We were totally spoiled with the Toyota Hi Top Hiace in Tasmania and grimaced when we saw the limited space in the Jucy Toyoto Previa Campervan. Terry couldn’t even sit up in the back without poking his head out of the sun roof and his feet were dangling off the bed for the entire week. Not recommend for anyone over 5 ft 9 inches!
It came with the standard linen, basic cutlery (no cheese grater this time!) and a single small pot and two small gas canisters. When we asked the agent how long the gas canisters last, he replied “Not sure, every time I asked a renter upon return, they said they ate out the whole time!” Not surprising to say the least, after it took us an entire hour to boil a pot of water with the wind and lack of cover out the back!
Needless to say, we ended up staying at Holiday Parks ($25 to $30 for powered sites) every few days to cook en masse to last us until the next time we spied a camp kitchen! We stocked up on cereal, PB&J, salad, granola bars, chocolate and made spaghetti, taco/burrito fillings and beans in large quantities so we could merely re-heat with the supplied gas stove.
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However, the car itself was slightly cheaper per day, had better gas mileage and was easier to drive (automatic transmission) and park in inconspicuous places (albeit the bright green exterior). If you are road-tripping for a short period of time, the smaller minivan will suffice, but for extended periods and for taller people, be prepared to be slightly cramped.
Website: www.jucy.com.au
We looked at the Jucy campervan and seriously considered renting it but they were out of the model that we wanted. Thank goodness for us that we ended up with another company and with the Toyota Hiace model. We think that Jucy does so well because of their awesome advertising but their vans are actually pretty lousy. Hope that the van hasn't put a damper on your trip through New Zealand.
These vans sucked. My GF and I are about a week into our van experience, and yeah, it is impossible to cook anything because the wind blows out the fire from the stove, the fridge only lasts 5 hours from a 2 hour charge from driving. How do they expect the renter to continuously drive to re-charge to the battery. Plus, even if you went to a powered site, you wouldn’t be able to plug in the car or battery to camp for longer periods. Not impressed with kitchen set up either. I would not recommend these vans for anyone.