Do you really park that close to each other?

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Tony68000

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Found myself, by accident, at a steam engine rally today.

Took the opportunity to walk through the camp site (which was laid out for viewing small steam-type engines, so not really as rude at it might sounds), mixture of motorhomes, caravans and Transits.

Biggest thing that struck me, apart from the smoke, was that everyone was parked sooo close to each other. Some even sharing an awning… is this really how ‘pop-up’ campsites are? I was there the day before the event as well as today, so it wasn’t just to make the public viewing easier, maybe.

I’m not anti-social, wife may disagree, but not sure I want neighbours that close to me. What is the protocol here? Will I be opening my door in the morning and have to speak to people before I’ve even figured out what day it is? - wife tells me she avoids speaking to me for at least an hour in the mornings, no idea what she means, but she’s usually right about things like that.
 
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Often at events (I.e. not campsites) this is the case, at Knockhill last month they had 1m between units.

I‘m not sure how the get away with it, should a fire start it could be carnage. It was also fun watching people leave on the Sunday when many stayed till Monday.
 
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Boris7 said:
Often at events (I.e. not campsites) this is the case, at Knockhill last month they had 1m between units.

I‘m not sure how the get away with it, should a fire start it could be carnage. It was also fun watching people leave on the Sunday when many stayed till Monday.
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In over 15 years I must have spent well over a thousand nights in motorhomes, mostly on aires. I have seen one fire incident, on a campsite in Morocco where there was smoke coming from a locker of the motorhome right next to us, which turns out had the charger in it that didnt like the vague nature of Moroccan voltage and smoked a bit until it blew the main fuse.

I don't dispute that fires happen but they are incredibly rare in Motorhomes these days. Much more likely with tents and awnings.

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Boris7 said:
Often at events (I.e. not campsites) this is the case, at Knockhill last month they had 1m between units.

I‘m not sure how the get away with it, should a fire start it could be carnage. It was also fun watching people leave on the Sunday when many stayed till Monday.
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We used to experience the same at re-enactment events. Sometimes go to bed in the van and wake up to find ourselves surrounded by tents pitched by late comers.
They get away with it because they don't appreciate (or don't care about) the risk. It isn't helped by the totally inadequate camping field sizes allocated to some groups by the likes of English Heritage - group stewards have to pack people in as best they can.
They also get away with it as the rule is a guideline in the model standards rather then being included in the legislation itself but that wouldn't wash with insurance companies if anything happened.

Organisations (such as Fun) which hold exemption certificates issued by Natural England are required to ensure minimum spacing as laid down in the Guide for Applicants.
 
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Not ever living any I can't really say, but is it so much different to living in a row of terraced houses or a block of flats where you are actually joined on to the one next door?
 
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From memory the regs state 6m unless the same family them 3m. When 6m apart the awning can extend 3m into the 6m. I think tent can be 2m apart.
Go to a festival if you want to see close camping.
 
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I remember arriving at a campsite ( pre booked) in Genoa to get the ferry to Palermo in Sicily.
The site had one space left and they had to ask the caravan owner on my right hand side to close his window so I could reverse in!

I had just enough room to open the habitation door and get in the cab. Thank goodness it was for only one night!

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Cyclewalkbob said:
I remember arriving at a campsite ( pre booked) in Genoa to get the ferry to Palermo in Sicily.
The site had one space left and they had to ask the caravan owner on my right hand side to close his window so I could reverse in!

I had just enough room to open the habitation door and get in the cab. Thank goodness it was for only one night!
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Also done that in Italy, don't know where it was but we were going to portofino the next day, everyone had to move round so we could fit in then they all had to move again so we could get out the next day.
Water supply was the longest hose you have ever seen, one tap against the gate, and you had to walk backwards and forwards to it all through the vans.
Good fun though, and well worth it to see portofino, tremendous place.
 
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Please remember it is not just for fire that spacing and roadways need to be clear. A far more common occurrence, yet again highlighted a very short time ago at Chester, is access for ambulances, and a way out without them negotiating an obstacle course.
 
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Don't come to Spain then as you might of you lucky get enough room to swing a cat between vans. Went to Germany 2 weeks back and at the Salon show offical camp site we could grab the beer on the other MH's table through his window............... from ours.
 
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Tony68000 said:
Found myself, by accident, at a steam engine rally today.

Took the opportunity to walk through the camp site (which was laid out for viewing small steam-type engines, so not really as rude at it might sounds), mixture of motorhomes, caravans and Transits.

Biggest thing that struck me, apart from the smoke, was that everyone was parked sooo close to each other. Some even sharing an awning… is this really how ‘pop-up’ campsites are? I was there the day before the event as well as today, so it wasn’t just to make the public viewing easier, maybe.

I’m not anti-social, wife may disagree, but not sure I want neighbours that close to me. What is the protocol here? Will I be opening my door in the morning and have to speak to people before I’ve even figured out what day it is? - wife tells me she avoids speaking to me for at least an hour in the mornings, no idea what she means, but she’s usually right about things like that.
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Perhaps the OP has never tried French aires. :france:
The aire pictured below is very, very popular and always seems to be packed.
Fire regulations……what are those?

