Trailer travel through Europe

Having a trailer is probably the dream of any traveler who doesn’t want to spend an inordinate amount of money on accommodation, and who wants to be able to go about his own schedule as she or he sees fit. Like a snail, you can take your home with you wherever you go. No more hostels and motels (although youth hostels sure have their advantages).

All you need is a parking lot for your trailer, and a willingness to spend quite some time on the road boxed in a not very large car. But still, you’ll have to drive quite a lot, so taking an all-Asian tour might be a bit exhausting. This is why our suggestions is Europe: small, very diverse, and with good transport networks (mostly).

The main reason why you should opt for traveling by trailer is that you can save a lot of money this way. Like I said, the only accommodation fee you have to pay is the parking space, and in most major destinations there are lots of trailer camping sites, where you can have access to various facilities. European camping grounds are not always scenic, but they are functional: you can take a shower, wash your clothes, and stock up at a grocery store. And another plus: these sites are quite safe.

Not only will there be lots of other fellow travelers, but most parks have some sort of security arrangements as well. You can easily ind camping sites through Europe by Van and Motorhome, and other similar publications.

You can also ‘camp wild’, that is, outside the boundaries of a camping ground, seeing as it is legal in most parts of Europe. However, I wouldn’t recommend you to do this alone, because while camping at the edge of a forest might sound really romantic and adventurous, but it is just as unsafe in Europe as in other parts of the world. In any case, it’s good to plan your itinerary well before you go, and letting friends and family member know exactly which way you’re going and where you will stop, in case of an emergency.

As opposed to camping with a tent, you can actually cook your food in a trailer. You can bring a small electric plate with you if you don’t have one fitted into the trailer, and just buy local produce and grocery for your meals. With food out of the way, there’s another domestic task you should think about: laundry. Some camping sites have facilities where you can wash your clothes by hand, and you can probably find laundromats nearby.

However, keep in mind that doing your laundry is generally more expensive in Europe than in the States, for example (one way for save money is to bring clothes that dry fast, for example microfiber, and just hand them inside the trailer while you’re out sightseeing). Another plus when it comes to European camping grounds is that many of them offer wi-fi access, or at least an internet cafe nearby.

Useful Links:

ACSI Eurocamping – list of camping sites

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