Caravanning is no longer just a way of having a cheap holiday – for many Best of British readers it’s a way of life. In the March 2011 issue, we feature a collection of their memories from the 1930s to the present day.
The Friends of Best of British tell us their caravanning memories:
We once took a friend’s caravan on holiday which wasn’t really very nice. When we returned home another friend stopped us in the street and asked how our holiday had gone. My wife then proceeded to tell this lady what an awful caravan it was, how miserable we had been in it and she really let rip with her complaints. I did try and nudge her – because the lady was the caravan owner’s sister. My wife still cringes at the thought of that conversation.
Mike Payne
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We stayed in a caravan in North Wales which had gas lamps (this was the 1980s) although we didn’t discover they worked until after we’d spent a night struggling with torches during a powercut in a thunderstorm. We also had to wait each morning until the owner had penned the ‘guard geese’ before venturing from the van. By contrast in West Wales we were facing the sea, with wonderful sunsets and a short walk to the beach.
Ann Williams
On a site in Scotland the owner asked us to turn our caravans round so that the towing hitch was towards the road, so that he could come and tow us onto high ground if the expected floods came during the night. Luckily they didn’t.
Stan Sadler
We’d had long day and decided on an early night. We after settling down in bed with a warm drink we said our goodnights, when, with a load creak, the bed broke. On another occasion we were partway through cooking a steak when the gas ran out leaving us with no means of light and warmth for the rest of the night.
Anthony Broadhead
We generally spend New Year’s Eve in the New Forest (sometimes Christmas too). The site has only a few facilities – fresh water, toilet emptying point and waste disposal. We don’t want the amenities of restaurant, toilet block, club and games.
So we celebrated the millennium with friends having a barbecue with improvised lighting in a makeshift shelter in the dark and the rain. Seven of us then wined and dined in one of our awnings, celebrating to well after midnight. Despite the weather it was great fun, and next morning we were able to go for a long forest walk to rid us of the previous night’s excesses – stopping at a local hostelry for refuelling.
Another Christmas, years ago was spent in our caravan on a farm in Derbyshire. It was mild and misty when we arrived but a day or so later we experienced a white Christmas. This necessitated thawing out the water pipes under the caravan with my hairdryer!
Betty Byford
More information:
The Caravan Club Collection is on display at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, Hampshire.
An online exhibition tells the story of Caravan Road Rallying from 1954 to 1976.
The British Pathé website features wonderful archive footage of caravans, including:
- A bicycle-towed caravan from 1939.
- An ingenious amphibious caravan – the 1950s invention is launched on the river.
- Two Dover families prepare for a caravan holiday to South Africa in 1948.
- The latest designs at the 1970 Camping Exhibition at London Olympia.
See the March 2011 issue for more memories of caravan holidays from our readers. And leave a comment below to tell us your caravanning memories.
