To wonder why people have picnics in car parks?

[Tournesol]

I dunno if it is just a National Trust thing but it seems people seem to be obsessed with sitting round their car having a picnic when if they walked just 50 metres they could sit in a proper lovely picnic spot with picnic benches and everything!

Can anyone enlighten me? Am I missing out on something here?

Quite a lot of the time I find that the only permitted place at NT properties for a picnic is the sad bit at the end of the car park. Often round the back of the loo block.

I think lots of people get into the habit of assuming the worst, and don't want the staff doing the cats-bum-face at them if they don't cough up £20 for a couple of badly warmed over pasties made with estate pork n apples.

It is weird. I've seen it at NT places and other beauty spots too.

We are in the walk miles trying to find a nice spot camp, can drive the dses mad.

I hate eating in the car too, food and crumbs everywhere is horrible. The number of people I see going through the the drive in at McDonald's only to sit in the car park and eat astounds me! We've eaten McDonald's in the car once, not through choice, and it was horrible.

We were at Beamish today.

Loads of lovely spots for picnics. One group decided to have their picnic sitting on the pavement of the 1900 town. As in literally sitting in the middle of the pavement in a busy part of the park on Bank Holiday Monday and giving people dirty looks as they walked past with buggies, wheelchairs, dogs etc. Very peculiar

Was the weather like this when you saw them?

We went to the Deep earlier this year. A group of teenagers plus mum had decided to take up position in the shark tunnel to eat their picnic - right in everyone's way. Everyone spent the trip looking forward to the frankly disappointing tunnel and then couldn't even walk more slowly because of the obstruction and the toddler who was screaming in terror but being forced to stop by it's ridiculous parents

We ate our picnic in the car, because we arrived at dinner time. In order to eat our picnic in the eating warehouse we would have had to queue for 30 minutes with all the bags, go to the warehouse to eat, come back out and put bags back in the car and then queue to get back in again. Pointless.

It's like the people you see having picnics in lay-bys on really busy A roads.

It baffles me as they're clearly not just stopping for a quick sandwich before continuing their journey as they unpack deckchairs, folding table, camping stove to boil water, a mountain of Tupperware boxes and sit there peeling hard boiled eggs, seasoning their tomato and drinking a plastic mug of tea

You are all so judgy. I can think of loads of reasons to have a picnic in the car. Including unpredictable weather, tired kids who need to eat quickly, comfortable seat, being able to chat together without kids running off. I love a picnic with friends in a beautiful spot but when out for the day with kids the car is a welcome respite.

we do this when we need to eat before going in somewhere but cba dragging everything in with us.

Because eating doesn't have to be about enjoying the view - sometimes people just want to get the food out of the way and get on with their trip, so instead of carting everything from the car to the picnic benches, then packing it all up and carting it back to the car before they can get on with wandering around, they eat in the car and assume that the five minutes for which they were not enjoying the lovely view will be made up for by spending the rest of the afternoon at the place they have gone to visit.

Nobody is allowed to eat or drink in my car.

I once went out with a fella who was a bit like this. I said "It's a lovely summer evening, let's take a disposable barbie down to the local country park with my DS."

I assumed we would park in the car park and then walk along to find a suitable spot. No, drove onto the dirt track and pulled the car onto the grass, in the midst of 50 other cars.

I said "Why don't we walk down to the bottom smaller lake, it will be quieter down there."

"Walk?"

So basically - laziness.

because if we've driven somewhere mid morning it's easier eating in the car when we arrive than lugging it out to have a picnic.

and we have back seat flip down tables which the dc's love using. no wasps and surfaces, what's not to love.

They weren't in my car for about 9 months after getting it it was a much nicer car then

The message is that picnics are over-rated. The hassle, the expense. Better to get a ready-made sandwich and wait til you get home. Or a pub.

We live in a spot renowned for its beauty. Yet plenty park up, pour a cup of tea and drink it in the car whilst reading the paper.

I had a job where I had to go hang out in Forestry Commission car parks for up to 90 minutes at a time.

Lot of people who would park up, stay in car the entire time, get out the sandwiches & thermos, take ages eating it, and then drive off again. Overwhelmingly late middle age or retirement age couples (no kids, no luggage, no hurry, no blue badge apparent). I decided that was literally their idea of a 'day out'.

This threat is judgey, but then we are on AIBU!

My parents go out, they walk along the beach for miles, and then when they've done that, they drive to a car park to eat their lunch.

My mum has pain in her skull from brain surgery. It limits how much time she can spend in the wind. That is not blue badge worthy, but it does mean she wants to spend her time out actually walking (what she came out for) and then eat (which she didn't come out for particularly) in the car or in the shelter of the car, so they drive to a quiet car park!

There must be loads of people who park up to eat in a car park because they are using their energy doing other stuff on the day out, and eating is just done as conveniently as possible in a quiet spot.

And I find it convenient not to have to control the dogs or ruin other people's picnics by taking two large, often wet and dirty dogs to a picnic spot.

Phalarope I know someone who does that and it drives me mad ??

I do like a nice secluded spot but there comes a point where pragmatism rules. Massive rain clouds are forming and itll be 20 mins at most until the deluge hits, now is not the time to trek 25 mins dow the river path to find find somewhere to sit for 10 mins. Hey lets sit 5 mins from the car park, where the water is shallow and the kids have already round the perfect place to play.

This same person has dragged me half way accros a long beach, with her one child. Ive made it that far carrying a baby and dragging a toddler, we stop, I fall in a heap and start to gert everything out. Thinking oh good some shade and a shalow pool where I wont have to keep a constant guard on the kids. No, it is not perfect enough so I have to gather everything up and move to another spot thats further away from the car and less going for It.

Good job I like her

Lot of people who would park up, stay in car the entire time, get out the sandwiches & thermos, take ages eating it, and then drive off again. Overwhelmingly late middle age or retirement age couples (no kids, no luggage, no hurry, no blue badge apparent). I decided that was literally their idea of a 'day out'.

See, I would assume that they were stopping on their way somewhere - pulling over for their lunch somewhere a bit less manic than a drive through and carrying on to wherever they were going once they have eaten. It just goes to show how perceptions can vary depending on your point of view...

Soldier that is very odd! I'm surprised the staff didn't move them on. Were they in the queue for the sweet shop? Last time we went to Beamish it was just after a lot of rain so we had our picnic in the train waiting room.

Good point almondcakes

Depends on the purpose of the day. If it's to spend the day rockpooling then we will eat at the car and then climb down the hill to the beach with nets and buckets. Rather than lugging bags of food, blankets etc around the whole afternoon.

If the day out is for primarily a picnic we will drag it all with us but mostly pur days out are based around doing things, not eating.

Picnic tables are always covered in bird poo and the detritus from other peoples' picnics. I would always choose to eat in my nice clean car.

See, I would assume that they were stopping on their way somewhere

I've wondered that, I think the stopping over was during a driving day out. "Let's have a drive out and when we need to eat we'll stop & stare at the carpark." Because these were mostly little FC sites well off the beaten track, the sort of places only locals know about.

This is SO common. My DH and I love walking and it was always our joke that the car parks are HEAVING and you get out of the car park and walk 50 yards and then don't see another soul. We always assumed that people were so paranoid about car theft, they didn't like to move to where they couldn't see them.

Bonkers! (p.s. we've been noticing and commenting on this for 20+ years!)