The store, while high priced, stays open longer than most, offering late-comers a budget alternative to the restaurant. Silence reigns in European campgrounds after the ten or eleven o'clock curfew. Noisemakers are dealt with strictly. Campgrounds, unlike hostels, are remarkably theft-free. They are full of basically honest middle-class European families and someone's at the gate all day.
Most people just leave their gear zipped inside their tent.
Even if you don't have a car or trailer, if you're a camper at heart, camping may still be the way to go. Europe's campgrounds mix well with just about any mode of transportation. Tent and train can be a winning combination. Nearly every train station has a tourist office nearby. Stop by and pick up a map with campgrounds marked, local camping leaflets and bus directions.