Ultra-Compact 2023 San Berlino Is RV Luxury in a Boxy Form, Meant for the Entire Family

A more mobile lifestyle doesn’t necessarily have to mean getting into the #vanlife craze. It doesn’t have to mean investing in one of those bigger rigs or a tiny house, or any other option for alternative housing on wheels you can think of. That’s one of the upsides of the wanderlust that has gripped humanity over the past few years: more demand has generated more options to choose from and, in the end, the customer wins. As long as the customer can afford it, of course.

Today’s mobile home is like the boxy, bronze love child of a luxury RV and a van conversion, with tiny home influences and the promise of an all-in-one solution. It’s compact but spacious, at least in vibe if not in actual living space, luxurious and ready for whatever adventures the entire family has in mind. It’s perfect – on paper, at the very least – a sort of pocket rocket that you don’t have to worry about storing when not in use, which remains easy to operate and highly maneuverable even in the city, yet well-specced and – did we say it before? – luxurious.

This boxy little thing is called the San Berlino, the 2023 edition, and it’s actually a conversion by miet.click, a popular rental platform from Germany. The basis is a Turkey-made Karsan minibus, powered by a Fiat engine of unknown specification, rigged with solar panels, and all the trappings of a larger, fancier motorhome.

Unveiled at the end of last year at a local industry fair, the 2023 San Berlino wants to be an ultra-compact luxury camper that packs all the creature comforts of a home, with extra sleeping berths and the comfort of larger RVs, into a way more compact and manageable package. It’s an interesting option, if anything, so we might as well have a look at it.

If you’re a believer that strong essences are kept in small containers, you’ll probably love the San Berlino. No bigger than a van, it’s able to cram a whole lot of goodies inside, from a full kitchen to a dinette, a rooftop pop-up tent, and even a rooftop deck, as well as a full bathroom. The result is a living space that feels as cramped as you imagine it, because, duh, it is cramped.

The video tour available at the bottom of the page offers a good appreciation of just how compact it is, which makes the fact that it’s meant as a mobile home for six even stranger. Total length is 6 meters, with a width of 2.2 meters and a height of 3.3 meters (19.6 x 7.2 x 10.8 feet), and a layout similar to what you’d find in any of the hundreds of van conversions to have made waves on social media over the past few months.

The dinette area converts into a bed at night by lowering the table and connecting the two benches, and the kitchen sits across from it, with a surprising amount of appliances. There’s a large sink, three-burner gas stove, and impressive amount of countertop, including by means of a fold-down table. You also get a sizable fridge and, perhaps more impressive of all, a small dishwasher tucked away under the master bed. No one should have to go on vacation and worry about doing the dishes, and that’s a fact!

The full bathroom is a wet, RV-style one that looks slightly confused about which styling to adopt, but which does what it should. If you think that most vanlifers will sacrifice a proper bathroom for a bit more space, the San Berlino feels actually luxurious. Then again, it would have been difficult not to include it, considering the van is supposed to haul six passengers, some of whom will probably be kids.

The rear is occupied by the master bed, with an additional berth for two upstairs, in the pop-up section. There’s not much to say about this part, except that it features a window to the rooftop deck, which lacks railing, so it’s more like a wooden sun lounger, and 600W in solar panels to run appliances on.

Additional features include a single-burner, hinged gas cooker outside, which should come in handy at camp when you don’t want to stink up the whole place, double floor, diesel heating and AC, a sound system, and the possibility to control every function on an integrated tablet. The camper is painted bronze on the outside, with a dark brown finish for the interior, with fake leather and wood effects that are meant to say “luxury”, but, in reality, add to the impression of a rather cramped, uncomfortable space. A lighter color scheme on the interior would have worked much better is what we’re saying.

It’s always good to have options, and this holds true for homes on wheels too, regardless of how big they are or who’s building them. Products that aim to combine the best of several other products from different categories will always be in demand and are welcome, but in this particular case, it’s not one that offers the pricing advantages of competitors.

This is merely a roundabout way of saying that the 2023 San Berlino is not affordable: it starts at €94,900 new and €74,900 used, so approximately $103,400 or $81,700 at the current exchange rate. Or, if you’re ever in the area, you can rent one out to get the feel of it and see what the hype is all about.