Columns
Holiday the Dutch way
Have you ever noticed that wherever you go for your summer holiday, you will always bump into Dutch tourists? They are everywhere, looking for that one authentic village that nobody has discovered yet. If you ask a Dutch person about their holiday trip, they will either happily tell you that they “hardly met any other Dutch people” or they will complain ‘there were too many Dutch people”.
The other thing about Dutch tourists is the way they travel. They love attaching a caravan to their cars and drive over a thousand kilometers to find a spot on a camping site in France, Italy or Spain. They often look pretty stressed out upon arrival but once they have parked the caravan, arranged the chairs side by side (with a view on the other guests) and made fresh coffee, the holiday can truly start. One of my international colleagues suggested to investigate this phenomenon in my next column. So I did.
My caravan-owning Dutch friends tell me they love the freedom a caravan gives them. They feel they can go anywhere. It is also much cheaper than a hotel. They love life at a camping site. And having to cook, eat and sleep in a tiny space gives them a sense of adventure, perhaps even an opportunity to test their survival skills. It is just back to basics.
I must have my DNA checked as I fear I am not 100% Dutch. I just cannot image driving along those hilly, narrow roads in the south of Europe with a caravan. The thought freaks me out. The last time we stayed on a camping site, years ago, I could barely sleep because our neighbor snored so badly. Then the (same) neighbors’ kids decided we were so much more interesting than their parents and we just could not get rid of them. Since then, it’s hotels and holiday homes for us and life is so much better.
Holidays are for rebooting and having fun. Caravans, tents, hotels, homes, your own garden –whatever you did, I hope you enjoyed it. Welcome back!
By Monique Mols
Media relations, ASML
