Motorhome survey findings revealed
Officials from the National Park met with community representatives in Callander to discuss a survey into motorhome and campervan users.
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park’s visitor operations team attended the monthly meeting of Callander Community Council on Monday to discuss the findings.
This was following a meeting last year between the community, police, Stirling Council and National Park representatives on community concerns over the increasing numbers of motorhomes parking overnight in the Meadows Car Park in the town.
That survey was carried out by local volunteers at the Meadows Car Park where they recorded overnight stays and the preferred parking locations of motorhome users.
It looked at the length of stays, how people chose where they would go, what facilities they look for, what activities they take part in during their visit and how much they spend during their visit.
It showed that people spent an average of 70 nights in their motorhomes last year and mostly plan their trips within 10 days of setting off.
Motorhome owners said the top three things they base their decision on are where to park up overnight on three things: scenery; a safe location; and confidence that they won’t be asked to move on.
The activities they enjoy most are sightseeing and relaxing, low level walking and also trying local food and drink and the average amount spent per person per day on their trips was found to be approximately £20.
The National Park Authority will now use the results of the survey to help inform and guide plans for any future facilities and information for motorhome and campervan users and it will continue to be involved in discussions with the community and Stirling Council on their future plans for parking in Callander.
Matt Buckland, Visitor Operations Manager for the National Park said: “Visits in motorhomes and campervans are becoming increasingly popular within the National Park, and across Scotland in general. We undertook this survey to get a better understanding of how these visits are planned and what kind of choices motorhome users make when visiting an area.
“The findings were shared with the community council to help inform discussions about sustainable parking in
Callander and provide insight into the potential opportunities and challenges that these visits might provide for the town and wider area.”
Trossachs and Teith Tory councillor, Martin Earl, who attended Monday’s meeting and is a National Park board member, said: “The survey and data gathered is really important and will help inform the decisions that need to be taken regarding effective management of motorhomes in the area. We now have it ready for the council’s consultation on parking in the town that will start shortly. Providing appropriate locations and services for the growing number of motorhomes is going to be a major part of any agreed plan to improve parking for residents and visitors.”
In June 2018, the Observer told how there were calls for a crackdown on motorhome owners parking at the Meadows Car Park after a string of complaints, including a report of human waste being dumped in a river there.
Those calls were renewed in March last year. The town’s community council were approached on a number of occasions the previous summer by members of the public with concerns over the volume of camper vans using the Meadows car park overnight.