“The NSW Caravan Camping 4WD and Holiday Supershow is an important event for NSW with more than 75,000 people expected to attend the event this year,” Ms McKay said. “We know people are adjusting their travel plans and looking closer to home for holidays during the global spending slowdown. “Caravan and camping holidays are an attractive holiday option for NSW residents looking for an inexpensive way to enjoy the many attractions and regional areas of NSW.

“It’s no wonder caravan and camping is amongst the fastest growing sectors in tourism, with annual growth rates of more than 10 per cent over the past 12 years.” Ms McKay said in the December 2008 quarter alone, accommodation at Australian caravan parks generated more than $273.2 million. “NSW’s 900 caravan parks had the highest accommodation takings among the States with $99.9 million – almost 37 per cent,” Ms McKay said. Ms McKay congratulated the organisers of the Supershow, the Caravan and Camping Industry Association of NSW.

“The Supershow is a fantastic event that has been growing year on year.” Ms McKay said the NSW Government through the Department of Lands is offering a chance for Supershow attendees to win a holiday at one of nine state parks around NSW. “Visitors to the Department of Lands stall at the Supershow who subscribe to the holiday and camping enewsletter stand a chance of winning a great family break in NSW.” Ms McKay said the website, www.caravanandcampingnsw.com.au, helps holiday makers plan a trip to any of the 260 caravan and camping sites on Crown land across NSW.

Park owners are experiencing a boost in the number of bookings they are taking for the summer season.

Many are attributing the rise to an increasing number of people opting to holiday at home to save money.

Caravan parks also reported full houses over the Easter holiday, with visitors coming from across the country for a long break.

Dennis Smith, who owns Hillhead Caravan Park at Kintore, Aberdeenshire, said an increasing number of families were buying caravans and storing them on his site.

The 120-vehicle storage area is at capacity and has a waiting list of up to a month, which is a 30% rise in figures from last year.

“There has been an influx of caravans being stored here this year,” he said.

“That has been doing exceptionally well this year.

“I would say people have decided that caravan holidays are cheaper and less stressful than going abroad.

“Many of them want to try the freedom of caravaning.”

The largest vehicles available are being quickly snapped up by enthusiasts who reject the tradition of buying a small secondhand caravan and regularly upgrading it, he added.

The warden at Aboyne Loch Caravan Park on Deeside, Trisha Anderson, said a lot of young couples and groups of young people were choosing to camp.

She also reported more people choosing to book their caravans in for the whole season.

The season started early for Burnside Caravan Park at Fochabers because of the high numbers of visitors looking for somewhere to park their tourers.

A spokesman said bookings for the summer months were coming in “thick and fast”.

“It is just the cost of going abroad,” he said. “People are getting a bit fed up and are preparing to stay at home.”

He predicted that the number of foreign visitors would also rise this year.

“It is more favourable to them now with their exchange rate,” he said. “For the last couple of years it was not cost effective for them but now it’s equalised.”

The story is not positive for everyone. John Campbell, who sells static caravans at Thurso, said sales had dropped dramatically since the recession set in.

“We don’t have a lot of sites up here for putting static caravans in,” he said.

“We sell to people building houses who put the caravans on the site.

“We have hardly sold anything since December.

“The year before there were quite a few going, but people don’t have the money now. There are some people building but not the same extent as was happening before.”

Source: pressandjournal.co.uk

Park owners say they are fully booked over the Easter school holidays and have seen a boom in trade since the credit crunch began as people favour cheaper breaks.

At East Midlands Airport, 9,000 fewer passengers flew off on holiday, compared with the same time last year.

Lesley Kind, who runs Whetstone Gorse Fisheries and Caravan Site, in Whetstone, with husband, Martin, says they have been booked up for the Easter holidays for more than seven weeks.

The site has room for 26 vans, a converted barn with a bar and stage and a licence to hold up to 400 caravans at special events.

She said: "We're in a very good location and a lot of people like to come here to fish.

"We're also noticing that more and more people are booking spaces with us.

"Over the past nine months, we've seen bookings go up. I think the fact the exchange rate is quite poor at the moment is making people think twice about going on holiday abroad."

Diane Swain, manager of Quorn Lodge Caravan Club, on Loughborough Road, Quorn, said they were busier than ever.

She said: "We're finding that more people want to caravan in the UK rather than driving down to France or Spain.

