The opening of the Latvian Caravan Club 2025 season took place in Valmiera, at a ski resort — a place accustomed to quiet outside the season, but for these days it became a gathering point. 86 crews from six countries — Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Norway, Finland, and, to many’s surprise, guests from Korea — arrived. The weather worked against the plan from the start — cold, wind, rain — but it didn’t become an obstacle; rather, it served as a backdrop. The weekend theme — 80s disco — set the mood: lots of laughter, simple fun, and a rare sense of togetherness. In the end, it was not an “event” but a living start to the season, made by people, not by the weather forecast.
Day One. When it all just begins
There was no spectacular start in Valmiera. Campers arrived one by one, in pairs, from different directions, and the space gradually came alive. 86 crews from six countries — Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Norway, Finland, and Korea — gathered in a place usually associated with winter, but for these days it became a summer home for the road. The Korean guests were a surprise and drew genuine interest: many questions, smiles, short conversations in a mix of languages and gestures.
The weather spared no one. Cold, rain, and wind quickly made it clear there would be no comfort. But in such conditions, distance disappears: people come together more often, share warm clothes, laugh at soaked jackets. The 80s disco theme emerged gradually — in music, in early costumes, in the mood. It wasn’t an evening of entertainment, but the beginning of a shared story that was only starting to unfold.
Day Two. The center of gravity
Saturday became the day around which the entire weekend revolved. The saunas and hot tubs were running from the morning, and in the cold weather this felt almost like a luxury. Some plunged into the hot water, some simply stood nearby, talking, watching the steam rise into the gray sky. It is in such pauses that club life is born — not according to the schedule, but between the lines.
By evening, the space had changed. The disco came alive in full, without compromise and without attempts to look “proper.” The 80s music sounded not as nostalgia but as pure energy. The big fireworks display became a shared moment of wonder — a rare episode when everyone simultaneously looked up. The huge cake reinforced the festive feeling, and the buffet table looked not like service but as a continuation of a communal table, free of formalities. It was an evening that no one wanted to rush.
Sunday. Silence after movement
Sunday morning is always more honest than the evening. No music, no lights, no effects. The club soup — cabbage soup with a slight tang — hit the moment perfectly: simple, warm, real. People ate slowly, talked quietly, shared impressions and plans for the season. Some were already discussing new routes, some simply sat watching the campers, as if slowly letting the weekend go.
Departures were unhurried. No final speeches, no official endings. By this moment, the LCC 2025 season had already begun — not by the calendar, but by feeling. And it was precisely this feeling that remained the most important.
As the campers left Valmiera one by one, the place returned to normal. Steam faded, music fell silent, and the traces on the wet grass gradually disappeared. But what happened during those days didn’t stay there. It traveled with the people — in conversations, in photographs, in the feeling that the season had truly begun.
The LCC 2025 opening wasn’t remembered for the weather or the program. It was remembered through glances, spontaneous conversations, moments of silence, and laughter that arose without reason. There was no need to prove or show anything — it was enough just to be together.
And perhaps that is the most important thing. The season begins not when it is officially declared open, but when people find each other again on the road. Everything else is just a backdrop.