Planning to buy a new motorhome for 2021? Plan a trip to a European motorhome show this year

January 8, 2020

In September and October of last year, during the big motorhome shows of Europe, we were reminded of how easy it is to choose a new motorhome if you visit one of these exhibitions.

Most of our clients order their new motorhomes without ever seeing them and the process to arrive at the right model and final specification can be a lengthy one when you cannot physically inspect the options. For clients who made the trip to a motorhome show, this process was a breeze so we’d urge you to plan a trip to one of the big autumn shows later this year if you want to order a new vehicle to arrive for a spring 2021 trip start.

Many people resolve to make their trip of a lifetime actually happen at this time of the year but life often gets in the way of doing so. It would be great if you did manage to get your European motorhome tour underway in 2020 but if you know that will be a tall order, why not aim for 2021 and plan a short trip to go and see all the campervan options this autumn.

A typical delay between ordering a new motorhome and it being delivered from a European manufacturer is around six months so attending an autumn event is ideal if you want to collect your new van in the early spring. Nowhere else will you see such a large number of models and be able to speak to the manufacturer’s knowledgeable teams directly. We are concessionaires for three motorhome makes but even with just three brands in our stable, there are over eighty models to choose from and hundreds of optional extras available for each. Most European dealers will have a maximum of a couple of different models in stock from any one manufacturer so even a visit to a dealer won’t necessarily help when it comes to seeing vehicles before you buy.

In 2019 our clients went to big shows in Parma (Italy), Dusseldorf (Germany), Birmingham (UK) and Paris (France) and once they had seen all the vehicles and made their shortlist, we were able to send them quotations by email so they could then make their final decisions. Of course, we helped with pre-event preparation to narrow down the choices a bit so time was not wasted at the shows and this worked really well. With our help, clients could identify the layouts which were most likely to suit them then go and step inside each one and try it on for size.

If you want to head for the biggest and most impressive show, go to Dusseldorf (29th August to 6th September 2020), it’s the biggest in Europe and has huge stands for each of the main manufacturers. However, Parma (12th to 20th September 2020), Birmingham (13th to 18th October 2020) and Paris (26th September to 4th October 2020) are also big events and if you happen to have another excuse to go to any of those countries, it would fine to combine your trip with seeing a show. Birmingham in the UK is good if you want to hold conversations in English as the teams manning the stands will be fluent but the other shows will usually be staffed with some English speakers as they tend to have a regular, international exhibitions team.

If you are trading up from an exiting RV, you can even stay on-site in your motorhome at the shows as they provide campsites and events for those who want to visit for more than one day. Spending more than a day might sound OTT but these shows are huge and just walking in and finding your way around can soak up hours so we’d suggest a couple of days if you can spare the time. If you do go to a European motorhome show, wear some comfortable shoes, you will walk miles and those vast exhibition halls have rock hard floors!

Photos, layout diagrams, technical specifications and price lists are really helpful when deciding what motorhome to buy but being able to step inside one, see the level of finish, feel what it is like to lie on the bed, stand in the shower or try closing doors and drawers will help you to arrive at a choice much more easily.