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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Camping CFs - AIBU?

173 replies

CampingCFs · 13/03/2022 07:06

I live in a seaside town in the south west of England. We have a long coast road, lined with houses and hotels on one side, mostly with no parking restrictions.

In the last few years campervans and motorhomes have set up camp, sometimes for a night or two but sometimes for weeks, on the road. So rather than pay for an actual campsite they sleep on the side of the road. It strikes me as (a) cheeky but mostly (b) unsanitary as many don't have self-contained facilities and there are problems with human waste littering the area AngryEnvy

It used to be for a handful of weeks in the summer but yesterday there were a dozen or so on the road and in the (free) car parks dotted along. AIBU to think that people should respect a residential area and not claim public space as their private holiday spot?

OP posts:
LinnaW · 13/03/2022 09:29

I should add, yes. People are going to want to use their vans so the solution is better facilities and education... Still v frustrating when you're dealing with the mess and aggression however.

EvilPea · 13/03/2022 09:30

It is definitely not travellers. It is families who have hired a van for a cheap UK holiday
It’s not cheap hiring a van. It’s an active informed choice to behave like that.

cheapsakecampwer · 13/03/2022 09:33

@Rosehugger

Perhaps it would help if camp site fees were not so exhorbitant. Some sites have really taken advantage and have taken the piss in the last two years.
Exactly
CovoidOfAllHumanity · 13/03/2022 09:33

You can rant about it but it's a trend in tourism like Air BNB
Maybe people will go back to going abroad post Covid but I expect a lot won't
So you are left with banning and enforcement or with trying to make a compromise. There will always be some people who are inconsiderate arseholes as well as many who are not.

Kissmycousinkate · 13/03/2022 09:34

XmasElf10 you want to be on the north coast 500 route honestly there is so much human waste. Most people are just pulling in to laybys and shitting anywhere

KTheGrey · 13/03/2022 09:34

Raise with the council certainly - I think this is worth a campaign, though. Firstly locals should get priority parking: perhaps your county could have annual parking clocks that you buy from the local tourist information once a year for a fiver and get ticketed if you don't have?

That could get them off the front for a short while.
The human waste is a public health issue, though the Green Party should also be interested; that's damaging to the environment. Don't local councils have the power to send environmental officers out to combat human waste dumping?

weebarra · 13/03/2022 09:35

My PILs live in a tiny coastal village just off the NC500. Some of the behaviour from the tourists has been really awful. Lots of shit and litter and some tourists have even let themselves into PILs house as it's facing the harbour and looks nice!

Summerofcontent · 13/03/2022 09:37

www.britstops.com/

For a responsible, one night only, free stopover

Octomore · 13/03/2022 09:39

@flounfer

It's a totally different type of tourism though.

I replied to a question that talked about tourist hotspots. London is full of tourists. The question wasn't do you have lots of camper tourists.

A campervanner in a rural area (coastal, mountains, whatever) can very easily spend £nil locally. And often that's what they do - stock up the van beforehand in a Tesco when they start the journey, and then don't spend anything in the area they visit. Walks and beauty spots such as those on the NC500 are free.

But this can be true of any tourist not just those in a camper which is my point.

No, it can't be true of any kind of tourist.

Someone in a tent is paying to stay at a campsite. Someone in a hotel or B&B is paying for local accommodation. Someone in a camper does not have to do this.

I have had a campervan for years, and I also live in a national park which attracts people with campervans, so I see both sides. It's naive to pretend that campervans do not have the potential to be antisocial and damaging in ways that are relatively unique to campervans. That's not to say that all campervanners are arseholes, but a significant minority are.

StooOrangeyForCrows · 13/03/2022 09:39

Why don't campervans have toilets? We are living in a touring caravan at the moment for a variety of reasons. We have a thunderbox that unclips and is emptied into the septic tank.

When out and about, why don't people use a campervan toilet and empty it into a public loo? The cassette box has an emptying tube and three or four flushes would have it all gone. I'm boggled that people are too lazy to do this!

flounfer · 13/03/2022 09:39

I do think campers are better than 2nd homes/air bnbs.

