One British couple are living live in miniature at a plot overlooking the beach. MARIA SOCRATOUS finds out more
DOES the thought of leaving your house and all its memories behind put you off moving? Did it ever cross your mind how lucky snails are, with their homes on their backs?
Mary and Rupert Elliott seem to have managed the best of both worlds, sitting on the timber deck of their home at Governor’s Beach. They are the owners of a static trailer. Caravans go under many categories; the pop-top selection with awnings, the camping trailer that when the extended canvas walls are not in use fold neatly into a square flat carriage which can be attached and pulled by any vehicle; then there are the mobile and touring homes. From lightweight to tough built caravans from small 16 foot to 25-foot recreation vehicles. A static caravan, however, is in a league of its own; a big structure that is stationary and cannot be towed by a motor vehicle or moved as easily as the far smaller caravans.
“We used to come to Cyprus for holidays for small periods of time but since November we set up home here and we intend to stay permanently,” said Mary. “We didn’t want to buy a flat or a villa so the next best thing was this. Some friends of ours faced a lot of problems of damp and cracks on their newly built beach villa but we expect no such problems with our choice of residence.”
Mary guided me through the rooms of the static trailer. Nothing resembles the caravans of old. This is pure luxury in miniature form. Wallowing in air-conditioned coolness at the moment, “it has central heating as well for the cold months and even the fake flames of a fire place,” said Mary. It is equipped with all modern conveniences including a microwave, washing machine and even an en-suite bathroom. “It also has a spare bedroom, another bathroom, small kitchen, dining area, lounge, the boiler room and a small storage area. It’s like a doll’s house! But last Christmas day I catered for 13 people,” Mary said.
The caravan has double-glazed windows and has been well insulated for extreme weather conditions. “The caravan’s roof can take as much as two metres of snow,” said Rupert. “The exterior has an aluminium plastic coating which means it doesn’t need any maintenance only the occasional sponge and hose clean”.
On to the decking once again, with its splendid view of the sea, the lavender and geranium pots in flower and the kittens running wild, a green painted shed is visible taking pride of place in the corner of the stoned patio a couple of steps down from Rupert’s decking.
Mary pointed to a smaller caravan parked on the adjacent plot. “This is ours too, we use it when the family and the grandchildren come over to stay for a holiday.” Once inside, the caravan has two bedrooms and again all the necessary facilities to accommodate a family of four in comfort and style. “We shipped both caravans over from Britain. We like it here, Limassol is only 20 minutes away; we do our shopping at nearby Zygi and for medical check ups there is a doctor at Kalavassos village. Every Sunday it gets crowded at the camping site so we go for long drives up the Troodos Mountains, visiting picturesque villages,” said Mary.
Governor’s Beach camp site is on government property, leased to the Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO). The CTO is responsible for the leasing of the site and maintaining its upkeep.
The camp site offers campers communal outhouses offering washing facilities as well as a utility room and a laundry room all under one roof. These buildings are scattered around the site. There is an amusement area for the children, a restaurant and a seasonal supermarket. Kristia Christoforou, the personal secretary of the manager in charge of the camping site said: “We have backpackers camping at the site that are charged £1.50 for the plot and £1.00 per person staying on a daily basis. Those who bring their caravan only for the summer months go under the category of quarterly payment which charges £145 for the use of the site and 0.50cents per person per day. Then the half yearly cost is £280 for the site only and yearly costs £440 — again the charge is only for the site. For static caravans different prices apply as they need to be connected to the sewerage system and most people with static caravans use them as their permanent home.
“We import second hand static caravans from Britain and are on sale for anyone who is interested”, Kristia added. “Prices start from £7,000.”
