[Joyongjun's Manri Yeo-dam] 'Minpae Car Camping' in the COVID Era... This Cannot Continue

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Yong-jun, travel specialist] The chirping of unknown mountain birds feels warm and familiar. When the sunlight hides its tail, warm lanterns light up each vividly colored tent. The night sky unfolds countless stars telling stories. The coffee placed in front of the couple is sweet, and the laughter of children is filled with happiness.

When you think of camping, these scenes naturally come to mind. However, these days camping is neither so romantic nor leisurely. The price to pay is considerable. The car trunk overflows with camping supplies packed to the brim. Setting up and taking down the tent repeatedly is no easy task either.

Those who like romance but dislike hassle have chosen something else: car camping (cha-bak, from cha meaning car + bak meaning lodging). As the name suggests, it is a type of camping where lodging is done inside the car. There is no need to pack bulky luggage. You can just take off anytime, anywhere, and park your car wherever you like. When you turn on the TV, scenes of celebrities eating, drinking, and car camping appear frequently on various channels. Even before, the trend was growing, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the popularity of car camping has reached a fever pitch.

According to Statistics Korea, last year the camping population reached 7 million, and the market size was 4 trillion won. A camping trend analysis released by the Korea Tourism Organization in October 2020 showed that among camping-related search terms, car camping had the highest growth rate.

As the number of people car camping increases, the damage caused by inconsiderate and thoughtless car campers is also reaching serious levels. Every weekend, regardless of whether it is a famous tourist spot or a quiet place, the surroundings become a mess due to the vehicles car camping there.

Recently, during a reporting trip to Daegwallyeong, an incident occurred. Since it is located at an altitude of 830 meters, it is crowded in summer with people seeking a brief escape from the heat. There, we encountered car campers. From a truck converted into a camper parked in a corner of the Pyeongchang New Renewable Energy Exhibition Center parking lot at the old Daegwallyeong rest area, loud singing close to noise could be heard. It was not just music. On the tables set up using the parking lot as a yard, leftover food, trash, and liquor bottles were scattered around.

This level might be considered minor and overlooked. However, a recent post on a community site was astonishing. Someone car camping at the Tando Port parking lot in Ansan Daebudo, where cooking is prohibited, grilled meat. This alone was enough to draw criticism, but the car campers went further and burned parking facility structures using firewood while grilling the meat.

Is that all? Public parking lots by the East Coast beaches are at war with car campers. Large banners stating no camping and no car camping are useless. There are countless inconsiderate people who occupy free public parking lots for extended periods and those who wash dishes and shower in public restrooms.

The places where car campers stayed became covered with illegally dumped trash, and cleaning up the discarded garbage has become solely the responsibility of local residents. As this situation repeated, some local governments have outright banned car camping or blocked access to parking lots.

In the COVID-19 era, car camping is certainly an attractive leisure activity. However, nowadays, when someone says they are going car camping, many people look at them with less than favorable eyes. It can only be said to be their own fault.

What must be emphasized is that car camping itself is not bad. Because of some inconsiderate people, those who enjoy car camping at campsites are also being criticized.

Car camping behavior that causes public nuisance, wrapped in sentiment and romance, must now be eradicated. Mature civic consciousness among car campers is urgently needed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.