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MOTORHOMENEWS

~ A personal take by Christopher Macgowan on tourism, travel and motorhomes.

MOTORHOMENEWS

Tag Archives: Dusseldorf

If it’s Thursday it must be Manchester so Friday will be Chester.

20 Saturday Jan 2018

Posted by chrismacgowan in Exhibitions and Shows, Sites

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#motorhomes, caravan and motorhome club, caravan and motorhome show 2018, Chester, Chester Fairoaks, Christopher Macgowan, Dusseldorf, Liverpool, Manchester, motorhome, motorhomenews

Just a small section of the Caravan and Motorhome Club stand.

Chester Fairoaks CAMC site.

The Caravan and Motorhome 2018 Show is on at the moment at Event City in Manchester. I attended the opening day on Thursday and it looked well attended to me. The organisers are probably hoping that 20,000 people will visit and if the people traffic on the Caravan and Motorhome Club stand are anything to go by it would not surprise me if that target is met. The cold weather does not help but offsetting that is the enormous population in and around Liverpool and Manchester which provides the bulk of the visitors.

One delightfully “British” thing happened to me. I dutifully followed the visitor parking signs in my motorhome and in due course arrived at this huge space sandwiched between the Event City exhibition centre and Trafford Park retail outlet. As I got to the front of the queue a man wearing a high viz jacket emblazoned with the parking contractor’s name approached me waving his arms. “You can’t bring that thing in here!” he announced sternly. “But it’s a motorhome show!” I protested. He was having none of it and I couldn’t help but note the difference in attitude in Manchester to that at the Dusseldorf Show. Sometimes I despair!!

Later that day in the early evening I drove along the motorway to Chester in sleet and light snow. The wardens at the CAMC Chester Fairoaks site were still in the office at 7.30pm together with their delightful cat – even the cat provided a much more welcoming experience than had the parking attendant earlier. My AutoSleeper Malvern took its customary eight minutes to set up and in no time at all a glass of wine had been poured, supper was cooking and I was on WiFi via my annual subscription which I can cart from site to site.

All was well with the world.

Christopher Macgowan

@motorhomenews

The Dusseldorf Show. Simply the Best.

27 Sunday Aug 2017

Posted by chrismacgowan in Exhibitions and Shows

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#motorhomes, Christopher Macgowan, Dethleff, Dusseldorf, Dusseldorf Salon, Fiat DUCATO, motorhome, motorhomenews

Time spent at the Dusseldorf show is time well spent I reckon.

Many new products were launched – but this concept e.home from Dethleff caught my eye. Covered in photovoltaic cells (solar panels to you and I) it also had its own dedicated Alexa which arpart from her other well known capabilities controlled all the main functions. Even changing a frosted glass door panel into a full length mirror….

“All in Caravanning 2018” is an industry wide initiative to attract a new audience – much like the Discover initiative we have in the UK.

Three or four thousand motorhomes and caravans pitch up in the grounds and it is a thoroughly social occasion with beer tents, food stalls and live music and good facilities for those who prefer them. The exhibition area with its giant halls is under the Dusseldorf airport main flight path so you wouldn’t book here for a few quiet days away from it all. I know that nearly all followers of this blog themselves travel extensively and see different standards of pitching and site administration in their travels. This is a slick and fast pitching operation which it needs to be but cautious spacing is not on the agenda. 


Some general observations which might be of interest:

1. The number of van conversions on view has reached bewildering levels. 

2. The show has a large number of bespoke vast military pedigree four wheel drive motorhomes which are far removed from the very welcome appearance of the new Fiat Ducato four wheel drive variant. Also, the show features F1 style motorhomes many of which keep a top of the range BMW Mini is the garage.

3. I noticed that more and more manufacturers this year were adopting the marketing policy of separate stands for separate product groups. So van conversions would be in one place and motorhomes in another completely different part of the show in order that potential customers can easily focus on what they want. It is not new thinking – just more of it.

4. On motorhomes, minimalist white interiors are the order of the day. Out with the wood effect….

5. One of my grandchildren thinks it incredibly cool that there is a Dexter van conversion – obviously named after him he feels!!
WIDER DUSSELDORF COVERAGE.

For much fuller video coverage by the talented journalist Andrew J Ditton do click HERE or enter this next link if clicking freaks out your computer. 

https://youtu.be/KWFfXj7sxuk  

Andrew is producing a series of video blogs from Dusseldorf of which this is the first; his manager Dougal puts in the occasional appearance much like Alfred Hitchcock did in his films. 

It truly is an enormous and stunningly informative show. Last time I went I hooked it up to a few days holiday in Germany which is a good use of time but this time it had to be a there and back affair. None the worse for that.

Christopher Macgowan

@motorhomenews

Mercedes-Benz at the Dusseldorf Show with the Marco Polo Activity

29 Friday Aug 2014

Posted by chrismacgowan in Exhibitions and Shows

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Christopher Macgowan, Dusseldorf, Marco Polo Activity, Mercedes-Benz, motorhome, motorhomenews

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Mercedes-Benz is presenting a new star that stands for freedom and independence at the Düsseldorf Caravan Salon: the all-new Marco Polo ACTIVITY recreational vehicle. Featuring modern design, the ultimate in functionality and excellent sleeping comfort, it is equally ideal for long trips or daily and urban use. The compact Marco Polo ACTIVITY recreational vehicle boasts exceptional versatility. With a highly variable interior, comfortable berths for up to five people, five engine variants and three drive types, it can be customised to individual requirements. As such, it is the ideal vehicle the whole year round for young families as well as for sports and outdoor activity enthusiasts.

