AIBU to not understand the appeal of caravan holidays?

[Pegasuspicious]

This is not aimed at people/families who can only afford a caravan type holiday. Or have young children who like to visit the beach, amusements etc.

I have a few friends and colleagues who absolutely love going to the caravan for a week or weekend. A colleague has one in a non-touristy area and says her and her husband (husband is retired, and their kids are well into adulthood) love going every other weekend. They don’t go to the beach or out and about, they stay in the caravan the whole time!

I just don’t get it. I find them pokey, uncomfortable and when you need to use the bathroom it’s like showering/shitting in a cupboard. Am I missing something?

Ah, OK, sorry - you just came across a bit 'it's only Cornwall, it's not a holiday like Florida or the Caribbean' but if this is to do with the length of the break and how you've allocated your budget, fair enough 😊

Sorry reading back I did sound like a twat, that’s not how I meant it, I focussed on ‘holiday’ because OP used the term caravan holiday. I’m expecting this caravan to be nicer than most motels we’ve been in. I’ve not been to Cornwall since I was a child, I’m looking forward to it.

My mum has one and my kids/niece/newphew absolutely love it. There is a pizza place, cafe, giant play park, entertainment area with kids discos/adult bingo etc and the site itself is massive. It opens year round and her caravan is on the bigger side compared to the ones we stayed in as kids (my aunts one in the 90s was like the father Ted scene with Graham norton). The kids can run around free and cars have to drive 5 mph on site so it feels alot safer than back home. Its a stone throw to the beach and shops/restraunts etc.

However, if we didnt have the kids im not sure it would be my thing. But I have so many great memories of being at the caravan as a child/teen and I am glad my kids get to make these memories too.

I misunderstood you. Hope you have an amazing time. I've always thought it would be nice to go in autumn - we always go in June - but it's a heck of a drive for us (about 400 miles) so once a year is all we can face.

Depends where it is. We have booked a privately owned caravan in the Cairngorms a few times, it’s laid out differently to a holiday park one with a king size good quality bed, it’s just the 2 of us so the twin room we use for cases etc. it’s actually perfect for 2 people

I'm not a fan either OP, I know they're supposed to be used as a base so you can go out and do things, like going to the beach etc. But I too find them pokey and uncomfortable. And I don't want to cook and clean on holiday 🤣.

Nothing around it? How about the sea, and walks?

My caravan doesn’t have a pub or shop for about 5 miles, but I can swim in the sea if I walk 200m. There are many breathtaking walks nearby too.

Jesus people are so offended 🤣

It’s hilarious.

I think lots of people like the appeal of owning somewhere in a favourite place, and either can't afford a second home, or just morally, go for a static caravan instead of taking accomodation from a local person and contributing to the economy in a negative way.

I really don't get doing that though if all they do is stay in. It doesn't matter if it's touristy or not. Some people want to avoid crowded tourist places. But sitting in a caravan and not getting out and about seems daft to me.

Touring caravans, motorhomes and campers are a different kettle of fish as well. It's great going on road trips all the time and exploring new places.

I don’t love them but my dc do and I find they are a relaxing holiday as the dc make friends and give you some peace.

We have a tourer. It wasn’t my idea but actually I’ve really enjoyed it!!
I like having everything I need kept in it so we can just go. I like my own caravan bed. The kids enjoy going to new places.

Since we’ve had it we’ve spent lots of weekends in new places each time. It’s been a lot of fun. We also have a dog that can’t go into kennels so it’s meant we can still go ‘away’ when we would normally struggle.

I would still love an abroad week away but at the moment with the cost of everything it’s better than not going at all.

We have a static that we own. Just us. No other caravans. We spend probably one week in every four at it. Maybe more. I don’t regard our visits as holidays, it’s just somewhere else we live.

We've just spent a lovely week on a site in Norfolk. 2 'caravans' for sale, £197,000 and £209,000 ! I could buy a house for that!

