BEIJING – Hitting the open road in a camper van sounds like the ultimate getaway—until it’s time to find a place to park or plug in for the night. RV life is booming across China, but one major obstacle remains: a shortage of campsites and basic facilities for camper vans. For Beijing middle school teacher Guo Xinyue, the annual summer and winter breaks are the perfect time for a road trip.
A few years ago, a friend introduced her to camper vans, and she was instantly hooked. Since then, she’s rented one whenever she could. But during a recent journey through China’s far-west Xinjiang region , she ran into a problem many camper van travelers know all too well.
“The scenery in Xinjiang was absolutely breathtaking, and so many times we just wanted to pull over and stay. But we struggled to find suitable campsites or parking spots. In the end, we had to drive far away just to find a spot with basic facilities. It was frustrating and ruined the mood.”
Camper vans, or recreational vehicles, have surged past 200,000 across China, yet the country has only about 3,000 official campsites—a tiny fraction of what’s available in Europe or North America. To bridge the gap, nine government bodies led by the Ministry of Commerce have unveiled sweeping measures to boost the sector.
Peacock Mountain Campsite
Former Vice Minister Sheng Qiuping noted the initiative urges local authorities to optimize road management and ensure that new or renovated urban parking lots set aside dedicated spaces for camper vans. Local pioneers are already showing how it’s done. As a national pilot city in eastern China, Yangzhou is tackling land scarcity head-on.
Instead of waiting for complex land approvals, the city repurposed idle plots. At the Peacock Mountain Campsite, an ordinary parking lot has recently been turned into an RV haven with 130 spaces, complete with power, water, and service centers.
Huang Da, Chairman of Jiangsu Weihang Automobile Communication Technology , says this shift is a game-changer for the industry.
“In the past, building campsites meant facing long approval cycles and heavy capital investments. In Yangzhou, we started revitalizing unused land and existing parking lots. By simplifying registration for small supply points, we can quickly build up our network without massive land acquisitions.”
Jiangsu Province, where Yangzhou is located, has already achieved basic service area coverage for RVs around all major scenic spots. It also plans to construct 78 dedicated RV hubs equipped with power posts, designated parking, and gray water disposal points.
China’s Total RV Sales Jump
Concurrently, Yangzhou has built half a dozen quality RV campsites, drawing over 100,000 road-trippers nationwide each year. It has also unified highway access rules to reduce driving restrictions and established the annual Yangzhou RV Camping Carnival.
Today, Yangzhou hosts a thriving supply chain, manufacturing one out of every ten camper vans in China.
And that supply chain is powering a wider trend: in 2025, China’s total RV sales jumped 24.5% to surpass 20,000 units, securing its spot as Asia’s largest market. But strong sales and new facilities are only the foundation.
Li Yangjun, Deputy Secretary General of China Sporting Goods Federation Camping Industry Committee , says the ultimate evolution is cultural. “In Western countries, RV culture goes back over a century—people view an RV as a mobile home and a true lifestyle.
In China, though, many still treat it as a short-term rental or a novel toy rather than an everyday lifestyle choice. The true market boom will arrive when it becomes a genuine way of life.” Despite this, Li remains optimistic about the road ahead.
“I don’t think there’s an unbreakable bottleneck; it just takes time. China’s RV industry is only two or three decades old. Today, Gen-Zs and millennials are jumping in—renting, buying, and driving demand. With young consumers leading the charge, the long-term future is very bright.”
Back on the road, travelers like Guo Xinyue may soon find that their dream trips are becoming much smoother. As national policies dismantle red tape and cities turn idle spaces into welcoming havens, the open road in China is no longer just about reaching a destination—it’s about turning the journey itself into a home away from home.
By Wang Zihang
