Keeping a motorhome cool in summer
We have toured Spain and Portugal in August and driven to the Sahara, so this one comes up a lot. Honest answers about heat, sleep and southern Europe.
Is air conditioning essential in a motorhome?
It depends where and when you tour. For the UK and a normal northern European summer, no. For southern Spain, Portugal or Morocco in July and August, cooling of some kind transforms the nights, whether that is fitted air conditioning or a determined fan and ventilation strategy. Our honest advice is to spend on it only if hot country high summer touring is genuinely your pattern, because it is heavy, thirsty on power and unused for most of the year otherwise.
How did you keep cool in Morocco?
Mostly by working with the climate rather than fighting it. We favoured the coast over the interior, where the ocean takes the edge off the nights. We drove in the mornings, parked in shade wherever it existed, opened everything up with insect mesh once the sun dropped, and kept fans moving air across the beds. None of it is clever and all of it works. The full Morocco run, including the heat, is in the guide.
Full guide: UK to the Sahara: motorhoming to Morocco
We are off to Spain in August. How do we stay cool at night?
Pick coastal pitches over inland ones, because the sea breeze after dark is worth more than any gadget. Arrive with the van already ventilated rather than letting it bake sealed up all afternoon, shade the windscreen, open roof lights and windows on opposite sides for a cross draught, and run fans across the sleeping areas. Spain in August is genuinely hot and no van stays cool at siesta time, so plan beach and pool for the afternoons and let the van come back to temperature in the evening.
Full guide: Motorhoming in Spain
Is a compressor cool box worth it over a normal one?
Yes, and it is not close. A compressor box is a proper fridge: it holds temperature in real summer heat and will freeze if asked, where thermoelectric boxes just take the edge off and struggle exactly when you need them most. They cost more and draw from the 12 volt system, but with a lithium bank and some solar the consumption is comfortably manageable. For hot country touring it is one of the easiest quality of life upgrades there is.