Why motorhomes are not popular in Thailand?

[ttthailand]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

buses go to the cities and tourist areas. Camping is for the country and mountains. I was just in Chiang Rai during the holiday and many of the back roads can only be accessed by motorbike, pickup or perhaps small car. Impossible for a bus to even make a turn on these back roads. Edited January 13, 2015 by ttthailand

[smotherb]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

buses go to the cities and tourist areas. Camping is for the country and mountains. I was just in Chiang Rai during the holiday and many of the back roads can only be accessed by motorbike, pickup or perhaps small car. Impossible for a bus to even make a turn on these back roads.

You said half the roads There are small back roads in all countries, just have a camper van then.

[pchansmorn]

Maybe great for traveling but not great to sleep in, to damn hot. Would have to find lodging somewhere else. And 2 Expensive for Thai's.

[thailiketoo]

Maybe great for traveling but not great to sleep in, to damn hot. Would have to find lodging somewhere else. And 2 Expensive for Thai's.

You sure?

Edited January 13, 2015 by thailiketoo

[mikebike]

Talking about storage space, last week, for the first time in Thailand in nine years, I saw a car with a roof rack attached.

Wow... where do u live? Roof racks are almost as common as Vigos...

I don't doubt you, I do live upcountry, but regularly travel around, never even seen them in any stores.

Any shop that sells Carry-Boy bed caps/covers also sell roof-racks!

[Tomtomtom69]

Thais don't like cooking for themselves if they can avoid it and small hotels are just so cheap.

Actually most Thais love cooking and many think they are something more than just amateur cooks. It's true that most upcountry hotels are cheap and while parking is usually not a problem at the vast majority of hotels in Thailand, parking for over-sized vehicles like motorhomes may be difficult.

[Ace of Pop]

.Worse than getting stuck behind a Vigo on the Mountains

[Tomtomtom69]

I've seen one or two motorhomes in Thailand that were Thai registered vehicles. I've also seen one French one in a PTT parking lot and I presume a majority of the motorhomes that you might come across in Thailand (if you even come across any) will park in large petrol/gas stations overnight as they have toilets, food, fuel and other facilities. What they don't have of course is privacy.

Motorhomes are becoming big business in China though and with increasing wealth and lots of wide open spaces (mainly in the western parts of the country), China is much more of a logical place for driving a motorhome in Asia than Thailand. However, granted if you do your research you could probably find a few places to camp, mostly in northern Thailand.

[NoshowJones]

Talking about storage space, last week, for the first time in Thailand in nine years, I saw a car with a roof rack attached.

Wow... where do u live? Roof racks are almost as common as Vigos...

I don't doubt you, I do live upcountry, but regularly travel around, never even seen them in any stores.

Any shop that sells Carry-Boy bed caps/covers also sell roof-racks!

On the way back from the exercise park about an hour ago, I saw two estate cars parked together with roof racks.So it would seem that you are right about them.

Another thing, do you ever see vehicles fitted with towbars, I don't, that would explain why so many trucks pile their cargo way up high.

[Sviss Geez]

I saw one today with a Japanese number plate driving along Sukhumvit in Chonburi.

Richard Smith is right. They don't make them here so they would need to be imported at exhorbitant cost. Protectionism strikes again.

Richard Smith and you are both wrong, Carryboy is just one example of motorhome manufacturers here. Google it, there's loads of them around.

[Boatfreak]

I also don't understand why. I think it is just a mater of time e.g. the Chinese are now waiting up to two years to get a German caravan, also in Korea it is getting very popular.

You do not need any facilities for a motorhome (as some people here pretend) that is why a motorhome is selfsufficient. Water tank, chemical toilet etc.

I build my own (basic) motorhome bought a van (150 000B) that nobody wanted because Mercedes and not Toyota or Nissan. Have some solar panels to charge my batteries and a cool box which I fill with ice (available everywhere in Thailand) and then run a fan through it, enough to cool down to bearable temperature. It takes me 2 minutes to turn my table into a bed. I have a small toilet and a small stove but of course food is available everywhere in Thailand so why bother?

Safety? Come on, look how many motor homes are rented in South Africa not really the safest place. I camp with my daughter on the beach and all the Thais around were very friendly, they probably thought we were very poor :-)

Yes maybe hotels are cheap but you need to book in advance and they would mostly not accept pet (have a little dog as well), if you take the cheap ones their bathrooms are always dirty and smelly you are lucky if you have fresh linnen.

[Boatfreak]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

Why does it have to be large? My parents travelled the whole of Africa in the sixties with a T2 VW bus. Without DVD player!

[Boatfreak]

Another reason motorhomes would not be popular IMO is that apart from in cool season up north being stuck in a metal box all night would need aircon and you would need to run the engine all night to power the air.

Carryboy do make a motorhome baised on a pickup but not popular for the reasons stated.

cheers

motorshow2010_048.jpg

They are glassfibre not metal and there is a thing called a generator (those running on LPG a very quite) Solar panels and a decent battery bank work as well. You do not need much BTU to cool down a small well insulated space.

[MauiSteveBKK]

I had an RV in Texas for 6 years. Loved It!

But you need a "Dump Station" to dump both grey and black water.

So the question is: "Where you gonna dump the poop?"

[nithisa78]

Praise Thailand. Please, help foreign posters find life.

[Boatfreak]

I had an RV in Texas for 6 years. Loved It!

But you need a "Dump Station" to dump both grey and black water.

So the question is: "Where you gonna dump the poop?"

Please tell me you are joking. Or did you see any cows in the field walking around with plastic bags taped to their asses?