2E48A8FB-D106-4EE0-855A-717EF5388D1C.jpeg
 
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The last time we went to Silverstone for the moto GP they had us parked that close the guy next to me wouldn’t have been able to get his cassette out of his caravan.

I got him to move over as he was a proper newbie.

The stupid thing was there was acres of parking unused.

I’ll not go again and haven’t due to the parking and the numpties organising it.

Madness it was.

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andyman said:
From memory the regs state 6m unless the same family them 3m. When 6m apart the awning can extend 3m into the 6m. I think tent can be 2m apart.
Go to a festival if you want to see close camping.
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We used to go to NASS at Bath.

They were like sardines in general camping and it looked like someone had emptied around 100 skips in there for good measure 😳

I used to stay in the family camping area, a bit more civilised 😉😊
 
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Woke up one morning at the Great Dorset Steam Fair, to someone hammering in a tent peg, UNDER the rear of the motorhom.

Think there are ”rules”, but easily broken.

Guess the French don’t have the same elf and safety rules as we do 😂
 
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Attended many a Steam Rally/Country Show, and yes packed in. Always there is ample space left over. Often asked to have towing eye fitted in case they need to pull the van out. Only ever seen one fire caused by a tent user fitting a new gas canister to his little lamp, as the point punctured the gas the little spurt ignited from the cooling foil BBQ. He was lucky that we were up drinking (who me?) and there was a tap near by, water water and more water saved most of his skin. Was back the next day to ride his motorbike home, if only he had obeyed the no BBQ rule!
 
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jongood said:
In over 15 years I must have spent well over a thousand nights in motorhomes, mostly on aires. I have seen one fire incident, on a campsite in Morocco where there was smoke coming from a locker of the motorhome right next to us, which turns out had the charger in it that didnt like the vague nature of Moroccan voltage and smoked a bit until it blew the main fuse.

I don't dispute that fires happen but they are incredibly rare in Motorhomes these days. Much more likely with tents and awnings.
Click to expand...

We had a narrow escape at a rather crowded Italian campsite. Typically Italian - 6 metre separation - NOT. Some German-speaking students on the pitch almost directly in front of us decided to have a raucous midnight BBQ when all of a sudden there was a huge BANG. Which lit up the inside of our campervan. Drew the curtains to see tall flames very close to us, eek. That explosion caused all the other campsite dwellers to jump out of bed. Big thanks to whoever had the presence of mind to extinguish the fire before it spread. Didn't see what had exploded but it might have been a gas canister. Luckily no visible damage to our van.

The group of students were expelled immediately by the campsite owner. Everyone else cheered.
 
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chaser said:
Not ever living any I can't really say, but is it so much different to living in a row of terraced houses or a block of flats where you are actually joined on to the one next door?
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It is different as terraced house and flats are separated by fire walls.

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The French are particularly good at this, they can get 7 or 8 vans where we can only get 4, I remember parking on the aire at St Jean De luz, I could only just open my van door and after hooking up we suddenly found the power went off, I checked to find that a French camper had unplugged and put an adapter so he could run off my cable, then not only that another one connected to his cable!! It's a wonder my cable wasn't glowing in the dark!!
 
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TrebleH said:
The French are particularly good at this, they can get 7 or 8 vans where we can only get 4, I remember parking on the aire at St Jean De luz, I could only just open my van door and after hooking up we suddenly found the power went off, I checked to find that a French camper had unplugged and put an adapter so he could run off my cable, then not only that another one connected to his cable!! It's a wonder my cable wasn't glowing in the dark!!
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Surely this cannot be true. I constantly read just how wonderful the french aires, the freedom and the facilities. Usually followed by why can’t the UK do the same.
smile
 
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Clarky said:
Perhaps the OP has never tried French aires. :france:
The aire pictured below is very, very popular and always seems to be packed.
Fire regulations……what are those?

View attachment 538629
Click to expand...
That looks like the premium sea view spots at Carro?

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At a small C&CC cl/cs site Mr Stratford on Avon last week we and a friend parked up near a guy with a caravan, having done rallying for 40 odd years we knew the six meter 'rule', and thus left at least 7 meters from him to us. Some 36 hours later he came to us complaining we were too close an in a stern but not impolite way asked us to move to the other end of the field which was very unlevel as he liked his space and privacy. As you would expect we declined his kind offer so he rang the land owner and complained that we were crowding him. The farmer came and was quite agressive whilst also saying that although we were not in the wrong the field was big enough to allow more space (there was a rally on the field when we arrived, which was why we were near the guy anyway). We told him we were leaving on Tuesday and didn't want to move for a few hours so we were staying. The guy with the caravan was staying for 3 weeks so he moved to the other end where the rally had been and ignored us for the rest our time there, some less that. On paying up the next day, the farmer and his wife offered profuse apologies and said he had got it in the neck from the other guy the night before and on top of a bad day he had had enough.
 
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