Its catching on

Keep plugging away peedee, since our 2 local councils introduced height barriers and extended car parking charges to most areas, MH's have almost vanished, extinct, campervans yes but not as many as previous, are local businesses suffering, not judging by the queues at the ice cream vans etc.

That is because motorhome owners have enough sense to stay away from areas where they are not welcomed. At least Gwynedd are trying to control whereowners  can park by introducing official parking places rather than driving owners away. Northhumberland CC have deemed last years trials a success and have applied for permanent planning permission for sites.

peedee

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Well done to the Council involved and for taking a pragmatic approach to the provision of motorhome parking. I daresay that the tourist industry in that part of Wales is more dependent on the  tourist £ than perhaps places along the Solent which does create the need to consider new ideas. 

The latest information from the Club Council report in the latest magazine suggest that motorhome and caravan ownership in the Club is now level pegging. How long before motorhome ownership starts to pull ahead? What happens in the Club, in terms of ownership  is probably replicated outside the Club, perhaps even to a higher degree, so the issue of being able to park a motorhome reasonably close to amenities won't go away. Hopefully more councils will take an enlightened view?

David

MH's are very welcome, but it would appear they are not willing to pay. This car park has no height barriers has a seafront view across to the IOW with an acre of green playing fields and kiddies play park, prior to the introduction of charges and a ban on sleeping in MH's overnight this front row would have been full of Mh's, not today, taken just over 1hrs ago,

p.s. the promenade was the same, used to be nose to tail with MH's when free, today i saw just 1

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I do wonder if, as suggested in the latest magazine, the Club now has an equal split between caravans and motorhomes that a lot of caravanners are noticing this and just asking the question, would it suit me? For many the answer will be no but there will be some who start to think about it. Perhaps we are not typical but going back to the time we purchased our last caravan we were aided by reasonable inheritance which was enough to buy a new caravan and the rest shared with our two sons. There wasn't enough to buy a new motorhome! However even then we were thinking about making the change. I think what clinched it was when we started to think about replacing our tow car. I had got use to a 4x4 because of the driving position which I found comfortable from both a driving point of view and also from my back's point of view! When we started looking the cost of a new car was around £30,000 and I started to think that a new motorhome was not much more. So instead of paying £30,000 for a new car I spent £45,000 on a new motorhome. I do appreciate that the sums I am talking about are well out of the reach of some people but the other side of that is  that many pay far more for a new motorhome that we did. 

You are right about the aging process as that starts to impact on how you enjoy the hobby. We are now just past our mid seventies and the old bodies are not what they used to be! Having said that it is still possible to find sites with easy access to public transport, be that at home or abroad but it just takes more planning which some will find a pain. Just so your scribe does not go completely off topic the provision of local parking dedicated to motorhomes, be it for just parking or an overnight, does help people continue their hobby for longer.

David

I am not convinced by the argument that MHers are not willing to pay - I certainly am if the price is reasonable. 

The problem comes when the parking spaces are not large enough for a "standard size" MH - say 7.5m x 2.3m - as you then have to pay for multiple bays which, in this country, can be prohibitively expensive.

I just hope that the enlightened councils who are providing MH parking bays (good on 'em) remember that you can park a campervan in a "standard" bay but you can't park a "standard" MH in a campervan bay.

We are happy to pay as well, we have used some lovely daytime parking spots, as well as overnight spots. 

I am also quite happy to pay when it is in the right place and I have already done so last year and this. I don't think they should be free, better to charge a fee and use it pay for policing to keep the less desirable element away and those that don't follow the hygene rules.

peedee