The vehicle was parked illegally but some people said its owner wasn’t causing any harm
The campervan owner came equipped with a BBQ and cool bag
A campervan owner caused uproar when she ignored parking curbs and fired up a BBQ on a seafront road in Conwy. Residents in Pensarn, Abergele, were angered by her “selfishness” and brazen display of “entitlement” .
Most annoyed of all were other owners of recreational vehicles (RVs) who fear a minority are giving campervans a bad name. A few people wondered what all the fuss was about and said there should be fewer restraints on people enjoying themselves.
Photos posted online show a woman lighting up a BBQ on a road near Pensarn beach. Online, a man said: “As someone that’s lived here 40 years, like most locals I’m sick of the whiny campervan tourists thinking they have a right to park in that spot just to crack out a BBQ when the sun shines.”
Parking on the beach is free for cars and smaller vans. Access is controlled by height restriction barriers installed to prevent travellers unlawfully occupying the beach. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
In recent years, double yellow lines have been added to the access road to stop taller RVs and other vehicles parking there. Similar new restrictions on the adjacent Sea Road are also being routinely ignored by car drivers, it’s claimed.
After tackling the woman having a BBQ, a resident said: “(She) blithely informed me “the lines had always been there”. Really? So why park on them? She advised she was “allowed” to park there. Why put down yellow lines etc and then not ensure they are monitored?”
Concerns over irresponsible parking – by drivers of cars as well as RVs – has been building at Pensarn in recent years. Other parts of the county are grappling with similar issues, from Colwyn Bay to the Great Orme – but in Pensarn there is genuine concern over safety issues.
Double yellow lines were added to prevent vehicles parking amid safety concerns for pedestrians
On Sea Road, near the beach access ramp, there is a cafe, outdoor gym and a children’s play area – residents argue crossing here is risky if cars are parked illicitly. Similarly, as the beach ramp is adjacent to 90-degree bend over a railway bridge, parked cars can create a blind spot for drivers leaving the beach or after collecting people from the nearby train station.
A resident gave a vivid description of the myriad issues. She said: “If you were local you’d know about general waste, flytipped waste, buried BBQs, smashed glass. (You’d know about) parking blocking access to businesses, reducing visibility in a place where kids are running back and forth in-between parked vehicles.
“(You’d know about) dog poo in bags festooned on fences like it’s Christmas and people literally getting their pants down and sh*tting on the beach.”
Another said the double yellow lines had been painted for a reason – because of “selfish drivers and selfish parking”. She added: “You will always get people who think they can they can do as they please when they want and where they want.
“The car parks are free and barriers are there for a purpose. If you are in a van and can’t get under them go somewhere else where you can! End of.”
Pensarn’s ‘illegal encampment’
Matters came to a head in early 2023 when a large RV parked up for weeks on the seafront road. Locals were unable to use outdoor exercise equipment due to a 40ft clothes line strung across the area.
After being classed as an “illegal encampment” in a public space, Conwy Council secured a court order and enforcement officers visited Pensarn seafront along with bailiffs. The RV owner left the site “of their own volition” and new parking curbs were eventually introduced.
This RV was reportedly parked at Pensarn beach for several weeks(Image: Aaran Lennox)
A Prestatyn woman urged greater tolerance. She said: “If they’re not blocking access or causing trouble, maybe let people enjoy the coastline the same way everyone else does.
“Double yellows are there for safety, fair enough, but the outrage over campervans specifically feels a bit selective. Life’s too short, let people live life, they aren’t doing any harm. As long as they clean up before they leave, then just leave people be!”
Who’s to blame?
Concerns over RV apartheid at Pensarn – where smaller campervans are permitted on the beach but larger motorhomes are not – came to a head in March when the height barrier was cut to enable general entry. It was promptly repaired by Conwy Council.
The incident fuelled wider conversations about whether the barrier serves a useful purpose – and whether they should be removed. Some people believe the main problem lies with vehicles able to park on the beach, not those denied access to it.
Some smaller campervans are not self-contained and some car users are just as culpable when it comes to littering, if not more so, it’s claimed.
A woman said: “I’m all for the campers. I live 5 minutes walk to the beach and actually think it’s disgusting putting yellow lines (down). I actually walked across the to the beach a couple of night ago around 11pm. There were numerous cars parked on the beach and also campers with roof extensions.