Clymene · 13/03/2022 09:41

@XmasElf10

Human waste littering the area? Really? Travellers have that reputation but campervan tourists generally are not the folks who shit on beaches. I’ve not come across anyone who uses even the smallest campervan without a loo on board… that’s one of the main advantages! I will happily use my van outside of a camping ground. It’s small but has an onboard waste water tank and a loo.
Yep I'm afraid you're woefully behind the times. During Covid when all the public toilets were shut people shat on beaches and in gardens. Lots of people also bought vans and threw a mattress in the back.

It's grim and the pony way to stop is to ban it altogether. Which is crap for respectful campers.

flounfer · 13/03/2022 09:43

Someone in a tent is paying to stay at a campsite. Someone in a hotel or B&B is paying for local accommodation. Someone in a camper does not have to do this.

But what about as I said day trippers? Or people who wild camp in their tents & don't pay for a pitch? Or someone who stays with family/friends?

Of course it's wrong for people in campers to leave rubbish or pooh I just don't think it's only campers who do this.

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 13/03/2022 09:44

People camping in tents don't have to use campsites either. On our campervan holiday there were a whole lot more of them behaving antisocially tbh. People in tents were camping in the dunes and sneaking into the campsite for a wash and/ or shitting on the beach. They also tended to be groups of young people who were keener to rough it and have late noisy BBQs on the beach. (I did not begrudge it as it made me nostalgic for my youth)

flounfer · 13/03/2022 09:45

Also leaving pooh on the street isn't ok even if you have contributed to the economy by eating out 😆

cheapsakecampwer · 13/03/2022 09:46

Ignore my pp - £50 a night seems common these days

£50!!!!

Octomore · 13/03/2022 09:47

@CovoidOfAllHumanity

People camping in tents don't have to use campsites either. On our campervan holiday there were a whole lot more of them behaving antisocially tbh. People in tents were camping in the dunes and sneaking into the campsite for a wash and/ or shitting on the beach. They also tended to be groups of young people who were keener to rough it and have late noisy BBQs on the beach. (I did not begrudge it as it made me nostalgic for my youth)
It's true thatt there has been an increase in this over the last 2 years too - many of them starting fires in areas of high fire risk.
Pumpfive · 13/03/2022 09:47

I have zero problem with "tourists". I do have a problem with CFers. Please can you tell me where in the world I can move to which is CF-free? @CampingCFs

But you're tarring all of the campers with the same brush.

Original poster
CampingCFs · 13/03/2022 09:50

@NOTANUM

We have lots and lots of actual campsites which are only full in peak season. Are they open all year round? I wonder if they are shut so people are on the roadside.

Some are, some aren't. Some only have seasonal licenses.

OP posts:
ClariceQuiff · 13/03/2022 09:50

@NOTANUM

Last night I was looking at campervans as I would love the freedom of a weekend away without trying to find somewhere that takes a dog (bear on impossible). I kept thinking “but what about a toilet?”. Now I know..Envy
But if you are responsible, you simply take along a portable chemical toilet if there isn't one built into your camper van. Or, you stay on sites and use the site facilities as you would tent-camping.
Brideandprejudice · 13/03/2022 09:51

Why are people jumping to blame gypsies and travellers? The OP mentioned nothing about their race.

TheOccupier · 13/03/2022 09:54

YANBU - get onto the council and ask them to make the whole road resident parking only.

Personally I can't understand anyone who thinks sleeping in a van and shitting in a bucket is any kind of holiday. Sounds more like being kidnapped.

FairyCakeWings · 13/03/2022 09:56

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with people in camper vans camping wherever they like as long as it’s legal. If anything, more people should do it. The country belongs to all of us equally and it’s an environmentally friendly way to have a holiday.

People leaving human waste behind them are vile, and it’s a separate problem. It’s so disgusting that it should be punished with huge fines and prison. It’s a problem that wouldn’t happen so much if decent public facilities were provided, so councils have to take some responsibility.

bestbefore · 13/03/2022 09:56

You definitely need to engage with a local councillor and get them onside, show them the problem and discuss with them solutions, even if they are inconvenient to you. And if that fails try your MP. And rally other local residents.

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 13/03/2022 09:58

I just checked back on our holiday last summer and the cheapest campsites were £25 a night and the most expensive was £45 whereas I saw signs up whilst we were there offering use of toilets and a parking space for a pound or two.