Big is beautiful in the States, but in the case of the Safari Trek, ‘big’ is a relative term. This US motorhome offers the luxury of a huge living space and an upmarket finish normally found only on vehicles twice the price and 10ft longer.

The secret is hidden inside the roof, above the lounge, from which the Electro-Majic bed lowers at the flick of a switch to provide a full-sized double, with plenty of headroom. This innovation has allowed Safari to ‘lose’ the rear bedroom that is standard on nearly all US motorhomes of this class without compromising on a sofa, large kitchen or a dining table.

Although this motorhome’s dimensions are larger than those of most European A-class vehicles, the lack of a slide-out section means that it can be accommodated by many campsites.

As far as driving the Trek is concerned, fuel consumption is not as high as you may have thought (around 12-14mpg) but every comfort is provided. As long as you can get your head around the vehicle’s size, it will be a pleasure to drive from the vantage point of the armchair-like cab seats. In addition to the reversing camera, there are cameras on each wing which automatically activate when you indicate, so you can see cyclists, motorcyclists and other hazards.

Specification lists on RVs can be so long as to be confusing, but a quick glance inside this coach shows what you get for your money. Everything is of domestic quality, from high quality fabrics and floor tiles to a Corian kitchen worksurface. The styling is typical of Safari’s parent company, Monaco, which builds ‘vans which retail in the region of £300,000. Despite all this, the Trek can be plated below HGV weight (7.5 tonnes) and still have around a tonne payload.

Although the lack of a slide-out is evident in the lounge width (2.4m), it’s nevertheless ample for a couple, and the Trek lacks none of the kit that makes RVs so popular in the racing paddocks.

An hydraulic levelling system automatically sets things to rights on-site, while a generator provides power. Even if you are hooked up, the inverter controls the draw from components, so if you’re in danger of exceeding the maximum amperage of the mains supply, the generator and twin batteries will kick in.

The washroom has a proper porcelain toilet, a big shower (about 88cm x 1.14m) and a big wardrobe with a linen cupboard next door. The toilet tank is the same size as the waste water tank. The kitchen is domestic in size and quality. There’s a convection microwave oven, and the fridge is huge, even by domestic standards.

Though it’s huge and highly priced in comparison with an average coachbuilt, the Safari is not much more expensive than a specced-up Hymer S-Class, yet it offers a degree of independence that wipes the floor with most Europeans.