Campers of the 2013 Dusseldorf Caravan Salon

[Shadow Catcher]

Article on Gismag http://www.gizmag.com/20-portable-campers/29191 Well worth browsing the pictures. Pointed out in the article is the move to smaller trailers. Nancy and I were just discussing our frustration with RV show's that we have been to with a whole lot of "MOTS", (more of the same) poor quality slight variations in layout, not at all innovative, too big too heavy. I would think much of what you see in Europe is driven in part by fuel prices.

[JuneBug]

I would think much of what you see in Europe is driven in part by fuel prices....

....and fuel prices (and lack of parking spaces in old, densely populated cities) dictate small, fuel efficient cars, which can pull only small, light-weight 'caravans'. Love the first picture, both for size, shape and design elements on the exterior.

[doris s.]

Shadow catcher, I totally agree with you on the RV shows here in America. Boring, same ole, behemoth units that are cheaply made. Ugh! I love the pics you posted! I love the trunk not on wheels.


Doris

[GerryS]

Cheaply made and you forgot ungodly expensive! When you understand that historically, until the l70s the average price of a home adjusted for up inflation in this country was $100k. That's now the price of a toy...really? No wonder were broke and $17 trillion in debt...

[Engineer Guy]

After so much Int'l Travel for High Tech Biz, I think it's a 'Chicken And The Egg' sort of question.

Smaller Land Mass and Countries there lead to more compact Town layout, and smaller Dwellings. A good German Pal just laughed at a 3/4 Ton Truck in a monstrous Parking Lot at a Big Box Store here where I took them to replace a piece of Airline-shredded Luggage. 'Who needs such a Truck', they asked me in astonishment! From the former East Germany, they also could not believe the number of choices here of, say, Cereals in our Supermarkets. Even that Inventory requires 'more' space.

This thinking - good, bad or indifferent - has lots of implications. Caravan Parks are smaller; areas to store your Caravan are smaller; and so on. Some months ago on this Forum, someone pondered why the German vs. American VW Passat [I think?] Towing Specs were so down-rated here in the States. The consensus was that it was either a Warranty avoidance issue, or a CYA issue from the U.S. arm of the Manufacturer. It wasn't a technical issue [Engine Torque differences, etc.]. The Vehicle capabilities were the same.

I drove by a Colorado River-side RV Park yesterday by I-70. The Big Rigs were out; Slide Outs deployed; Satellite Dishes up and oriented. No looking down my Nose intended at all. Culturally, in more compact Land Masses, Campers get out to experience their 'limited' bits of Ma Nature in Europe. Hike, Fish, Picnic, take Pictures... Further, putting a RV on a Ferry [which I've done] to vacation in, say, Norway is priced by Vehicle Length. So, The ~22' Class B we rented came in JUST under one length 'Category' on the Ferry [~7 Meters long]; a reasonable Ferry price to pay. And, it was fairly easy to drive through tight Villages in remote Scotland. Fortunately, the side Mirrors 'snapped' in and popped back out when you hit something. Just once. Also, the necessary wide turn coming out of, say, a Petrol Station on a tight Street while towing a long Rig is a maneuver that might take you 'forever' while you wait out Traffic.

[Westcliffe01]

I lived in Germany for 3 years from 2000 to Nov 2003 and I couldn't stand it unfortunately.

I lived in a town of 1800 on the "Southern Wine Route" thus the town was surrounded for miles with vineyards. Over 200 registered winemakers in that town, including a co-operative. To the west (France was about 30 miles away) seemingly endless woods. Yet all the people were jammed wall to wall in these tiny towns. Most homes had no garage, sometimes there was parking on the street for 1 or 2 cars in front of the house on a single side of the road. Every town had a "park and ride" area which was where you parked as a visitor. In "tourist season" major roads in town would actually be gated to prevent idiots from trying to drive through the narrow streets. Residents had keys to get through and of course it is a royal PIA.

There was a "land owner class" who had pretty much all undeveloped land sewn up. In the town I lived in was 1 wealthy guy who probably had over 1000 acres of woods with a hillside castle and he always seemed in a bad mood. In many towns you would be subject to a panel interview before they would even consider whether they were going to sell you a piece of land. The sizes of the lots were of course pitiful and in the town I lived in steep as all heck so a lot of money had to be spent to even make them fit for building (retaining walls, fill etc). Because of the tiny lots, virtually every home was 3-4 story since the basement was the stand in for the garage/shop/barn/storage area. Often the attic was another shop/studio/storage area, even if access to it was awkward and perhaps it was not insulated the same as the rest of the house.

I could not stand the population density / traffic / unavoidable public nudity / taxes / in your face socialism and the hypocrisy of the ruling class, so I came to America.... Thats not to say things are perfect here, but there is no doubt that one still has a degree of "self determination" accessible in the US (look at the Amish) which one can basically forget in Europe.

They are clever people with more limited means (after the state takes 80% of your paycheck) and often they have great ideas. We just don't necessarily want to live like them...

[GerryS]

I work for a Swiss company. I wish I could capture your experience in a bottle, as my grandparents and parent experience here before our government started to look like theirs....just to be able to demonstrate what made America so unique.

The experience you describe is very indicative of what has been happening under royal leadership for thousands of years....

This is not an attack on our current administration....the decline started LONG before today....some would argue to Woodrow Wilson, others like me back to a time when even before that....