New sustainable tourism for Mellieħa

One of the most important sectors to the Maltese economy is without doubt tourism. The more tourists we get the more we spin foreign money for our economy. The motor caravanner is not a season tourist but normally travels all the year round. Statistics show the motor caravanner type is a person between 40 and 55 years old who travels an average of 200 days throughout the year.

Motor caravan users need to be in good harmony with the rules of the environment- Rene Savona Ventura, general secretary, Touring Club Malta, San Ġwann

France, Germany and Italy are leaders in motor caravanning. France alone has about 3,500 stopovers with 600 of these in camping sites having basic services such as parking slots, drinking water and drain water disposal. Most of these stopovers are located in the heart of a touristic place and have been installed or built by municipalities, known here as local councils. The term “stopovers” may vary. In France these stopovers are known as aires, a French word to denominate aire de camping car (motor caravan rest area); in Italy these stopovers are known as sostas. Most of these areas are in a nature reserve or with stunning sea views near a sandy beach.

A survey carried out in France a few years ago reveals that 70 per cent of these motor caravanners consist of businessmen, retired people or teachers with an average income of €28,000. One in every three goes to a restaurant between two and three days a week. Sixty-one per cent of them normally shop in markets while 39 per cent prefer to shop from branded outlets.

Buying a motor caravan may vary depending on size and make. A well-equipped motor caravan may cost €50,000 offering good comfort; luxury can reach a higher price. This confirms the fact that caravanners are considered to be a more agile type of tourist than the traditional one but are still of a certain class.

In Malta, we have a good number of these motor caravans, most of which were bought from abroad and registered here; others were locally built or renovated according to standard. Most of these Maltese caravanners travel abroad and experience free tourism, without having a tight schedule as most tourists have. To drive a registered motor caravan in Malta one must pay €555 for its road licence and another €500 for insurance. The registration cost of an imported foreign motorhome may vary depending on the year of manufacture and condition.

End of 2009, Mellieħa local council came up with a by-law against these caravanners and abolished motor caravans parked in their locality (KLBL 37/2/2009). Many of them were fined for parking their vehicles in Mellieħa. Surely, this goes against what other countries want for their tourism sector.

One cannot expect to have caravanners from Europe when we were the first to legislate this kind of by-law. This is a classic example of what happens when the lack of information is greater in countries that have no previous experience in motor caravanning.

In the long run, it is in our interest to help them.

I think the time’s ripe to recommend and install a motor caravan aire/stopover or sosta. This recommendation is intended to establish basic minimum standards to comply with environmental rules, thus avoiding incorrect installation.

But, above all, motor caravan users need to be in good harmony with the rules of the environment. One cannot abolish motor caravanning from one’s locality and replace these vehicles with dangerous/illegal boat trailers that serve as an eyesore to tourists visiting our island. Surely, Mellieħa deserves better than this.