Campers and caravans after the holiday: where can you park them - and for how long?

Created: 08/09/2022, 07:00

By: Marcus Efler

The holiday is over, the question remains: where to go with the caravan or mobile home?

When parking on public roads, certain rules apply.

Summer, sun, beach: For most Germans, vacationing in the south has once again become part of their annual vacation ritual.

There was a lot going on on the roads to the south and back – also because some people who normally board planes avoided the airport chaos.

Now that compulsory schooling will soon be calling again in all federal states, the caravan is heading home again, or has already arrived home again.

And among the SUVs or station wagons with a roof box, more and more vehicles are appearing that save their owners the search for a hotel room: caravans, also known as campers, and mobile homes.

Not always lean: Residential vehicles park on public streets.

(symbol image) © SRo

Campers and caravans after the holiday: where can you park them - and for how long?

Above all, new owners of these rolling homes ask themselves: where to take them after the holiday?

Where, and above all for how long, can you park them?

Basically fine with this question are of course those camping fans who can park the vehicle in a private place until the next trip - be it on their own property, with friends or maybe, for a small fee, in a corner of a farm .

On the other hand, if you want to use public roads or parking bays, you should consider a few things.

Campers and caravans after the holiday: That's the two-week rule

Basically, the vehicles must of course be registered and insured.

Without a license plate, sticker and TÜV stamp, the owner is liable to prosecution, gets a fine and a point in Flensburg (by the way, you can check your account balance online).

This also applies outside of the permitted months for seasonal license plates.

In the case of very wide mobile homes, it is important to ensure that there is at least 3.05 meters of lane width next to them, so that other vehicles can still pass.

In addition, these different rules apply to mobile homes, i.e. those with their own motor, and caravans, i.e. trailers:

• Motorhomes

  with their own drive (and up to a maximum permissible total weight of 7.5 tons) may be parked on public roads for as long as the owner wants.

  This is of course forbidden in no-parking zones – but also if a sign expressly only allows cars to park.

  In addition, the rules for cars apply. The owner must ensure that he is aware if a temporary parking ban is set up because of a construction site.

  Otherwise there is a risk of an expensive towing campaign.

  Camper fans also have to reckon with the resentment of local residents and corresponding notes behind the windshield wiper (as with this BMW parked in a meadow) if their nice, large motorhome blocks up valuable parking space for months.

• Caravans

  for the trailer coupling may be parked in residential areas for a maximum of two weeks if they are not on the hook.

  After that, there is a warning fee of 20 euros.

  Claiming that the caravan had been driven away in the meantime and that it only happened to end up in the same place again doesn't help much: the traffic control staff take pictures of the trailer and document, for example, the position of the tire valve.

  Of course, the law is satisfied if you simply push the caravan a few meters further after two weeks.

  If you overdo it, you might also make yourself unpopular with your neighbors.

  Long-term parking is therefore easier on streets outside of residential areas where the two-week limit does not apply.

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However, many municipalities are increasingly providing suitable roads with bans on long-term or camper parking.

Then the only thing that really helps is what is recommended anyway: Invest a few euros a month and rent a parking space on private property.