Photo: Brecon Beacons – one of the sites supporting the family initiative.

The Caravan Club launches family initiatives to engage a new generation of caravanners

The Caravan Club has rolled out a number of family initiatives and activities for its youngest members, which started on 4 July with the new ‘Epic Explorer Activities’ booklet, available for free, from 53 of The Club’s top sites.

Other key activities include; ‘Caravan Club Cache’, The Club’s version of the well loved pastime geocaching, where Club wardens will create clues for children to find on ‘Caravan Club Cache’ designated sites; safety on site awareness; ‘National Play Days’ and a children’s only reward card, where kids will have their very own card allowing them to collect stamps, accumulating them from stays on sites to save up for a reward.

Caravanning is a well loved and popular family holiday and leisure pastime, and The Caravan Club currently represents over one million caravanners, motorhomers and trailer-tenters, many of whom are young families or grandparents holidaying with grandchildren. Caravanning is not only an affordable family holiday, it is a great way for families to spend quality time together, and for parents to get their kids out-and-about.

Emma Cosby, Product Development Manager for The Caravan Club, says, “I have been working on this new family proposition, so that The Club can assist our parent and grandparent members with entertaining their children and grandchildren while away in their vans. So many families are already aware of the benefits of touring with children but we want to extol the virtues and encourage more families into the pastime, while showing them that it isn’t difficult, extreme or expensive to entertain the kids!”

Tony Hall, Marketing Director for The Caravan Club, says of the initiative, “Many children these days think that the only fun they can have comes from TV or computer games but The Caravan Club wants to show them that this is not the case. We hear so many adults say “things were different when we were growing up” and The Club agrees. As a child I was always out; climbing trees, building dens and getting muddy. Caravanning holidays can help kids today have these same experiences, by making the outdoors accessible.”

Hall continues, “The Club has also been working with Ambassadors of Adventure, the Meek family, who hit the headlines in 2013 for banning TV and setting their two children 100 outdoor adventures. They have been helping The Club with suggestions for activities for this initiative and offering advice and support to members too, while leading the way by undertaking the Xplore 2014 Challenge – to take 20 holidays in 20 weeks while completing 100 new outdoor activities too.”

‘National Play Days’ will take place on selected sites across The Clubs site network on 6 August, where it is hoped that participants will have fun in the outdoors while also making some great friends, with whom they can continue their summers of touring fun.

Also as part of this initiative The Club has taken the opportunity to launch the ‘Hi5’ campaign which is designed to connect directly with the children, in order to encourage and promote safety on site. The ‘Hi5’ campaign included a children’s poster competition, to design family friendly 5mph posters for site and a ‘Hi5’ video for children to watch online, which involved an audition day, so that child members could feature within the video themselves. Both these activities have fed into the design and content of the ‘Tourer Explorer’ booklet in order to fully maximise its impact and ensure the highest possible visibility.

For further details of all the above family initiatives visit
http://www.caravanclub.co.uk

Cosby adds, “This entire campaign has been based on feedback from Club members, we have understood from research that our families really want to get back to nature with their kids. Therefore The Caravan Club proceeded with a campaign that assists them with this, while offering guidance and support. This campaign gives them the freedom to take on as much or as little as they want, at little or no cost.”

Caravan Club sites where the free ‘Epic Explorer Activities’ booklet is available:

Abbey Wood Caravan Club Site
Alderstead Heath Caravan Club Site
Battle Normanhurst Court Caravan Club Site
Black Horse Farm Caravan Club Site
Brecon Beacons Caravan Club Site
Bridlington Caravan Club Site
Brighton Caravan Club Site
Broadway Caravan Club Site
Burford Caravan Club Site
Burrs Country Park Caravan Club Site
Buxton Caravan Club Site
Carsington Water Caravan Club Site
Chester Fairoaks Caravan Club Site
Cirencester Park Caravan Club Site
Clumber Park Caravan Club Site
Coniston Park Coppice Caravan Club Site
Daleacres Caravan Club Site
Durham Grange Caravan Club Site
Edinburgh Caravan Club Site
Ferry Meadows Caravan Club Site
Freshwater East Caravan Club Site
Gowerton Caravan Club Site
Grafham Water Caravan Club Site
Hillhead Caravan Club Site
Hunter’s Moon Caravan Club Site
Hurn Lane Caravan Club Site
Incleboro Fields Caravan Club Site
Kendal Caravan Club Site
Lady Margaret’s Park Caravan Club Site
Littlehampton Caravan Club Site
Longleat Caravan Club Site
Looe Caravan Club Site
Malvern Hills Caravan Club Site
Moreton-in-Marsh Caravan Club Site
New Forest Caravan Club Site
Pembrey Country Park Caravan Club Site
Poolsbrook Country Park Caravan Club Site
Ramslade Caravan Club Site
Scarborough West Ayton Caravan Club Site
Seacroft Caravan Club Site
Southland Caravan Club Site
Strathclyde Caravan Club Site
Stonehaven Queen Elizabeth Park Caravan Club Site
Sutton on Sea Caravan Club Site
The Sandringham Estate Caravan Club Site
Treamble Valley Caravan Club Site
Tredegar House Country Park Caravan Club Site
Trewethett Farm Caravan Club Site
Troutbeck Head Caravan Club Site
Wharfedale Caravan Club Site
White Water Park Caravan Club Site
Yellowcraig Caravan Club Site
York Beechwood Grange Caravan Club Site

The Caravan Club is Europe’s premier touring organisation representing over one million caravanners, motor caravanners and trailer-tenters. The Caravan Club has been providing people with the means to enjoy touring holidays since 1907 and offers a wealth of products, information and services, bespoke for caravanners. http://www.caravanclub.co.uk

Christopher Macgowan
@motorhomenews