VW Wedding Campervans – The Perfect Nostalgic Wedding Vehicles

There are few more emotive vehicles than that of the VW campervan. For over 50 years, they've been providing a sense of adventure and freedom that was born in the 1950s and blossomed in the swinging sixties. For those looking to add a touch of nostalgia to their nuptials, there's perhaps no better choice for your VW campervan wedding hire.

But why are campervans so popular for weddings? How did this vehicle, in particular, develop such a cult following? To gain a better understanding, it's best to start with a quick history.

The VW Campervan: A Brief History

Contrary to popular belief, the VW campervan (also known as the VW bus, Kombi, Transporter, or Microbus) started life in 1950 almost over a decade before its heyday years. VW had secured traction in the automobile market with their Beetle. However, frustration grew as many customers desired a vehicle they could use for both pleasure and work purposes.

The cramped design of the Beetle made it impossible for those requiring vehicles for commercial purposes to even consider purchasing one. With that in mind, VW engineers got to work designing a panel van in order to meet the growing demand. In 1950, the Volkswagen T1 Transporter (referred to as the 'Splitscreen' or 'Splitty') was created based upon a sketch by Dutch businessman, Ben Pon, following a visit to the Volkswagen factory. Pon was inspired by a parts-mover that he had seen during his visit, and rapidly sketched up an idea of how the VW Beetle could be developed into a commercial vehicle.

The first iteration of the vehicle came with a split windshield and included multiple variations throughout the years before being eventually replaced by the T2 Transporter in 1967. The continuous evolution included changes to the Volkswagen air-cooled engine, the wheels, rear barn doors, cargo capacity, and the engine bay size. Sliding doors were added as an option from 1964, and the available colours became more striking as time wore on.

Despite initial difficulty fulfilling orders due to the continued demand of the Beetle, the Transporter exploded in popularity once VW began to release a pioneering range of customisations. In the first ten years of production, the iterations included: the Panel Van, Microbus (7-seater and 9-seater versions), Samba, Kombi, Ambulance, Pick-Up and Double Cab.

It was the aforementioned Samba variety that catapulted the humble VW Transporter in cultural folklore. The campervan version hit the spot for the growing number of young hippies (a loose term to denote a member of the youthful counter-culture of the sixties). It allowed workers to store tools and travel all week, before turning into an adventure vehicle for weekends, holidays, and music festivals. Comfortably sleeping wherever you parked up gave drivers a sense of freedom that forever changed the automotive industry.