use the site tap and your hose or watering can.
• Don’t drink from the hose unless it’s food‑grade.

TIPS: It is good to have a watering can onboard which is designated just for filling up the water tank. I purchased a right-angled white exterior down pipe bend – its diameter fits nicely into the water filling hole on the motorhome – and it makes it so much easier using the watering can to top up the water tank. Measure the diameter of the filling cap area and then go visit B and Q or Screwfix. Carry a bag of different diameter screw on tap connectors – as more often than not – you have to supply your own. I use the brass ones.  Always use your own water tank hose pipe – I NEVER use ones supplied on a campsite – I have seen some horrendous uses of them – including flushing out toilet cassettes! Nuff said on that matter!  Before each trip I always flush out the water tank. I use Puriclean to sterilise it, leave it in for 24 hours, drain it out and then flush out the tank before finally filling it with water for the trip. Aqua-tabs and AquaSol do a similar job and are probably easier to use.

  C. Set up the toilet

• Add the correct amount of toilet chemical to the cassette.
• Do the same to the toilet flush tank
• Check that the toilet is working correctly

  D. Make the living space cosy

• Put out chairs, mats, bedding, and anything that makes it feel like home.
• Open blinds or skylights for ventilation if warm.
• Make up the bed if you have a fixed one
• Test the wind-out awning works

 

4. Quick Checks Before You Relax

    Reverse Polarity Check – see our other post for more details: https://wherenexthun.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-beginners-guide-to-using-electrical.html

Use a plug‑in tester in one of your 230V sockets.

• Two green lights = all good
• Red/green mix = reverse polarity If reversed:
• Many modern vans are protected
• If not, use a reverse‑polarity adaptor on your EHU cable
• Or ask the warden for a different pitch

  Appliance Load Awareness

Even on a 16A supply, avoid running everything at once. If you’re on 10A or 6A, be especially careful:

• Use gas for heating and cooking
• Avoid domestic kettles
• Keep the electric heater on low or off

Now test your USB and electrical sockets work, Check out the TV and aerial as well.

 

  5. Settling In for the Evening

Firstly, make yourself a brew. Then cook a simple first meal.

You don’t want to be learning the oven, grill, and hob all at once – so go for a simple one‑pan meal or something pre‑prepared.

Set your heating

Motorhomes cool quickly at night. Gas heating is powerful and quiet; electric is gentle but uses more amps.

Relax

And breathe. Sit outside with a drink, take a walk around the site, or just enjoy the novelty of your new home on wheels.

 

6. Morning‑After Checklist

A quick routine to build good habits:

• Check the leisure battery level
• Empty the toilet cassette at the designated chemical disposal point. I wear gloves for this job
• Top up fresh water
• Check tyre pressures visually
• Make sure nothing has tripped overnight
• Empty your grey waste at the designated point which is usually a drive over drain affair. It is always polite to then use a hose to put some freshwater over the area as well to keep it clean
• Return any keys to reception – it is always polite to just call in and say goodbye if you can.

We have a blog post about pre-departure checks for leaving a pitch and you can read it here :

 

A final tip – on your first two trips out – create a ‘snags’ list – the things which aren’t quite right or need adjusting and take this back to your dealer – they should put those things right without charge. Don’t worry too much – there will always be minor snags and niggles – like the wonky oven door hinge or the tiny bit of peeling trim – but ensure that your dealer knows you are going to do this. Good dealers will put this right without charge – normally under warranty.   

 

Finally, Campsite rules – the unwritten ones!

All these are common sense

·       Don’t leave any litter and recycle it at the correct points where possible

·       Despite what you might witness – don’t dispose of grey waster water in the hedges or over your pitch – unless the owner has told you to do so during summer months

·       Don’t let your pets bother others and pick up their mess

·       No blaring music that disturbs your neighbours

·       Respect the quiet hours

·       Don’t block or encroach on a neighbour’s pitch

 

This pretty much sums up our routine on most campsite arrivals. When we went on our first overnight in Bryony – it was stressful. Trying to remember everything that we were told at handover - You can find a post about ‘handover day’ here at: https://wherenexthun.blogspot.com/2020/11/ready-to-pick-up-your-new-motorhome.html

Of course, every motorhomer has variations of this routine and you will evolve yours very rapidly.

Why not share with us what you do when you arrive on a new pitch – help us build up a good resource for all those motorhomers who are new to this way of travelling.

Drop us a comment or tip in the box below and we will incorporate it into the list above.

As always, take care out there and have fun

Steve and Maggie

 Ready to leave your pitch? Find out the checks that will help you get away safely in the morning here: https://wherenexthun.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-pre-departure-from-your-pitch.html