There's a show just about every weekend now so they are losing their impact, plus becoming very expensive to participate.
Van prices at shows are always higher than at the dealership.
Yes when I brought our caravan, The dealer told us if you are buying a new caravan factory built to your personal layout you will pay lots more at a caravan show because of the cost involved , And the sales people are people who blow in and are just there for show and you will never be able to deal with them if you have a problem , You may get a good buy if you buy a runout model that they want to clear out .