Recreational users buy back a campsite with holiday homes from Europarcs

The sixty owners of a series of old wooden recreation houses have bought back “their” campsite near Matsloot (Drenthe) from Europarcs. This means that the big holiday park company’s plans to convert the campsite into a hyper-modern holiday park have been shelved.

“Last year was one roller coaster“says one of the sixty residents, Daniella van Gennip RTV Drenthe. “A year ago we didn’t expect this.”

Van Gennip is so happy with the outcome that he now assists residents of endangered recreational parks as well. “Obviously it is very important that holidaymakers from all over the Netherlands are satisfied and that there is more cooperation with the companies that take over the campsites. We will continue to support this,” she says.

In early December last year, the residents of the Meerzicht campsite were told they had to leave before the end of this year. Europarcs, which owns over fifty parks in Europe, had bought the site with the obsolete houses. Those old houses should make way for chalets, some of which have a jetty. The site is located on the watery border of the provinces of Drenthe and Groningen on the banks of the Leekstermeer.

Vacationers, some of whom have been coming for more than twenty years, have reacted furiously. “We are all afraid of the ‘potting of rooms’, as is happening all over the Netherlands. Just like Roompot, also a large owner of holiday parks, we think that Europarcs wants to build all kinds of luxury chalets or villas and that nature should make way for that. To the benefit of vacation homes that are being used as investment objects by wealthy investors,” tourist Eric Veenstra said earlier.

Van Gennip, Veenstra and others demonstrated in the municipality, in the province of Drenthe and also in The Hague against Europarcs’ plans. But they achieved their greatest success in consultation with Europarcs itself. “We wanted to arrive at a solution with respect,” Europarcs director Andries Bruil now replies. “This year, as a company, we’ve taken a new policy direction, where we’re taking more time to engage with the residents of the new campgrounds we buy. We try to work things out with the vacationers.”

That it was successful at Matsloot is, according to Bruil, due to that park’s “unique situation”. “We are dealing with a lot of permanent homes that you cannot move. We have also noticed that we are dealing with holidaymakers here who have a clear view of camping and nature development,” he says. “We have never done this before. But the holiday makers show professional trader behavior. They said: we want to buy the land and stay there, and then help you with the development of what is still available. This is also new for us . “

Van Gennip calls it admirable that Bruil dares to take the step. “He’s sticking his neck out with this. It’ll probably be very exciting for them too.”

The recreationists have already developed a new plan for the site, where sustainability and ecology are the main themes. They hope to start renovating their repossessed homes soon. What they paid Europarcs was not disclosed.

Earlier this year, there was a lot of controversy over the private purchase of old holiday villages or cottages in holiday villages, because black money could be laundered. The SP spoken on “robbing investors” and asked responsible minister De Jonge what he wanted to do about it. The minister replied that the issue is ‘on the radar’ of the municipalities, provinces and other bodies involved. In Gelderland, for example, a special team investigates suspicious transactions.

But the minister saw no reason to introduce purchase protection for old holiday homes. According to him, a relatively small number will be put up for sale and the number of vacation homes will decline by no more than 4% over the next five years. “There will still be 114,109 annual vacancies in the Netherlands, 5,002 fewer than today,” says De Jonge. “That gives me no reason to consider buying protection.”