VanLife Weekly #17 · April 20–26

We've gathered the top motorhome, camper van and vanlife news for April 20–26, 2026. In this issue: Greece lifts its ban on camper van parking in populated areas, Spain tightens vehicle inspections for motorhomes, 500 motorhomes blocked a highway in Tenerife in protest, and 200 families are being evicted from a motorhome park in Miami.

For travellers, this week revealed a paradox: while southern Europe is pulling regulation in both directions (Greece is loosening up, Spain and the Canaries are tightening), the industry is investing in service and new models, and in Japan and Korea the motorhome is becoming an everyday element of urban life — from municipal RV parks to coffee and restroom trailers.

Laws and bans

Greece: a year and a half after the de facto ban, municipalities have once again allowed motorhomes up to 7.5 m to park in populated areas — amendments to the traffic code repealed parts of the 2025 tourism law.

Spain: the DGT has tightened inspections for motorhomes and camper vans — vehicles older than 10 years now undergo ITV annually, camper vans every six months, with fines for illegal parking with awnings deployed reaching €5,000. The country's fleet has grown from 48,000 to 137,000 units since 2015.

Tenerife (Spain): a convoy of more than 500 motorhomes blocked the TF-1 motorway on Saturday, April 25 — owners are demanding infrastructure for parking and waste disposal, protesting against "harassment" by municipalities.

Lorsch (Germany): the city raised the daily parking rate from €10 to €20 and abolished the short-stay tariff — critics call this contradictory to the policy of attracting day tourists.

Zlín (Czech Republic): from May 4, in the Jižní Svahy district, parking of vehicles longer than 5 m and all caravans is banned — the measure targets "wild parking" and aims to free up spaces for local residents.

Industry

Schlüsselfeld (Germany): Concorde Reisemobile is investing €10 million in a new service centre for 80 employees; the price of one of the brand's motorhomes is comparable to that of a private house.

Italy: CI (Trigano group) has updated its semi-integrated Horon series — the Horon 65 XT measures 745 cm, built on a Ford Transit chassis with 130 hp, with five seats and five berths.

USA: startup CyberLandr unveiled a living module for the Tesla Cybertruck for $49,995 — more expensive than the base electric pickup ($39,900), powered from its battery and including a kitchen, bathroom and sleeping berths.

Italy: a detailed image analysis revealed that the listing for an eight-wheeled motorhome based on the Mercedes-AMG G63 for €285,000 is a fake generated by AI.

Openings and closings

Miami (USA): the landowner notified residents of Silver Court park in Little Havana that more than 200 families must leave by September — compensation is $10,000 if they leave by May 31, $5,000 by July 15, and $2,500 by the end of August.

Fossacesia (Italy): the municipality completed a 17-month procedure to open a parking area for motorhomes on the Lungomare Sud waterfront after it was closed due to hydrogeological risk.

France: AireServices renamed its network of stopovers Qipeo — as of April 2026, this is 1,250 sites and 26,000 spaces, united by the eponymous app for online payment.

Mount Akagi (Japan): atop the mountain, the "Onuma Camp Field" campsite has opened, covering 68,000 m² at a cost of 1.8 billion yen — 109 pitches, some with trailer homes.

Lifestyle

South Korea: the DOD brand is launching the DOD CHA mobile camper van, which from late April through June will tour campsites with tea tastings, gear exhibitions and consultations.

Disney World (USA): the Ewing family sold their mansion in Georgia and moved into a motorhome at the Fort Wilderness Resort, where they spend up to 70% of the year, combining remote work and homeschooling their children.

Japan: actress Minako Tanaka spent five years touring all 46 prefectures in a Nuts Clair camper van — a night at a motorhome stopover costs around 4,000 yen, compared with 60,000–70,000 for a hotel for a family of four.

Seoul: Starbucks Korea unveiled its first Su:Bokcha mobile coffee trailer to serve hard-to-reach areas and emergency zones — the launch took place on April 22 in Hangang Park.

Tour de France (France): M&M's, becoming an official supplier of the race for the first time in 2026, is seeking four ambassadors for its caravan through an open casting in Pau.

Lanzarote (Spain): Arrecife police seized 21 kg of cocaine in a motorhome in Costa Teguise and detained five suspects in a drug-trafficking case.

By region

Europe: Greece lifts parking restrictions, Spain tightens technical oversight, and in Italy the Fossacesia parking area is finally unblocked after 17 months of inactivity. Asia: Japan is investing 1.8 billion yen in a Mount Akagi campsite, and South Korea launches mobile Starbucks coffee trailers. Globally: the US shows both sides of the market — 200 families being evicted from a Miami park, while Tesla gets a CyberLandr living module pricier than the Cybertruck itself.

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