It all started in the late summer of 2005. During a beautiful sunset on a hilltop of the vast grain plains in France, Maarten van Soest invented the Tonke Classic. A camper with nothing but strong features: a safe and modern car and a build-up with the appearance of a gypsy car with a luxurious sailing yacht interior. Besides his daughter Tonke, the company (which he named after his daughter) was born as well.
In 2013 MyVAN made a nice movie about the company philosophy of Tonke and the build of the Tonke Classic: “Sailing the roads with a Tonke Camper”. The video shows the craftsmanship and quality that Tonke uses in her campers. A timelapse shows how a Classic is being built. The youthful faces of Maarten and Theo (the first employee ever of Tonke, who is still working in our workshop) are also fun to see!
Since then, the Tonke company has developed tremendously. We have grown physically: we have gone from one to three production halls. We have developed the Tonke VAN. This model has been awarded several times by the public for its design. And you can find Tonke campers in the wild on all continents.
But what hasn’t changed is the craftsmanship and quality. Every camper, whether it is a Classic or a VAN, is built by us with care and attention in the workshop in Terheijden, the Netherlands. We exclusively use high-quality materials, such as stainless steel hinges and locks from yacht build, to make sure you can: “Sailing the roads with a Tonke Camper”.