Why motorhomes are not popular in Thailand?

[impulse]

Thanks, didn't have time to sift through the site, I think it should be more easily noted, but Bangkok is perfectly centered an in my neighborhood to rent one for say a weekend at the track, it's perfect, no hassling with hotels or schedules, check out times, loading and unloading everything when you leave etc. bring your hotel room to the track and have a convenient place to get your lunch, get out of the heat, de-stress, whatever..

For a weekend at the track, all my objections disappear. Because there are no hotels on the infield...

[Ace of Pop]

For those who want to know more watch Chris Travels on You Tube.He started with a Class C Dodge Ram and moved up to a Class A block of flats type. Interesting anyway.

[WarpSpeed]

Thanks, didn't have time to sift through the site, I think it should be more easily noted, but Bangkok is perfectly centered an in my neighborhood to rent one for say a weekend at the track, it's perfect, no hassling with hotels or schedules, check out times, loading and unloading everything when you leave etc. bring your hotel room to the track and have a convenient place to get your lunch, get out of the heat, de-stress, whatever..

For a weekend at the track, all my objections disappear. Because there are no hotels on the infield...

Exactly which is one of the many examples that they can be very useful for..

[impulse]

Thanks, didn't have time to sift through the site, I think it should be more easily noted, but Bangkok is perfectly centered an in my neighborhood to rent one for say a weekend at the track, it's perfect, no hassling with hotels or schedules, check out times, loading and unloading everything when you leave etc. bring your hotel room to the track and have a convenient place to get your lunch, get out of the heat, de-stress, whatever..

For a weekend at the track, all my objections disappear. Because there are no hotels on the infield...

Exactly which is one of the many examples that they can be very useful for..

I suspect that's one of the issues. The niches where RV's are useful are much fewer and smaller here than back home. Hard to attain a critical mass where they're a viable market without mass appeal like campgrounds, swap meets, football tailgate parties, WalMart parking lots, etc.

[WarpSpeed]

Nonsense.. Short sighted thinking..When I was there, there was multiple times my missus and I discussed having one to tour the country with, especially with little ones, perfect for them to lay down when they get tired, play games watch TV, feed them if they're hungry, let them use a bathroom (which they do constantly) when they have to without stopping, drive as late as I want to without worrying about where we'll stop or whether or not there is a hotel available and where it is in relation to where we are or are heading in unfamiliar territory and hopefully it's not short time, the list is really endless with just a little bit of critical thinking.

Edited July 26, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[stingray]

Because rooms are so cheap overhere.

[WarpSpeed]

It's has nothing to do with that, people who camp or travel that way don't want to stay in hotels, the whole cost of camping these days is no savings over hotels in ANY market, that's ancient thinking, at one point is was, but no longer.. The cost of the camper alone could support hotel costs for many years if you traveled constantly, then you pay for fuel, and camp sites if you stay in a camp ground, it is no longer cost effective to do in any market, people do it because they want to get out and get away and have the freedom they provide to go and stay most anywhere they wish in nature without the hassle of making reservations. locating a hotel in a given place they're unfamiliar with or having to be on a schedule all the time and that's what a camper provides. To this point it has been strictly about economics, mind set, information and availability and all of those trends are changing like they have everywhere. In my life time (and that's not that long as many old gits here) I've seen the evolution of the trend even in the US I grew up with it and now they drive multi-million dollar motor homes, where I live there is at least 10 massive dealers within a 10 mile drive that has millions in inventory.

Our first camper was an old converted VW bus (it wasn't that old at the time) and we traveled all over the states with that, 7 people and also packed and carried a tent and screened dining area, some slept in the van and the older ones in the tent and those memories are with me forever and I'd never want to replace them with memories of a nasty hotel room, that looks like every hotel room, what's special and memorable about that? it has to start somewhere and I think the timing is right and it will grow, it already has, these conversations have been going on now some years and when they began it was just a conversation, now there are people doing it like the company posted here and Carryboy for just a couple examples.

Edited July 28, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[Don Mega]

Because rooms are so cheap overhere.

I wanted to head up to the new track in Buriram to watch the World superbikes earlier this year. I had left it too late to organise accommodation and as such unable to attend as everything was booked out.

A campervan would have been the ideal solution for me if one was readily available.

[WarpSpeed]

They were, you just didn't know about it I guess? As did few others including me, so maybe bookmark the website link provided and next time....................... Personally I'd choose to do that anyway, so much less hassle and so much more convenience.

Edited August 1, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[tolsti]

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..

So where would you plug the microwave popcorn maker, 9000 Channel TV decoder and instant ice maker in?

[Lung Mike]

I am building a demountable camper on 4 retractable legs, to fit on my 4x4 Mitsubishi Triton Single Cab pickup truck.

The camper has a queen size bed and a single bed, electric toilet, inside -and outside shower, small kitchen, AC, solar power and a back-up generator.

This is a fun project because it allows the pickup truck to be used independently from the camper and I plan to use it for trips all over Thailand.

The demountable camper will be ready in 1 month.

[Lung Mike]

Check the great Thai website about camping cars: http://www.thairv.com/ .

[WarpSpeed]

Check the great Thai website about camping cars: http://www.thairv.com/ .

Great stuff, Mike, both the camper project and the link, and in fact there are those aluminum cargo carrier/Seangteow (spl?) frames there for pick ups, much like the one you're building, all over Thailand and they could easily be converted to do exactly what you're doing with the basic frame already outlined. Love the wood work, are you going to leave a lot of it visible? Based on your link it seems there is an underground group of campers and market for them that is much larger then it appears on the surface.

