Planet Caravan

Black Sabbath were singing about travelling in other worlds and that is certainly what we feel we are doing.  After five weeks on 17 different Italian campsites we feel able to comment on them generally:  Showers range from the warm trickle to the scalding deluge; we are intrigued by the absence of toilet paper and the wide spread theft of toilet seats; toilets are usually a mixture of those that double up as a work-out for your thigh muscles and standard loos; at Barrea we had fantastic views and the campsite to ourselves, at Specchiolla, south of Bari, we were surrounded by Italian families and the children’s entertainment boomed out until late into the night and in Calabria and Vieste, on the Gargano Promontory, we were among German campers, causing us to dither about whether to say Buongiorno or Guten Morgen on the stroll to buy bread in the morning; two sites have provided special sinks for fish washing; all sites have required considerable form filling and paperwork when we arrive.

We have managed to book into campsites using only our limited Italian; sometimes German is helpful and at some sites they speak some English:  At the campsite in Rodi on the very attractive Gargano Promontory, the owner spoke some English and explained that the gate to the beach was kept closed to keep out the Goths.  We were slightly bemused by this and felt for the black eye-liner fraternity who were excluded.  However, it later transpired she was referring to the local goats!

The prices have ranged from 10 Euro per night to 26 Euro:  These prices seem to have little to do with the facilities available and are mostly related to location, local competition and what the market will accept.  We find the ACSI discount card very useful when available.