Camping

With Mike and Terri Church

Camping

The camping scene in England is dominated by two large camping clubs, The Caravan Club and The Camping and Caravan Club. Both have very reasonably priced sites throughout Great Britain, with The Caravan Club being the larger of the two. At most (but not all) sites non-members are welcome, but a substantial discount is offered to members. It's easy to join, just inquire at any of the camping locations.

There are also lots of other commercial campgrounds. In many instances we find these are not kept to the same quality as are those operated by the clubs. Many of the commercial sites are "holiday parks" which means they usually have many permanently-situated trailers rented out for holiday stays. The ones we usually like best are called "touring parks" and are operated more to accommodate campers touring the country. Usually at these parks there are no permanent motorhome residents or rental trailers. The club sites are considered touring parks.

The Caravan Club Crystal Palace Site and The Camping and Caravanning Club Chertsey Site, whose signs are shown below, are two of London's campgrounds. Both have quick easy access to downtown London and cost less than $15 US.

Owning and driving large American motorhomes has become a fad in England in the past several years. There are several dealers specializing in imported American motorhomes. They modify them to accommodate the 220-volt electricity used in Europe. On the roads, at the gas pumps, and in the campgrounds we prefer the smaller European-made motorhome which is a much more practical vehicle for touring Europe.

The picture above is of an older 34-foot Bounder which was parked near us at the Crystal Palace campground. Although large US-style rigs are a tight fit, many of the campgrounds in England have a few places to accommodate them. A larger rig really limits the places you can visit in a motorhome.