Edited August 1, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[Lung Mike]

Check the great Thai website about camping cars: http://www.thairv.com/ .

Great stuff, Mike, both the camper project and the link, and in fact there are those aluminum cargo carrier/Seangteow (spl?) frames there for pick ups, much like the one you're building, all over Thailand and they could easily be converted to do exactly what you're doing with the basic frame already outlined. Love the wood work, are you going to leave a lot of it visible? Based on your link it seems there is an underground group of campers and market for them that is much larger then it appears on the surface.

Camping seems to gain momentum in Thailand and it is quite obvious why.

Although there are many hotels all over the country, I do not like to sleep on a rock hard mattress which seems to be the standard in every Thai hotel outside of the main tourist areas.

Initially I thought about using an aluminum cargo frame but although it is OK for a low budget simple approach, I wanted something technically more sophisticated and better insulated.

I also wanted the unit to be demountable, which is not possible with the bolt-on locally available cargo units.

The idea is to be able to travel anywhere in Thailand, even off-road and have a comfortable place to sleep in, whilst still being able to use the pickup truck for transport.

This unit can also be used on other pickup trucks, as long as the cargo bed is not too short.

When the unit is mounted on the truck, it is possible to still tow a trailer.

This makes it easy to also tow a boat or a few bikes.

I built a light but strong steel frame and filled the gaps with honeycomb and covered everything in a few layers of fiberglass.

The aluminum outside cladding is only to give it a smooth finish and to create a vintage look.

There are 2x120w solar panels on the roof, 300 Amp/h deep cycle batteries in the double floor at the entrance area, a 220v pure sine inverter and a 2.6 KW generator.

The air-conditioning is 12000 BTU.

The finished demountable camper will weigh around 700 kg.

My hobby is building boats, so the use of teak wood stems from that.

All the woodwork is purely for decoration and it will be visible.

The seats and mattresses are memory foam so it should be as comfortable as my bed at home.

The toilet and shower area is big enough for my European frame.

I like technical challenges and I just build whatever I dream up for fun.

In the past I have built many houses, wooden and fiberglass boats, trailers and now this camper.

The total build cost of this demountable camper will be only about 30% of what is commercially available.

[Lancashirelad]

Several posters have asked about where you would empty the toilet tank. Nobody has mentioned the thousands of buses and coaches in Thailand the majority of which have on board toilets. Where do they empty? Also, although it may come as something of a surprise to those who stay only in big cities, there are quite a lot of remote rural areas in Thailand.

Lets say 10 days away with a hotel at 700 a night = 7,000 bht. That's a lot of diesel at 26bht a litre! (about 2,800 kms worth at a rough reckon) though renting @ 6 - 12k a day would be out of the question.

Lung Mike good luck with your great project. Hope you will come back & put more photos up of the finished item. The demountable idea is a good one. Just be sure there is a way of securing it to the truck other than gravity so that it doesn't part company in the unfortunate event of an overturn.

[Lung Mike]

Several posters have asked about where you would empty the toilet tank. Nobody has mentioned the thousands of buses and coaches in Thailand the majority of which have on board toilets. Where do they empty? Also, although it may come as something of a surprise to those who stay only in big cities, there are quite a lot of remote rural areas in Thailand.

Lets say 10 days away with a hotel at 700 a night = 7,000 bht. That's a lot of diesel at 26bht a litre! (about 2,800 kms worth at a rough reckon) though renting @ 6 - 12k a day would be out of the question.

Lung Mike good luck with your great project. Hope you will come back & put more photos up of the finished item. The demountable idea is a good one. Just be sure there is a way of securing it to the truck other than gravity so that it doesn't part company in the unfortunate event of an overturn.

Thank you for your positive reaction to my camper project.

It is not the primary goal to save money by using a camper, but it is the independence of infrastructure.

Thailand has so many beautiful spots to explore off the beaten track.

This demountable camper has a removable black water tank to collect the sewage, which can be emptied in a convenient location like a toilet at a gas station.

The electric boat-style toilet has a macerator and a water flush, so the waste is liquid.

The tank is big enough for several day's use.

There is also a fresh water tank for the showers, sink and toilet flush.

The demountable camper is secured to the pickup truck with 4 strong stainless clamps.

A reverse camera is installed for parking convenience.

As long as I do not use the air-conditioning, all the power needs can be supplied by the solar power.

On the left side a 2.5x2m retractable awning provides shade.

I shall post some more pictures in a few days.

[eaustev]

This may have been posted earlier so forgive my laziness for not going back multiple pages to check, but the Airstreams are sold here now, although I am sure very expensive.

http://airstream.co.th/home/

[user4365423653]

In the last two years, I have crisscrossed all of Thailand on a Honda 250 and did a mixture of camping and hotels. Total cost is 1000 B per day.

Right now is the best time to invest in a converted panel van, stealth camping car, to visit and explore Thailand. You can go to hundreds of national parks, you can park anywhere you want. Thailand is a safe country (except for Puket and Pataya). Infrastructure? No need. Get two 100 watt solar panels, and you don't need plu-ins. Empty your toilet evcery two or three days in proper places. Use fans for cool air, or aircon when running the engine. The fridge (small) can run on 12 volts. Think of your small panel van as a sailboat for the road.

When people start opening motorhomes parkings and sites, that's when you need to get out of it.

[Gary A]

Motor homes do not have maid service or cooks. When we go on holiday, that's what she is looking for.