Record number of registrations in 2018! The French and the camper is a love story that lasts. This way of travelling particularly seduces young seniors.
The camper is on the rise. 23,878 registrations registered in 2018, “the historical score of 2007 is exceeded”, welcomes the union of recreational vehicles (UNI VDL). Since 2015, sales of new motorhomes have started to increase while the second-hand market is stable (56,000). In total, 457,000 motorhomes registered in France circulate in France, to which are added those of foreign tourists.
From year to year, France is becoming the favorite destination of European motorhomes , including Germans, Belgians, Britons, Dutch and Italians. But the French remain the majority on the national territory.
Mostly retirees
Nearly one out of two motorhomes bought is for the those 60 years old. Retirees are unsurprisingly the bulk of the troops (48%). But if you take into account all the families and couples who adhere to this mode of travel, the average age of the blue-white-red camper van is 59 years old.
“One year after retiring, we said: no question of staying locked at home to do crosswords! In good physical shape, we wanted to move, to see the country, being free to go where we want, by taking the secondary roads, stopping when we want, without having to reserve accommodation “, explain Mireille and Daniel.
Like the majority of French motorhomes, they opted for the comfort and the aerodynamic line of a profiled vehicle. The luxury of the integral motorhome also has many followers but it is larger and more expensive while the van developed has some success thanks to its utilitarian side.
The retired couple travel with his dog Filou, like 25% of the motorhomes who bring their pet. Retirees sometimes leave for up to six months. Each year, 30,000 of them will spend the winter in Morocco .
Mireille and Daniel opt instead for a shorter journey in connection with an event: follow a few stages of the Tour de France, attend a jazz festival or a show related to a historical monument.
“We prepare our stages taking into account the service and parking areas available nearby.”
At the top of the list of favorite destinations for motorhomes, we find Brittany , the Provençal hinterland, Mont-Saint-Michel, the D-Day beaches and the Alps.