“So don’t moan about larger campers and not moan about the smaller ones parked on the beach. Makes my blood boil.”
Pensarn beach can get pretty busy at times(Image: Ian Cooper/North Wales Live)
Free parking is available in the area but camping by the sea is often irresistible. Public toilets on the prom – when open – are another lure.
But without a clampdown on illegally parked vehicles, some locals fear the worst. “Bollards will be next,” said one man. “Then ANPR (cameras). And then, because of abuse, the council will say enough and revoke free parking.”
Conwy Council said it was not planning to make any changes to the height barriers at Pensarn beach. A spokesperson added: “Our Civil Enforcement Officers patrol Sea Road and the surrounding area as part of their daily rounds, and issue Penalty Charge Notices to any vehicle found to be breaking parking and/or waiting regulations.”
What RV owners said
RV owners have been largely horrified by online photos of the woman having a BBQ on Pensarn’s seafront road. Most adhere to a leave-no-trace policy and want greater appreciation for the value they bring to host communities.
One owner, fresh from a campsite stay in Lancashire, said: “No need too do a BBQ on the road – that’s what gives the rest of us a bad name. We are trying to get respect to get parking for campervans and motorhomes
Agreeing, a woman said: “I’m a motorhome owner myself and this just boils my p*ss. Some people blatantly say the law and rules don’t apply to them and really don’t care.”
The height barrier has been in situ for many years to prevent taller vehicles accessing the beach(Image: Google)
Keeping the beach beautiful
A Pensarn RV regular said the beach was “beautiful place” but people don’t cherish it and too often campervan owners are unfairly blamed. On one occasion, when he and his partner woke up to find the beach littered with rubbish, they set about clearing it away.
“This included an empty discarded litre bottle of vodka, empty beer cans and takeaway rubbish,” said the man, who last weekend visited Llanberis Pass. “Lots of people love this beach but if people keep abusing it then we will all lose it.
“I have friends that used to park on the slip road as their campervans were too tall to go under the barrier. These people, plus others, kept the area tidy – they are pleasant and polite. But because of the minority causing such a problem its spoiled it for others.”
Cars and vans parked on the beach access road in June 2024 before double yellow lines were added to the seaward side(Image: Google)
Clearing litter is a regular activity for another campervan owner and Pensarn enthusiast. “I’ve parked there for the last 3 years before the yellow lines were put there,” he said.
“I’m respectful to other people around me and I make sure it’s tidy when I leave. I’ve also helped the volunteers who clean the beach on a Sunday morning – they admitted a lot of the rubbish came from people in cars.
“I don’t see the problem with people parking there if they are respecting the area and spending money locally. Yes, if they are making a mess and being antisocial, get them reported.”
I’ve been excluded because of morons like this’
Particularly incensed by the BBQ woman was a keen shore angler who uses a large sports-themed vehicle to transport his fishing gear to competitions in North Wales. “Absolute p*ss take!” he fumed. “It’s this kind of moron that’s caused all the problems for people like me.
“As a member of local sea angling clubs I no longer have access to competitions held on the beaches there throughout the year.
“My vehicle carries all of my equipment and there is no way I could carry it lengthy distances, especially in winter when I wouldn’t be coming off those beaches until near midnight.
“Thanks also to the short-sightedness of the local authority, I’m now excluded from taking part for fear of fines and vehicle damage, not to mention the benefits of fresh air and mental wellbeing.”
‘Not everyone in vans are scum of the earth’
After buying a campervan locally, a woman arranged to meet her mum at Pensarn beach for a cuppa and a walk. To their disappointment, the new camper wouldn’t fit under the height barrier – and neither would her mum’s tall SUV.
The mum said: “Not everyone in vans are the scum of the earth. This is a local beach for me yet we could not use it just for an hour’s stay. They should put the barrier down after, say, 8pm. I’ve seen people in cars staying over there – so soon the beaches will be closed unless you walk there.”
A campervan owner from Gwytherin urged commonsense. “10 minutes either side of this location are campsites (charging) less than the fine would be for parking here,” she said. “With or without electric hook-up. Right on the beach.
“Look at why places like Whitby and Scarborough (which) have banned them. Act responsibly, ensure your not blocking a route for emergency services, clean up after yourself, stop using the beach as a human toilet and maybe, just maybe, we might all get somewhere!”