There was a real craze this summer for motorhomes, according to professionals in the sector. We are going to break records in 2022. This is what is being said at the moment, at the 56th Leisure Vehicles Show which begins on Saturday September 24, at the Parc des expositions du Bourget. Tourism and mobility, this is the theme of the day with the sociologist Jean Viard, research director at the CNRS.
franceinfo: You work a lot on these issues of tourism and mobility, how do you explain the success of the motorhome?
John Viard: This year is a year where we are all looking for happiness. We went on vacation, we bought houses in the countryside, after being locked up, we need air. So it’s normal that the motorhome also benefits. It is a deep movement of catching up with the frustrations of the past.
But afterwards, what is characteristic in France is that there are a lot of motorhomes, almost 600,000, a little less. I will put it in parallel with two things. On the one hand, it’s a second home company. A motorhome is cheaper than a second home: it’s worth new, between 60,000 and 100,000 euros. But if you buy a second home, it’s between 200,000 and 400,000 wholesale. So that means you can go skiing for 15 days, you leave your campsite parked, then after that you go to the sea for 15 days and then you walk between the two. I think it fits that culture.
There is a second thing: France is one of the countries where there are the most motorhomes, because in 2012 in France, it was decided that French gypsies were not entitled to the allowance lodging. And so CAF has created a special caravan financing line, with the white van in front. When you see a gypsy camp today, they have very nice caravans financed by the CAF. First, it favored the market because it is paid directly to the manufacturers. And then afterwards, in the motorhomes, there are different people, especially a lot of young retirees. The young people stayed on the model we had in 1968, the Volkswagen combi, it was more chic than the 2CV.
Regarding prices, there are new vehicles from 60/70,000 euros. Even the entry-level ones are always around 50,000 euros. Doesn’t that prevent the motorhome from being a popular object? Or is it still popular, upper class?
First, there are a lot of occasions, because in the end, motorhomes don’t really drive, because people don’t go to China with them. So it’s just or it’s kind of like a convertible, when you buy them, they’ve been driven very little, so they’re not worn that much. There are modes in motorhomes, there are concentrations of motorhomes. For example, on Aubrac, there is a concentration near Nasbinals, for the start of transhumance. Also in Brittany, near the fishing ports. There is a whole sociability of the motorhome.
So there is a big second-hand market which is the most popular. It’s a way to travel for cheap, when you start to retire. Or we dream that once retired, we will travel a lot, it is this representation: how we will live in retirement. Afterwards, it is a freedom that is increasingly controlled. Often motorhomes are parked relatively far from the most beautiful places. There are plenty of motorhomes that have bikes in the back. There are even some who pull cars, because the motorhome does not go to the destination, it has to park in places for water, for electricity. So there are more and more specialized car parks which put it somewhat at a distance.
And that’s one of the possible adventures when you retire as a couple. Because a motorhome is a couple, it’s a lot of couples. So I think it’s popular, even if the heart of the product is still in the middle and upper strata of the population.