Swift Challenger 565 SE

* (AFF) This post contains affiliate links, I may receive a commission for my recommendation. Please see my disclaimer page for more information.

---

Our current caravan is the Swift Challenger 565 SE. Following the problems we had with our Lemon Caravan, we decided to try a dealer & thank goodness we did. Our 2013 van arrived with a huge damp patch across the back end ceiling, as it was during the COVID shut down and it was quite some distance, we bought remotely and they delivered it to us. Thankfully we located the problem very quickly & the person delivering took it straight back to be fixed. The problem was later identified as being a crack along the top corner, a manufacturing defect which was fixed with added corners and sealed. They replaced the wall board inside and all was right with the caravan.

We love this caravan, the layout works well for us, the fixed beds are really useful during the day to either sit or lounge on, almost like extra seating space. Underneath the beds, which are liftable on gas struts, is an amazing amount of storage, accessible from the outside via a locker on the one door side.

At the front of the caravan are two sofas which convert to a double bed. The drawers provide more handy storage and a small self contained table which extends by half again. Above the sofas are two large lockers, one with integrated car stereo.

In the middle, it has a well equipped kitchen with a full domestic size under counter fridge with an integral freezer, enough for several packs of ice lollies! There is also a fitted microwave and full oven, the 4 ring hob counts an electric burner in its number which is really useful if you don’t want to use gas. As part of the kitchen, the worktop extends over the sofa with a drop leaf. There are two plugs in the backlit backsplash & an under counter LED strip light.

Opposite the kitchen is a full height wardrobe, with drawer and cupboard underneath. We use a hanging wardrobe shelves to get more from the storage, for shoes or blankets, otherwise things can get piled up in there. Between the living space and the twin beds there is a sturdy partition which draws across for privacy.

We have a fixed single bed on each side of the caravan, these double as extra sitting space during the day. You can lift them up to reveal great storage underneath, there are gas struts installed so they aren't too heavy. On the door side, the under bed storage compartment is accessible from the outside through a lockable panel, the same as the front bed. Above there are 5 eye level lockers and a space for the TV to be mounted next to a plug and arial socket.

Finally, at the back there is a full width end washroom. The shower is a good size and there are a couple of cupboards for toiletry storage. My favourite part of the bathroom is the towel rail, part of the Alde heating system which has made our caravan usable all winter, even on the coldest of days. All windows and doors have full fly screens which is perfect in the summer.

The Swift Challenger 565 SE is a single axle caravan, at 2.26m wide and 7.24m shipping length its not the largest caravan but the interior is well thought out and it feels bigger than it really is. When compared to our 6 berth lemon, the storage space is far superior in the Swift.

The MIRO is 1400Kgs and Max allowable weight is 1553Kgs giving a payload of 153Kgs. The van is equipped with solar panels to top up the battery.

It's a great caravan with a very comfortable amount of living space.