Caravanning in the 1930s

ONE of the earliest holiday camps was at Goring-by-sea in the early 1930’s. Cliff Bryan, of Goring-by-Sea, has two relevant photographs of these rather exotic caravans, taken more than 70 years ago and passed on by his parents.

 One is described as “The Camp, Sea Lane, Goring-by-Sea”, and the other is captioned “The Caravans, Sea Lane, Goring-by-Sea”. Many of the caravans appear to have been of the semi-permanent variety, some even incorporating balconies.

 Cliff Bryan said that, so far as he knew, his parents acquired the pictures during a pre-World War Two seaside holiday, “which is coincidental, as we have been retired to this area for several years and Sea Lane is just along the front from us”.
     He also noted that the large wooden building at the right of the picture of “The Camp” had “Teas” written on its side and asked: “Is it possible this could be the forerunner of the present Sea Lane Café?”
     As the caravan and campsite were situated between Sea Place and Sea Lane, Goring, this must be a strong possibility, although the two cafés may not have been on precisely the same site.