[Boatfreak]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Don't see any problem

[i claudius]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

As far as I know they are not fitted out for living in

[WarpSpeed]

In the US we had thousands of beautiful camping areas. Many were on State land and very well maintained. Land was not the major issue so each site normally had lots of room so you were not on top of you neighbor. Camp fires, fishing, hiking .. Etc. great fun for the entire family.

Thailand has many camping areas but they are all for profit and tents are almost on top of each other. I mean one meter apart ! They are also not so cheap. A tent with 2 sleeping bags can set you back 500 to 1000 baht. Mobile campers or vans also just would not have many places to go that would be worth the effort. In the north around Chiang Rai the roads have so many twists and turns and mountains that traveling would be almost impossible in many areas.

Nonsense! It amazes me how many people are so limited by what the THINK they know? The intrinsic beauty of a motor home is finding your own destinations and NOT being with the crowd.. What the h(e)ll do you need a camp site for? The thing is completely self contained..

hahaha... I agree, it amazes me how many people are so limited by what they think they know !!! Try it and see the results. You really think you can just park where ever you want ? You ever been in the north around Chiang Rai ? Have you ever had a car break down on a back road and left it for a few hours ?

I have camped and owned motor homes for half my life so I know exactly what I am talking about. Thailand has also been my home for 20 years and have traveled everywhere and have camped.

Get a life ! Perhaps you need a few camping trips to unwind.

Like a previous poster posted, I wonder just how the millions of buses and trucks there manage to get around? Most of the trucks there deliver their goods over night, park somewhere and sleep and then drive back to their origination after delivering their load, and the buses do the same with tours, the drivers sleep in the bus, I wonder just where they park such large beasts when you claim there is "nowhere to park". BTW I have a very nice life thank you.. It just doesn't happen to be in Thailand anymore thankfully.

Edited January 13, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[WarpSpeed]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

buses go to the cities and tourist areas. Camping is for the country and mountains. I was just in Chiang Rai during the holiday and many of the back roads can only be accessed by motorbike, pickup or perhaps small car. Impossible for a bus to even make a turn on these back roads.

You said half the roads There are small back roads in all countries, just have a camper van then.

Yeah he doesn't get it, BUT he's been camping his whole life!!

[WarpSpeed]

Maybe great for traveling but not great to sleep in, to damn hot. Would have to find lodging somewhere else. And 2 Expensive for Thai's.

Obviously not a camper, ever heard of A/C and oh BTW here in Florida where it's hotter most summer months then it is there because of the humidity that is generally much higher then there, the camp grounds are full most of the time so people somehow manage to get around the heat, when they live with it every day. Many Thai's don't even use A/C. The funny thing is that the campers here that are being used are so high end (mostly) you must get a TON of usage out of it for it to ever be cost effective given that at these sizes they also have to be stored and maintained somewhere likely when not being used, so it is actually more economical here to stay in a hotel then it is there since you use them only sporadically, then to own a motor home and yet? There is just somethings that are abundantly different about having the freedom and convenience that a motor home provides which is why people buy them in the first place.

Edited January 13, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[WarpSpeed]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

Why does it have to be large? My parents travelled the whole of Africa in the sixties with a T2 VW bus. Without DVD player!

Same same the states, with 5 kids too, we converted a VW bus, put a large trunk on the front to carry extra food, added ice when needed, did a fold down like you've done, had a small refrigerator, portable propane gas stove, kerosene lamps, piled a tent and dining fly on the top and there you have it, there are very few "campers" posting on this thread to be honest. Saw a lot of America that way and it is something I'll always remember and cherish just like your little one standing there in your pic. It also taught independence and confidence knowing you could live without all of life's conveniences and one never knows when that might come in handy.

[WarpSpeed]

I had an RV in Texas for 6 years. Loved It!

But you need a "Dump Station" to dump both grey and black water.

So the question is: "Where you gonna dump the poop?"

Ever seen the open sewers at nearly EVERY gas station, especially in the out country? They don't have conventional plumbing they have open tiled drain pits, but still? Surely this is not a real issue?

[Rhys]

^{Try Nomadic Fanatic on FB and you shall gain a view on this..}

[WarpSpeed]

Have you ever driven over half the roads here? best of luck in a large motorhome

Gee, I wonder how the millions of buses and trucks manage

As far as I know they are not fitted out for living in

Wrong, see my post above, most of the drivers do live in them.. Besides that wasn't his point, his point was that they manage to negotiate the so called "poor, non-negotiable roads" around Thailand just fine in spite of their massive size ..

Edited January 13, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[hansgruber]

Running an Air Con gen all nite would drive me mad for a start.

The modern day generators in these things run on propane/lpg/gas.

Very silent compared to a old diesel one.

[BrianMc]

There is someone selling caravans on the way to Chang Mai not far from Nakon Sawan. They have about twenty in a yard at the

side of the road but I dont think the Thai drivers would know how to tow one and the way they drive it would not last long

[umbanda]

I started this topic not expecting so much responses, and I did because traveling around Thailand I saw many beautiful places with a lot of free and safe parking....and because I met a Thai family traveling in an amazing brand new VW Reatta. Sure, a very expensive small motorhome in Thailand, and this family was rich. Seems to me that they were having a wonderful time on a Cha Am beach/park.

If a Thai rich family found convenient to own and travel with a motorhome here, probably really is.

[seedy]

Gotta love posters who use blanket statements ...

Thai drivers ... as if they are all the same

All ... like 100% - no exceptions

Just like saying 'The Average ...'

Size 12 boots and a size 2 hat comes to mind.

[Boatfreak]

There is someone selling caravans on the way to Chang Mai not far from Nakon Sawan. They have about twenty in a yard at the

side of the road but I dont think the Thai drivers would know how to tow one and the way they drive it would not last long

see Facebook page caravans club Thailand