Camping Travel Store Blog

Other than Karsten, there is one other manufacturer that epitomises the Dutch Tents... De Waard. We are proud to announce that we will be adding the De Waard tents to our display collection of Dutch Tents at our next display in June , firmly establishing that with Karsten, ESVO & De Waard we really are the Dutch Tent specialists! De Waard's origins date back to 1948. Machiel de Waard, who was a sailmaker for the Royal Netherlands Navy, designed the first tent at the Lepelaar campsite: the Albatros # 1.  In the need for a tent that never topples over, he started drawing on the back of an envelope.  The tent was designed in such a way that it could withstand strong gusts of wind and offered a nice home for a family. Now, 70 years later, the Albatross still exists.  Over the years, the tent continued to adapt to changing needs.  Albatros # 4 was introduced in 2015.  A tent with all the features as the original but adapted in size and functionality so that it als

Kickstarting the 2019 Season We've been a bit lapse with the upkeep of this blog over the past year and it was a very challenging year following the devastating fire that destroyed the Karsten factory and store, but as you would expect, like a phoenix they have risen from the ashes stronger and more formidable than ever! I will backtrack and fill in some post from our camping adventures throughout 2018 but thought we'd do a very quick catch up with what's been happening so far in 2019. Well, we're two shows into the season already with the first one being a very cold (not to mention windy) one in early February. This was the display where we were able to show off the Combi-Awning connector for the first time! We had been in discussions with Karsten about making one since November the previous year, and now it was on display. So to say that it turns heads is an understatement. Connecting directly to the tent we thought it looked the business and no poles invo