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17 August 2026 - Why Roof Boxes Are So Useful During the Summer Holidays

Summer holidays have an impressive ability to make a perfectly adequate family car look far too small.

For most of the year, the boot handles shopping, school bags and everyday journeys without complaint. Then the summer getaway arrives. Suitcases appear. Children want to bring half their bedrooms. There are pushchairs, beach bags, walking boots, picnic equipment and enough snacks to survive a journey considerably longer than the one you are actually taking.

This is precisely when Roof Boxes become useful. Instead of trying to squeeze another bag behind a seat or asking passengers to sacrifice their footwells, a roof box creates a substantial new storage area above the vehicle.

Give Your Passengers Their Summer Holiday Space Back

It is tempting to look at a roof box purely in terms of litres, but passenger comfort can be the bigger benefit.

Moving suitable luggage out of the cabin means fewer bags around people's feet, less equipment piled between passengers and more freedom to organise the boot sensibly. That matters on a short drive and matters considerably more when you have several hours of motorway ahead.

Our Large Roof Box offers around 470 litres of additional capacity, while the Extra Large Roof Box increases this to around 580 litres. That is a substantial amount of extra room without changing the vehicle you already own.

The Great Summer Packing Problem

Summer luggage is deceptive. Individual items might not look particularly large, but put everything together and the available space disappears quickly.

A typical holiday packing pile might include suitcases, children's bags, spare shoes, towels, outdoor clothing, travel accessories and bulky items that are difficult to arrange efficiently inside a conventional boot.

Then there is the return journey. Souvenirs get bought. Shopping appears. Bags are repacked less efficiently than they were at home. Somehow, despite consuming half the snacks you originally brought, the car contains more stuff on the way back.

Having some spare capacity can therefore be just as useful as having enough room on departure day.

Roof Boxes for UK Summer Holidays

You do not need to be driving halfway around Europe to benefit from extra storage.

A week at the coast can mean beach equipment, towels and outdoor gear. A countryside break might involve walking boots, waterproofs and rucksacks. Family visits can involve presents and children's equipment, while longer staycations often require almost as much luggage as travelling abroad.

For customers leaving Sutton Coldfield, Redditch or Lichfield, a roof box can turn an overcrowded family car into something much better suited to a longer summer journey.

Heading to Europe by Car?

European road trips are another occasion when additional capacity comes into its own. Longer holidays usually mean more clothing and equipment, while passengers will appreciate having their own space during several hours on the road.

Customers travelling from Coventry, Solihull and Burton-upon-Trent can choose equipment according to their vehicle and the amount they intend to carry rather than trying to make the ordinary boot accommodate everything.

If you are unsure which capacity would work best, our guide to Which Is The Best Roof Box? provides further information.

What About Different Makes of Car?

Roof box hire is not limited to one particular type of family vehicle. The important consideration is having suitable equipment for the specific car.

For example, someone looking for a BMW Roof Box setup may require different bars and fittings from a customer driving a Ford Roof Box vehicle. We also help motorists looking for Toyota Roof Box, Kia Roof Box, Volvo Roof Box and VW Roof Box options.

Larger vehicles can benefit too. A big boot does not stay big for very long when every seat is occupied, which is why our SUV Roof Box and 4x4 Roof Box options can be useful for family travel.

Do You Need Roof Bars?

A roof box needs the correct supporting system for the vehicle. If you do not already have suitable equipment, Roof Bar Hire can provide the bars required for your hire setup.

Do not assume that a car without obvious raised rails cannot carry a roof box either. Different vehicles use different attachment systems, which we explain further in Can I fit a roof box to a car with no rails? and How Do Roof Boxes Attach To Cars?.

Hiring Makes Particular Sense for Summer Travellers

If you only need additional storage for one or two holidays each year, buying a roof box can leave you with another problem once summer is over: where do you put it?

Roof boxes are not small. Neither are they particularly useful sitting in the garage for eleven months waiting for next year's holiday.

Hiring lets you use quality equipment for the period when you need it and return it afterwards. There is no long-term storage commitment and no need to invest hundreds of pounds in a complete setup for occasional journeys.

Take a look at Is it cheaper to hire or buy a roof box? for a fuller comparison or see How much does it cost to hire a roof box? for our current hire prices.

Professional Fitting Before the Holiday Begins

There is enough to organise before a summer holiday without turning roof box installation into a DIY project the night before departure.

Midlands Roof Box Hire provides professional fitting, ensuring the appropriate equipment is correctly installed before you travel. We can also show you how to operate the box so you know how everything works before setting off.

Our Does roof box hire include fitting? guide explains more, while We Deliver To You may be useful if having your equipment fitted at home or work is more convenient.

Summer Roof Box Hire From Midlands Roof Box Hire

We help holidaymakers from Bromsgrove, Hinckley, Birmingham, Nuneaton and our home town of Tamworth, with premium Thule Roof Box equipment available for a variety of vehicles and journeys.

Summer is naturally a popular time for roof box hire, particularly around the school holidays, so arranging your equipment before the packing begins is a sensible move.

Explore our Roof Box Range to see the options available or Contact Us to discuss your vehicle, holiday dates and storage requirements.

Because the first challenge of the summer holiday should be deciding where to go, not working out how four suitcases, three passengers and a week's worth of belongings are all going to occupy the same boot.

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