From 136 m² to 40 m². Monika and Ingo have traded in their luxurious penthouse for a caravan with an awning. The two live permanently on a campsite in Murrhardt near Schwäbisch Gmünd, idyllically located on the Waldsee lake.

Moni and Ingo's passion for camping developed early on: "We were on the road with our camper almost every weekend and found that we really rarely stayed in our big apartment in the middle of town."

After the outbreak of the 2020 pandemic, the couple decided to live in their motorhome at the campsite for a while on a trial basis. Living in the penthouse seemed too 'away from it all' for them. They also realized they had accumulated way too much stuff over the years. "In a way, it was a liberation to get rid of all that stuff. We gave away and passed on a lot of stuff," Ingo says. But they still couldn't part with everything. Most of Moni's clothes made it to their new home, where they are stored in a large walk-in closet.

The trial period quickly turned into a permanent solution: Moni and Ingo decided to live as campers and sold their penthouse. In August 2020, they ordered a luxury caravan including an awning. For the awning, the two opted for a wooden porch clad in tarpaulin. The canvas awning is a requirement in Germany to be able to live on the campground without having to get a building permit. In April 2021, they then moved completely and relocated their primary residence at the same time. The two now live on a total of 40 m². Ingo and Moni do not want to comment on the costs. Interested parties can inquire about the monthly site fee directly at the Waldsee campground in Murrhardt.

To be allowed to have their primary residence on a campsite is a rare piece of luck, but Moni and Ingo were made possible by the city without any major problems. The two enjoy living among permanent campers and tourists, as most of them bring good cheer with them. In the summer, Moni and Ingo are neighbored by day visitors, while in the winter it is quiet at the campsite: "It's cool to have this contrast. In summer there's so much going on and people from all over walk around. In winter, it's wonderfully quiet," Moni enthuses.

The two wash dishes in the campground's dishwashing house. Moni and Ingo also use the campground's public facilities to take showers. "But in the summer, I also just jump into the lake before work," Moni reports enthusiastically. The toilet's tank has to be emptied every three to four days - to Moni's great delight, that's Ingo's job. In winter, the running water for the caravans on the site is turned off, but the two know how to help themselves: Ingo fills the caravan's 70-liter water tank with water from the site's public facilities using a watering can. That's enough for about a week. As a project for the future, the two would like to generate their electricity through solar panels on the roof and use it to run an air-to-water heat pump to be self-sufficient in terms of heating and electricity.
Ingo and Moni don't feel they have to do without the comforts of everyday life.

Since they have been living on the campsite, the urge to be constantly on the move is not quite so great. If the caravan ceiling does fall on their heads, they still have their motor home at their disposal, which they can use to drive away at any time without any problems. Otherwise, the motor home is more often used by their two daughters as a guest room. One of the two is even currently building her own camper herself.

For their retirement, Moni and Ingo could well imagine moving once again to a more mountainous region. In any case, the caravan and the awning are designed to be movable.

A film by Feline Gerhardt (editing/cinematography), Kathi Kraft (camera), Cécilia Marchat (sound) and Sam Aron Handel (editing). Production: EIKON Media GmbH, on behalf of SWR.

00:00 Living on the campsite
00:32 Awning part 1
02:23 Walk-in closet
03:25 Awning part 2
06:21 Lounge area caravan
07:55 Kitchen caravan
09:00 Bathroom caravan
09:38 Bedroom
10:13 Outdoor kitchen
12:16 Rinse and wash house

On the YouTube channel of SWR Room Tour, people open the door to their unusual homes. On a very personal tour, they share details about the finishes, furnishings and architecture and talk about their philosophy of life.

Subscribe to our channel to never miss an episode: https://www.youtube.com/c/SWRRoomtour...

More SWR Room Tour: https://www.SWR.de/RoomTour

Room Tour is also available in the ARD Mediathek: https://1.ard.de/roomtour

Netiquette: https://www.swr.de/netiquette

Imprint and privacy policy: https://www.swr.de/impressum

#camping #caravan #RoomTour