Remember the days when camping was a complicated business with tents and poles and leaky bits of canvas? Apparently camping doesn’t really mean that any more. Most people stay in mobile homes on plush French campsites with swimming pools, playgrounds and entertainment in the evening.
And this year, more Irish people are going further afield in search of the perfect pitch.
A small but significant number of Irish people, about 35,000, go camping each year (Irish campsite families still have on average one child more than British families). This is a fraction of the numbers who go to sun holidays in apartments, because camping has a bad reputation for a certain generation of Irish people.
More Irish people are using fly-drive because of cheap air fares, Aer Lingus and Ryanair both have new French routes they didn’t have last year from both Dublin and Cork, with Ryanair’s expansion in to France likely to gather pace.
Traditionally the Irish never went to the Med but that has changed since 2002. Irish customers are going much further afield, and Italy is a favourite destination.
Italy is growing very fast, Garda and the Laguna of Venice are now regular camping stops for Irish people. Campsites in Slovenia and Croatia are being used by Irish people for the past three years.
Numbers in these places are small in these places compared with France, where the Vendee is still king, Brittany is popular and the Dordogne growing very fast.
The traditional cycle of Irish campers is that the first time they go camping their holiday is in Brittany, usually at a site close to a direct ferry service to Cherbourg or Roscoff.
The second holiday is traditionally in the Vendee, a five hour drive from the ferry. Having got there you have got much better weather, the most sunshine on the west coast and more than some Mediterranean spots, and lots of safe sandy beaches.
It has as many sunshine hours as the Cote d’Azur. It is not as hot but they get just as much sunshine. One surprise about the west coast of France is that the amount of sunshine decreases and the amount of rain increases as you go south.
The third year’s holiday is traditionally a two centre holiday, Vendee and the Dordogne or Vendee and the Loire.
Overall, the Vendee is the primary destination for Irish holidaymakers and their accommodation of choice is mobile homes.
Irish customers are most likely to use mobile homes, perhaps because they have been conditioned by Irish weather. You can save a lot of money staying in a tent.
The numbers of customers staying in mobile homes ranges form 85-90pc (Keycamp and Haven) to 55pc (Canvas).
The major difference nowadays is that a tent doesn’t have private facilities — a toilet and shower — whereas mobile homes do. There is even air conditioning on mobile homes in Mediterranean.
Despite the shift to flydrive, ferries haven’t gone away, and there are significant shifts in the market this year. The landbridge option to France is significantly cheaper, about u600 per holiday.
Operators report that 20pc of customers do not use their landbridge ferry option, including the growing fly drive market and those travelling with the slightly more expensive Irish and Brittany ferries.
Most of the major camping tour operators now have a linen hire service, recognising the number of people who now fly drive. If you forget, not to worry, the local Super U will have good cheap sheets.
Irish Ferries have a new ship with more capacity and better cabins for 2008 and have adopted a low cost model, even on French route which becomes quite expensive in the peak months of July and August.
Brittany Ferries launched a new luxury ferry last year on the Cork-Roscoff route.
There was also a new Stena ship on the Rosslare-Fishguard route for landbridge customers.
Ferry companies never discounted in high season but that may change with the emergence of severe competition on the Irish Sea.
Irish people are taking their holidays later than they used to as well.
The peak date for Irish holiday makers used to be 23 June, before England got its school holidays.
UK Ireland Denmark Holland and Germany used to travel at different times. which helped keep prices down.
In recent years the Irish moved out of June into July. All has begun to change.
BRITTANY First holiday stop for most Irish campers, usually at a site close to a direct ferry service to Cherbourg or Roscoff. A magnificent array of beaches, pre-historic sites and close access to interesting cities such as Rouen. Don’t mind what they say about the weather being unpredictable, Brittany has baked in eight of the last ten summers.
VENDEE The king of camping holidays as regards the Irish market, with enclaves settled on some of the biggest sites particularly in June and early July, when the Irish like to travel a little earlier than British. Vendee is very close, a four hours’ drive from the ferry. Having got there you have got much better weather, meteorologists say that the Vendee gets more sunshine than destinations further south, the most sunshine on the west coast, and as many sunshine hours as the Cote d’Azur. It is not as hot but they get just as much sunshine. The amount of sunshine decreases and the amount of rain increases as you go south.
DORDOGNE A favourite with the English that has recently been discovered by the Irish. A longer drive, it requires a stop if you travel by ferry (usually the Vendee or Loire) but remember that the majority of campers down here use fly drive. The river is one of the most scenic you will find anywhere and the canoe trip a must-do. The history is breath-taking, especially the Lascaux prehistoric cave, and this is the heart of French cuisine.
LOIRE Lots to do here, the chateaux are breath-taking by day and stage spectacular light shows by night. Chinon was once the heart of the Angevin landscape, and the river has carved a place in all our shared heritage. The wine isn’t bad either.
MED Traditionally the Irish never went to the Med but that has changed in the past two years. Irish customers are going much further afield, and Spain and Italy are both becoming favourite destinations. Aer Lingus now has flights to Venice and Bilbao.
FERRY Tour operators offer a landbridge option through England which involves two ferry trips, the Brittany ferries and Irish ferries options to Cherbourg and Roscoff are more expensive.
LINEN Some operators now offer a linen service, otherwise you bring or buy your own.
KIDS CLUBS Are they in operation on the weeks you are in holiday. This can be an issue in June on many sites. Are they for the correct age?
POOLS and waterslides. Children have elaborate tastes in their swimming pool experience nowadays.
DAY TRIPS Make sure you have wet and dry options, because even the Vendee gets a rainy day sometime. Many are worth booking in advance at times of high demand.
