We are new to camping and our holiday is our time to relax and be comfortable.
Its just me, my husband and dog.
We use EHU for our small flatscreen with built in dvd player, we like to settle down to a boxset at night with the heater on when its cold outside also we do have carpet. We camp out of season mostly so its normally colder at night and our dog is also a small short haired mutt.
I dont consider ourselves as snobs because we take these things. We are both very friendly, dont mind being woken in the night by screaming children, helping others get there tents up and also giving a smile and a hello. Also because we have the dog who still looks like a puppy we get alot of people coming to our tent to say hello which always leads to good advice about the area.
At the end of the day most people only get 25 days holiday and it is theres to enjoy as long as it doesnt effect others. Recently we went camping there was a caravan near the opening to the toliets, they had 2 landrovers which they went past our tent all hours of the night and not once did i get a hello or even a smile from them (Maybe i smelt a bit funkey lol)
We always go non electric to get the kids away from modern day technology and to let them enjoy the great outdoors. However we're all different and if it makes a happy holiday for you then that is what it is all about.
DVDs, DSs, Computers and TVs in tents are all fine if accompanied with headphones! There is nothing worse for a quiet camper listening to the beautiful sounds of the countryside only to have The Coronation Street theme blair out of the tent pitched next to them.
Quote: Originally posted by smashing68 on 26/9/2009
I'll add that EHU lighting is not so good when located outside the tent - I don't want half the field illuminated! When inside, the huge glowing tent effect is quite amusing...
I have no issue with glamping as such - I am what some here would term a 'rough it' camper (though a grands worth of modern lightweight gear ain't rough in my book). But the variance in scales can clash - just because my small tent doesn't use much of the pitch, that doesn't mean the glamper 6 berth next door can impinge. The usual reponse that I'm not using *all* of my pitch is neither here nor there.
Basically, Glamping is fine except when it spills onto my pitch - for the half-a-truckload of gear the glampers bring why do they frequently need to borrow my torch and hatchet? (they have a EHU lantern but no torch and firelighters but no hatchet to make kindling..)
Only 6 berth? They aren't real glampers! You need at least an 8 berth to be a proper glamper!
------------- Camped since 2008 and still loving it!
Dont use EHU but i have a power pack to run a small portable TV ( the TV has rechargable batteries built into it. . To fill up my 240v air bed a use an inverter plugged into my car. I also use a wind up / solar / battery radio and wind up torches including wind up head torch so that i can read at night . For heating ive a small gas heater that take the standard tall gas canisters ( you know the ones. 5 for 6 quid type )
babies, toddlers and tents don't mix imo as its unfair to expect them to stay quiet in confined spaces and they wake up extra early with the light, so if some low volume electronic device will do the trick - why not?
and in the evening you are more likely to be in your tent early as its not ideal taking little'uns out to the clubhouse (if such a thing exists) so again, why not have the DVD?
The trick I would think is to go and stand near the tents of your nearest neighbours and see if you can hear them? Don't forget the people behind you - depending on wind direction sometimes a TV can't be heard in one direction, but is loud in the other.
Quote: Originally posted by billybusa on 25/10/2009
To fill up my 240v air bed a use an inverter plugged into my car.
Ah... how we all love the loud industrial racket of a compressor. If you go to some sites and are patient, you might be lucky enough to have several going at once.
Just throwing my opinion into the pot for what its worth...
I think people need to remember that just as there are differences between caravanners and campers there are equally differences between campers themselves. There are a lot of posters on here who make reference to getting on site, pitching and then pretty much remaining there chilling out until such time as they are ready to go home....not my idea of camping as i see the tent as a base to get out and about from whilst having the bonus of the eating and sleeping under the stars aspect - but each to their own. If people want to pitch up with an old tarp and a lie low or with state of the art DVDs, inflatable armchairs and a lap top...good luck to them.
Quote: Originally posted by Snaz on 07/10/2009
DVDs, DSs, Computers and TVs in tents are all fine if accompanied with headphones! There is nothing worse for a quiet camper listening to the beautiful sounds of the countryside only to have The Coronation Street theme blair out of the tent pitched next to them.
With the economic climate, more and more campers are not outdoor's addict looking for a healthy connection with Miss Nature. They sometimes just can't afford a hotel room...
So I reckon we'll see more and more TVs, mobiles, computers, music and other electonic devices in the future. But I'm sure more and more campsite will develop "quiet areas" like we do have in the trains now !
We've only gone to EHU since having the kids! with children for long stays I class this as essential kit as is my new super douper coolbox! Even my portable Oven is a welcome essential on our 3 week hols. I do take the lap top on long holidays and a few DVDs but they are for rainy days only.
------------- Taffy
2012 Planned
Easter - Cornwall
July scout camp
August North Wales
Unless someone in the family has a hearing issue, it is always possible to keep the sound from the devices so low that other campers can't hear it or aren't bothered by it, even in a tent. I used my tiny iPod speaker last time we camped, and I checked, and you couldn't hear it from three paces beyond the tent. (We had no neighbours that night - solo tent on the field, so we could have turned the volume up, but the level we had was fine.)
What does trouble me is when people have no clue about the level of the sound they're generating. Either that, or they think the rest of the site - and the rest of Wales! - wants to hear the Coronation Street theme!
In other words, it's not the devices which are the problem, but the very small minority of selfish folks who misuse them.
We were in a static last year, and the couple next door to us had a TV which they turned up to 'Nan' volume for half the day, leaving the van windows open for everyone's ease of listening! There was also a lady a few vans down who used to sing along to opera at eight in the morning, and a very nice group of young people in a tent over the hedge, who liked to get back from the pub and have a jolly singaround with their guitars at midnight.
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: Snobby camper or just sensible?