We've managed to get in a lot of holidays where we see a lot of cool things by staying in a cheapish caravan. It's not luxurious but it's somewhere to lay your head a night that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

Now I have a family member who works for a caravan company so we can stay in many UK parks for pennies, works brilliantly!

I guess it also depends what you have at home.

My kids have endless empty beaches, coastal paths and hills at home. What they don't have is a pool with slides etc so we love a bit of butlins chaos for four days.

I like a caravan because you don't have to eat out for every meal. I'd rather be able to have breakfast when I like and choose to eat out if I want to.

Now I don't get Air B&Bs. Taking away from local homes to stay in a residential street and then have to clean a house. Caravans are more fun.

We have a static caravan near the seaside about 90 mins drive from our home. We have young kids and we go most weekends. The kids absolutely love it, they’re out playing with their friends at the pitch or in the park most of the weekend.
It has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, tv, Wi-Fi, central heating and a full kitchen. It’s much easier keeping the kids entertained while we are there. I think I will still like it when they’re not too young anymore but time will tell.

I go Blackpool once a year in September. Have done for years. My mum lives in a village near Blackpool and hiring a static caravan at Haven is frankly cheaper than a hotel for 4 nights. Especially when my daughter used to come and needed her own room.

One thing I like about static caravanning is the only being to take so much packing . I realise I don't need half the stuff I have at home. I have tons of paperback books waiting to be read. I feel pressured to read them but don't have the time at home. I just take my Kindle on holiday. I don't need all the hair styling paraphernalia. Just a brush, comb, dryer. I don't take make up. Less jewellery. Life seems simple when caravanning. Less clutter around. Less cleaning. Brilliant!

The idea is surely that it is your own familiar space with your own stuff, but you can transport it to anywhere you want to visit? Like a house that can magically move?

I've been once after dh begged me to give it a go. Borrowed a caravan from a family member of his. The dc enjoyed it but it's definitely not for me I'm afraid. It's not something my family ever did. In fact I only know of one family in our whole area who had one. Dh is from a rural place. Most city people tend not to do that style of holiday I think.

I find them quite cute. But then I've always had mild claustraphiliac tendencies. I remember going on a canal boat holiday when very small and loving the coffin-like bunk. Now I like blogs about tiny houses and covet a camper van.

People like camping (loons). Maybe try thinking of it as like a tent, only you don't have to struggle to put it up in a gale, and it probably won't leak and you won't actually sleep with a rock under your back, and if your stuff gets wet you've got a fighting chance of being able to dry it...

You never meet really rich people with caravans though, do you? If they like to go away a lot but they can also afford hotels every time, that's what they do. I think caravan people basically trade comfort for more time away. If you want to be away practically every weekend, or for weeks at a time, and you're not minted, it's a valid option.

I was a caravan snob until last weekend when I went on a girls trip 5 of us got a Haven deal for £30pp for three nights. Drove to wales Friday night and back Sunday afternoon so no AL used, did a Tesco shop for £17pp of nice bits to eat and drink, spent £5 in the arcade and £7 on fish and chips. It was two for a tenner beers in the clubhouse so we went for two but mainly just drank in the caravan. Petrol was £11 each.
I had a full weekend away for £71, and was right by one of the last stunning beaches I’ve ever seen, gorgeous hikes and lovely food and drink. I’m sure those lodge things you see people stay in cost about £200 a night.
£71 is a night at the local pub for me usually!

Thinking about our campsite holidays brings back many happy memories:

• DS standing in his travel cot fascinated by the Dutch teenagers playing 'padlington' (badminton) on the road
• DCs going lizard hunting - no lizards ever came to harm
• the travelling cinema where we watched something incomprehensible but charming about Mongolian herdsmen
• DCs learning some French so that they could go and buy their own ice creams at the bar

Much prefer campsites to gites. I hate being on holiday with the owner nearby. I like the annonimity of campsites. People keep themselves to themselves.

We’re exactly the same, ours in an hour away from home and go at least once a month.
We brought it after our children outgrew the bunk beds in the touring van, so was the next logical step for us.
I hated camping in a tent when we tried it years ago but I loved our van and the static now.