The Marco Polo ACTIVITY combines leisure and daily use. The compact exterior dimensions, with a length of 5.14 metres and a width of 1.93 metres (excluding mirrors), combine with the electromechanical power steering to ensure great manoeuvrability and impressive agility. And with a height of 1.98 metres, it is able to enter all standard garages, multi-storey car parks, underground garages and car washes. At the same time, the Marco Polo ACTIVITY offers a standard of dynamic performance, comfort and economy on a par with a Mercedes-Benz passenger car, allowing the utmost flexibility and spontaneity in daily and leisure use.

Exemplary safety is ensured by a wealth of innovative driver assistance systems based on state-of-the-art radar, camera and ultrasonic sensors. The vehicle is equipped as standard with Crosswind Assist and ATTENTION ASSIST, which can warn of inattention and fatigue. Optional features include Active Parking Assist, COLLISION PREVENTION ASSIST, Lane Keeping Assist and the LED Intelligent Light System. This is the first time that most of these assistance systems have been available in the compact recreational vehicle segment.

The Marco Polo ACTIVITY opens up a whole new way of enjoying freedom and spontaneity to the full. Start the day by driving to the office or doing the school run, quickly attach the mountain bike to the rear-mounted rack in the evening and exchange the urban jungle for the nearest forest, drive to the beach at the weekend for a spontaneous surf trip with friends and family or enjoy an open-air festival – the new recreational vehicle from Mercedes-Benz offers maximum flexibility and comes with comfortable overnight accommodation built in.

The Marco Polo ACTIVITY is equipped as standard with a three-seater bench with one-piece backrest and bed extension. The bench can be slid forward on rails. In this way, the capacity of the luggage compartment can be more than doubled in an instant to accommodate surfboards, paragliding equipment or even a bicycle inside the vehicle. Anyone who requires even more room, e.g. for carrying newly purchased shelf units, can also use the surface of the bed and the floor underneath the bed as load space. Under the bed are two drawers that can be removed, allowing items to be loaded through the resulting space.

When spending the night in the vehicle, the bench seat easily converts into a comfortable bed measuring 1.93 metres by 1.35 metres for three people. An additional sleeping facility for two people is offered by the roof bed under the pop-up roof on board the new Marco Polo. Featuring a cold foam mattress and special spring elements with high point elasticity, this bed offers a standard of lying comfort that is exceptional in the segment.

When the luxury roof bed is not in use it can be folded upwards at the front when the roof is raised. This provides plenty of headroom in the vehicle interior. At the same time, the two side ventilation slits in the concertina direct even more fresh air into the interior. The two standard-fit vent windows in the rear provide for an added supply of pleasant fresh air. They can be opened and closed electrically – a unique selling point for the Marco Polo ACTIVITY in the compact recreational vehicle segment. Curtains in the rear also come as standard. To allow the interior to be darkened completely, an opaque and washable curtain is available for the windscreen and the front side windows.

The Marco Polo ACTIVITY features a standard folding table with a scratch-resistant surface, which is ideal for sitting around in bad weather or for children to play at. In addition to an amply sized surface, the table also includes a bottle holder and two cup holders. More bottle holders, cup holders, stowage compartments as well as a total of five 12 volt power sockets are to be found on the sidewalls of the rear compartment, in the cockpit and in the luggage compartment. Ideal lighting is provided by a total of four reading lamps in the rear and two adjustable LED gooseneck lamps on the roof bed.

For spending many a pleasant hour outdoors shaded from the sun, the Marco Polo ACTIVITY offers the option of an awning above the sliding door, which is also detachable – a first for this segment. This means there is no need to have it permanently attached and allows it to be removed before driving through an automatic car wash.

Christopher Macgowan
@motorhomenews

DUSSELDORF CARAVAN SALON

26 Friday Aug 2011

Posted by chrismacgowan in General

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caravans, Christopher Macgowan, Dusseldorf, motorhomes

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Wall to wall motorhomes at the Dusseldorf Caravan Salon.

I would say two themes are clear.

Firstly a lot of attention to new liquid habitation heating systems and winterisation. Secondly, a number of manufacturers seem to be installing sophisticated fold away bed systems above the driver and passenger seats in the shorter motorhomes – say below 6.50 metres and then using the now bedless space to create space and comfort. And then the same bed is left there in the longer models as a second bed with often the main bed now being an island bed.

Both of these themes have been around for some time of course but walking through the vast halls at this enormous show they struck me as themes which, over time, were heading towards being the standard. Which is bad news for me as I cannot be doing with precision mountaineering just to get to bed!!!!

I guess a third theme is the very positive and upbeat atmosphere which is nice to experience and is based on increasing sales levels in Germany and some other European markets. I tried to find people to be grumpy with but failed miserably.

Christopher Macgowan
twitter: motorhomenews

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