Travelling by car as a lifestyle

In 2018, sales of motorhomes and trailers in Europe grew by 6.7%. The largest markets are in Germany, France and the UK. In total, 202 000 motorhomes, i.e. caravans and motor caravans, were sold in Europe in 2018. Estonians have only recently discovered the charm of the motorhome and so far our sales have been very modest.

Traditionally, motorhomes have been used mainly for travelling with friends or family to Europe. A few weeks' holiday trip, during which as many different destinations as possible have to be visited, has mostly been the aim of campervan renters. In many cases, all the beds are full and all the resources of the rented chalet are used to the limit. A shorter trip is fine this way, but staying with friends so close together on a daily basis for a longer period of time may not be so much fun.

For us, a campervan is like a second home. Somewhere around five years ago, we started to feel that we would like to have another little "nest" in addition to our city home - a very typical Estonian desire to get away from the city from time to time and get more into nature. We were browsing through various summer cottage ads and couldn't decide whether to choose something in Otepää or Pärnu or Saaremaa. Each place had its own appeal and our summer holidays always took us to very different corners of Estonia, where we stayed in hotels or took advantage of the hospitality of friends. As this wish was still rather vague, we let it settle for a while.

The idea of buying a hikers' cottage was surprising and unexpected at first. But with hindsight, we can say it was the best solution for us! We've made some big changes to our lives over the last four years and our little 'nest' on wheels has become indispensable. It has taken us to different corners of Europe and Estonia, and has also been our home in the car park next to our house.  

Last year we stayed in the coach almost half the year. Two and a half months of that were spent travelling around Europe, about the same number of days in Estonia, and the rest of the time we used our coach to spend the night in the car park next to our home in the village of Miiduranna, as the house itself was packed to the rafters with visitors from far away. Our campervan is our home, office, summer cottage and a nice travelling companion. We have grown accustomed to it, and a new routine has emerged in what at first seemed a chaotic life.

A fairly regular tradition for us is our weekly trip to Spain. Usually, this trip starts and ends with a skiing holiday in the Zillertal valley in the Alps. Our base is right next to the ski slopes, and as well as the skiing, there's a nice sauna complex included in the package. After a few days of skiing, we continue our journey to Spain. Spain is our favourite cycling destination! Wonderful mountains, nice friends, quality roads with little traffic and the Spanish cycling culture make this spring trip a must for us. But there are also historic cities, stunningly beautiful sandy beaches and a delicious Mediterranean menu that are also worth the trip.

We've also discovered the Czech Republic, thanks to the hiking holiday. In fact, we made our first trip there with friends before we bought a camper van and stayed in tents instead. The Czech Republic has many historic towns and small villages with incredibly beautiful architecture. At the same time, hiking and being out in nature is very popular and there are many hiking and cycling trails that take the adventurer from one castle to another. Prices are reasonable, the food is good and the beer is the best in Europe! That first trip to the Czech Republic was definitely a major influence on our decision to buy a camping holiday home.

We've also stayed in Germany, France, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Serbia, Bulgaria and more. Everywhere we've been, we've learned and discovered a little something. Each country has its own special characteristics and something positive to remember. Thanks to our travels, we feel more European and Europe has become home for us. The fear of a long and boring journey to the other side of Europe has disappeared. We can stop and change direction at any moment. This way of life has made us more tolerant and flexible, and has brought us much closer together.

We have made a point of making our campsite as homely as possible. We ordered the most comfortable bed systems and mattresses as essential accessories. As a result, we both sleep better in our camper than we do in our real home. In other respects, it's not very different from our everyday home - the space is much smaller, but it's well planned and comfortable. In a small space, it's important that there are no sharp corners to kick yourself when you move around and that storage and cupboards are spacious and easy to use. Another important criterion for us when choosing a hut was, for example, that the floor should be level. Everyone has their own requirements for their home, and this is also true when choosing a campervan.  

As the owners of a hikers' cottage, we have changed our living and working arrangements over the past few years so that we can travel around quite freely. We can use the chalet quite a lot in addition to the usual five-days-a-week-eight-hours-a-day job, but with modern tools and new internet packages, we can comfortably use high quality internet in any country of the European Union with our home country package. So our mobile home has become our home office when we need one. Whether you're in Estonia or elsewhere in Europe, in the woods or in the fields, or somewhere by a beautiful lake, you can get the job done.

Travelling around Europe, you can see that the majority of holiday home owners are retirees from Germany, the Netherlands and other wealthier European countries. Younger families still working either buy a fairly second-hand holiday home or rent something for a short period. At the same time, there is a sense that the urge to travel and wander is strong, and that everyone is finding a solution to suit their means. The younger generation is buying a campervan built into a more affordable and mobile minibus, which can be used for day trips if they wish.  

But there is also a sense that today's changing work culture, where much work is done on the computer and the internet, also allows young people to be much more mobile. Certainly, this kind of work organisation, which is largely independent of time and place, also gives the younger generation more opportunities to explore the world. Many of the young people we have spoken to at camping information days, at fairs or in passing are actually dreaming of such a holiday and are finding a suitable solution, whether it is camping, a campervan or buying a second-hand campervan. In this way, the campervan culture in Estonia will soon become more widespread. On 29 June, an information day will be held in Tallinn, Järveotsa tee 54, where everyone will be able to see the different buses and get answers to their questions.

Our stories:

Next to the Põltsamaa rose garden on the riverbank is one of our favourite places to stay. A local pastor came to visit us for the first time and I told him about a big change in my life.

A year later, when we were in the same place, the same man came and asked, "Dear friends, where have you disappeared to? In the meantime, he has included our exciting and positive stories in his sermons. 

We try to be environmentally friendly on our trips and the campsite we leave is usually cleaner than when we started.  

Equipment that makes life more comfortable:

• Solar panels (2x100W) with inverter. You have your own electricity in every corner of the woods.  
• A tent with balloons that can be used as extra space. With balloons you can have an extra space in your tent.
• Bicycles, in most places we cycle to explore the surroundings. Garmin helps us find the best route and the adventure begins.
• Sauna, our camper has a portable tent sauna. We mainly use it in the autumn-winter season!
• Video projector, it's fun to project your home cinema on the car wall on a foggy summer evening.
• Clean water tanks 150-250 L. Black water tanks 100-110 L. We don't have tanks that big yet but we dream of it.
• Toilets, with the right materials, will make your daily chores easy. Toilets can only be emptied in designated places. Toilets can and may be emptied into RMK dry toilets.
• Possibility to bring two gas cylinders for hot water, fridge and heating. In summer, one cylinder per month. More often in winter.
• TV- with aerial, which allows you to watch free channels for free. As we have become friends with the camper, our interest in TV has diminished to a minimum.
• Lotus barbecue, a portable modern smokeless barbecue that we can use to make pancakes or grill meat while sitting at the dining table.