Campers hesitate over electric cars due to cost concerns

Torben Rasmussen would happily switch to an electric car, but not if it has to pull a 1,200–1,500 kg touring caravan. “Once you add a caravan you move straight into the expensive weight class,” he said.

Rasmussen, who is parked at Egtved Camping in southern Denmark, recently bought a petrol Mazda 6 because no electric model could match his towing needs. He is among campers rethinking electric cars as the market for new touring caravans has slumped.

New registrations of touring caravans have fallen from more than 2,000 in the same period five years ago to 755 so far this year, according to Statistics Denmark. The Danish motoring association FDM partly blames the rise of electric cars.

“Several electric cars can pull a heavy load, but with a touring caravan the range is typically halved,” said Tom Westersø Larsen, FDM’s technical consultant. “A trip to Lake Garda would require about six charging stops, whereas a diesel car would need only two fill-ups.”

FDM advises campers to plan routes in detail, check charging points at destinations and verify roaming agreements among charging networks. The organisation also notes that the overall stock of touring caravans in Denmark has dropped from more than 142,000 to about 101,000 over the past 15 years, reflecting broader shifts in holiday habits.

Kirsten Munk Andersen, director of the Camping Outdoor Denmark trade body, said the decline stemmed from multiple factors, including earlier policy pushes for electric cars that lacked sufficient towing capacity.

“Many Danes now prefer a variety of holiday formats throughout the year, so they hesitate before investing in a caravan or motorhome,” she said.