Tent erection on arrival by the park?

Do you expect the caravan park that you have booked into to erect your caravan side tent or rally tent for you when you arrive at the park?

The typical scenario: You have just towed your caravan for a hundred or more kilometres. The kids are getting restless and mommy is also getting irritable. You arrive at the caravan park at four on a Friday afternoon, if not later, that you have booked into. You check in, obtain your site number and after finding your allocated site, you pull or reverse the caravan into position on the site. Kids are off to the bathroom (you’ve told them to get lost) and you get the tent and the tent poles out of the caravan.

Now What? You now need to get the tent up!

Help! Somebody help me!

Should there be a resort or park member ready to assist you, or do you ask reception to send someone to help you?

Most caravan parks or resorts offer this service. I have camped at parks where the grounds cleaning staff drop their tools and automatically come over to help. Some parks offer whilst you are still at reception to send over staff, and some parks advertise that all you must do is request assistance.

And then – some parks do not offer this service at all!

I have even been to a few resorts that have sent a staff member over to my site with tea and cool drinks on my arrival!

My personal opinion, having had a caravan park myself, is that all caravan parks and resorts should offer tent erection assistance at all reasonable times. I do not expect assistance if I arrive after say seven in the evening, but there should be assistance available for the caravanning public during normal business or working hours.

When it comes to Caravan and Camping Clubs, then it is a different matter. The comradeship of the members, the camping togetherness, and the possibility of numerous caravans all arriving together or one after the other, then it is up to the club member and his or her camping buddies to assist each other if necessary. When I camp with the club that I am a member of, I do not expect the park management to offer assistance with my tent erection. That’s why we camp as a club! Invariably we are only putting up a rally awning, and this can be done as a husband and wife team in no time at all! As Errol in 7de Laan says – “Easy – Peasy!”

Problem solved?