Friday 23 March 2018

Vango's New Awning Is A Break From The Norm


It’s got to be said that Vango somewhat leads the way when it comes to van awnings. Their first air awning, the Kela was revolutionary when released back in 2013. The inflatable "AirBeams" made pitching a breeze and saved campervan owners a ton of stress compared to their cumbersome, poled counterparts.
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Fast forward to 2018 and the AirHub HexAway is one of Vango’s latest awning designs with a focus on providing extra living space over extra sleeping areas. Based on last years Hex Event Shelter, the HexAway features a clever airframe which allows all in one inflation via one of the three valves. Inflation times are also helped by the sleek, double action pump which makes light work of blowing up all six arms in just a matter of minutes.
While the six-sided shape is probably the most obvious difference that sets this awning apart from others. Another feature would be just how open it can be. All six sides have openings (three doors with windows and three mesh windows), when fully open this leaves the awning feeling incredibly light and airy. When all the doors and windows are shut the space feels adequately private and the three Skylights allow in a reasonable amount of light.


SkyTrack II is a nice feature in all Vango tents and awnings this year, the track is a handy system that allows the hanging lights and accessories from pretty much anywhere along the beams. As also utilised in all Vango’s awnings, is a Sentinel Pro 420 denier, rip-stop fabric which is more than up to the task for short to mid length trips here in the U.K. The groundsheet is a floating, toggle-in type which is maybe a negative for some as it won’t be as weather-proof as sewn-in groundsheets. But this could also be advantageous on the few campsites where sewn-in groundsheets are not permitted.




If you would like to read more about this, or any other campervan awnings you can find an impressive range from Vango, Outwell, Kampa and Easy Camp here.