What are teardrop caravans, teardrop campers & teardrop trailers?
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Teardrop caravans, also known as teardrop campers or teardrop trailers are compact, lightweight caravan trailers that get their name from the teardrop shape in which they are built.
Teardrop caravans first gained major popularity in the early 1930’s, when originally teardrop caravans were simply made from sheets of plywood with hardwood spars.
Teardrop caravans remained consistently strong in the market all the way through to the 1960’s, at which point they almost entirely disappeared from mainstream camping and caravanning - due to the introduction of the first mainstream tourer caravans.
However, surprisingly they came back into fashion during the 1990’s due to the internet’s strong power of resurgence - and the retro look / feel of the teardrop caravans, for which people had started to love once more.
"Go-Pods Micro Tourer Caravans compared to Regular Teardrop Caravan"
Teardrop caravans are usually small - anywhere from 4 feet to 6 feet in width, and 8 feet to 10 feet in length, being around 4 to 5 feet in height. The wheels are usually of a semi-robust nature, placed on the outside of the body and covered by fenders.
Teardrop caravans are made to be very light - generally around 540kg and due to this they can be towed by almost any car or small vehicle, with fuel consumption usually being very minimal compared to caravans of a normal size.
Inside, there’s normally enough room to fit two people in for a cozy sleep - in addition there can be minimalist storage for utensils and clothing. Back on the outside, there is often a small hatch which can be lifted, and exposes a galley used for cooking.
Teardrop caravans tend to be powered via a storage battery for lighting and appliances, although some can be hooked up to the mains power supply like other normal caravans.
Go-Pods, whilst similar in shape, size & weight to a regular teardrop caravan or teardrop camper - are far more diverse in terms of comfortability, on board storage, inside utilities and general practicality.