"Petrol prices are an issue and the fact the pound is so weak is meaning people cannot afford to go abroad so they are going to local caravan sites instead.

"We're booked up over Easter, mostly with people who are travelling here to spend time with family members living close by."

Steve Tizzard, general manager of The Caravan Company, on St Margaret's Way, Leicester, revealed that sales were up by 25 per cent on last year.

He said the average price people were paying for caravans at the moment was about £6,000.

He said: "Caravanning is becoming more and more popular.

"A lot of people are buying caravans for the first time because it's far more expensive to holiday abroad these days.

"The pound is so weak against the euro right now and people are realising they can buy a caravan which they can keep forever, for the same price as a family holiday abroad.

"This is traditionally the busiest time of year for us as well because we're approaching summer and a lot of people traditionally have their first caravanning holidays around this time of year."

Source: thisisleicestershire.co.uk

With a less than favourable weather forecast over the next few days, tourism leaders here are divided over the prospects for the Easter break, but all are agreed the biggest winner will be the caravanning sector.

With the pound continuing to struggle against the euro – yesterday one euro cost 90p compared to December 2004 when it was worth just 69p – holidaymakers are looking to cut back on the costs of travel.

The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has said the economic crisis means that the 3% to 4% growth the foreign holidays market traditionally achieves in favourable economic circumstances is unlikely to materialise this year.

The National Caravan Council says its members are seeing their bookings grow by between 20% to 50%.

Here, director of Pembrokeshire Tourism Bobby King says reports suggest some caravan parks within the county are seeing bookings shoot up by 60%.

And chairman of the Wales Tourism Alliance Julian Burrell said holidaymakers are not all looking for cheap and cheerful alternatives to trips abroad – some are booking stays in the luxury end of the caravanning market.

Windmill Hill Caravan Park, in Pembroke, is fully booked for Easter and August, and they attribute their success to the strength of the euro.

A spokesperson for the site, which can accommodate up to 30 touring caravans, said: “I think it’s down to the euro being so expensive – that has a huge influence on things.”

Mr King said, based on forward bookings, the county’s operators as a whole expect their business to improve by a third on last year over Easter and during the summer. Easter fell three weeks earlier last year in March and Mr King feels the warmer weather April might bring has produced a surge in bookings.

Also last summer was a disappointment for many tourism operators because of the disastrous weather.

Mr King, who runs the Jalna Hotel in Saundersfoot, said those families who have not been affected by the recession are very reluctant to give up their breaks.

“Forward bookings-wise we’re about 30% up on last year so the coming season is looking quite vibrant.”

But Mr Burrell offered a more cautious view of the prospects for Easter and summer.

He said the evidence shows many families are not booking ahead and it’s only the caravanning sector that expects to prosper.

Other operaters would be happy simply to match what they achieved last year, said Mr Burrell.

He added that the outcome was likely to be determined by the weather: “For the people who are undecided, if the sun shines they will come and that would make the difference between it being nothing special and a good Easter.

“But the one sector that has said it’s doing better is the caravan sector.

“I think it’s the top end of the caravan market – the holiday home parks that are doing well.”

Mr Burrell says this year’s Easter holidays have fallen in the same two-week block, unlike in 2008 when schools in England and Wales returned at different times.

He believes this should work to the industry’s advantage, providing a concentrated boost over the next few days.

Spokesperson for the National Caravan Council Louise Wood said the sector has moved upmarket over the last four years.

As a result, she said, it was now better suited to the tastes of those used to continental luxury.

She said: “Now they’re often marketed as lodges and some of the very smart ones in the best situations can change hands for significant amounts of money – for a really good development it could be £250,000.

“But something like that could have a jacuzzi, fabulous views, a long lease, fantastic leisure facilities with an on-site golf course and an upmarket spa and swimming pool.”

For those who decide to take an Easter break, the RAC is predicting traffic levels will be lighter than in previous years as many families are planning to stay at home.

According to research from the RAC, 60% of Brits plan to stay at home this Easter – twice as many as last year.

The main factors influencing the return of the ‘stay-cation’ are people having less money coming in (40%), the cost of fuel (26%) and the anticipation of bad weather (19%).

The M4 in Cardiff between junctions 28 and 30 has been named as one of five hotspots to avoid by the motoring organisation.

Source:walesonline.co.uk