French Aires. (1 Viewer)

GWAYGWAY

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I have two books that I bought to find out where these Airey-fairey things are in France. I intend to go very soon but I haven't got the foggiest idea how to find them. Do most villages and towns have them? The books I have are,
Aires de Service Camping cars. and , l'Europe en camping cars. Both are in French and the thing I find awkward is the mapping system. It is by Department, and I do not know which department I might actually by in when looking.
Do you just keep trundling on until you find one or are they marked out by sign posts.
OR is there a better way of finding them or better books to show me where.
Which method would be best, trundle and get lost or an itinerary to follow then find they are full up when I get there. We will be going the backroads to anywhere and certainly never on Autoroutes if I can miss them.
Has anybody done a blog on here or a resource I haven't seen yet? Ireland was easy I just wandered and stopped in a nice place, Does France do the same or does Le Maire get upset. if you stop in the middle of the village shops. Harbour or anywhere else, like the all British Councils seem to, everywhere I go here. Traffic Wardens all waiting around corners to catch the unsuspecting visitor.
 
Oct 15, 2011
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Have you got a smartphone,if so ,download Campercontact. It's under a Fiver,very easy to use and works offline.

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Feb 24, 2013
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another vote for campercontact (y)

something else I have tried is pick a town, google aire de camping car and the town name, if there is one that will show it, but go to maps and it will often highlight local options :)

but it now seems like as many villages have one as not these days :)(y)
 
Oct 15, 2011
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IMG_2691.PNG
Here's a quick look,the more you zoom in the more you see.
 
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I'm reading the OP slightly different to everyone else I think, yes most towns, villages and hamlets have somewhere you can park and they are easy to find. Look for this road sign:

sign-for-an-aire-de-camping-car-or-campervan-service-area-in-france-BE2X9Y.jpg


If you want to stay somewhere in particular then Camper Contact is great. If you're just aimlessly wandering around then you will still find places without any difficulty.

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Aug 15, 2014
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France is THE place to be in your van, the Aires sign as shown in NickNics photo is easily spotted as they are almost everywhere. I generally loosely decide on where I intend to travel to/overnight and often never get wherever I was going because a plan B appears. Brilliant way of travelling if you never have a definite destination, have fun.
Norman.
 

sedge

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The sign shows a Moho dumping place, usually for both grey and black - but doesn't actually mean you can park your van there overnight - could be at a fuel station or anywhere else. However when there's a pic of a Moho and the legend 'Aire de camping car' - you are onto a winner.

We generally use 'All the Aires' books and use the sat nav co-ordinates or follow the - written in English LOL - directions to it printed in the book. If we are definitely headed anywhere that is. Otherwise it's had off in whatever direction and see how big a local place looks, and just have a look when we get there or thereabouts. If stumped and we see a Tourist Info office - can always nip in there and ask them where there is one.
 

Lenny HB

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Camper Contact is probably the most reliable resource although it doesn't have then all. Another good one that is a free download is i-camping car again not all of them but they give you a pdf download, in French but very easy to use.

Just remember France is Motorhome heaven, normally if you can't find an Aire no one will bother you if you stop in the village car park but read the signs first in case there is a market the next day. Don't stop if next day is market day, a friend did that they built the market around him, he couldn't get out until 3pm next day.

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Feb 19, 2017
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Agree with above, mobile apps depend on having a signal on your phone, not always the case in rural France, choose your aire from the books, put the coordinates into your gps and away you go.
 
Feb 16, 2013
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Park4night website or app free, all Aires plus all other sorts of parking spaces and camp sites all in one place.(y)
 

Huwmari

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We use the Camperstop Europe book, so no need for a good phone signal/wifi, and have never failed to find somewhere (usually free) to stop for the night and most have water and grey and black disposal too. It's all in English, is easy to use and gives GPS co-ordinates and addresses so you really can't go wrong. Got it from Amazon. Happy motorhoming!

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Emmit

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@GWAYGWAY posted", and I do not know which department I might actually by in when looking."

If you're concerned about which Department you might be in, just look at every car that you see in any particular place. Each one has, on it's No. Plate, the Department where it was first Registered and, because the french don't seem to have the number of 'Business Use' cars like we do and don't also seem to travel far when buying their vehicles, you will find that the overwhelming majority of cars will have a plate on them that identifies the Department you are at that time.

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Feb 4, 2016
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Camper Contact app when payed for can be used offline . You can dload maps when you have wifi for use when you haven't (y)
 
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GWAYGWAY

GWAYGWAY

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We use the Camperstop Europe book, so no need for a good phone signal/wifi, and have never failed to find somewhere (usually free) to stop for the night and most have water and grey and black disposal too. It's all in English, is easy to use and gives GPS co-ordinates and addresses so you really can't go wrong. Got it from Amazon. Happy motorhoming!
Bought it at 03.00 this morning. god am I Bored this morning
 

Shrimp

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Use the "Aire de Camping Car" in the villages/towns, they're usually easy to find and in the Spring/Summer you'll find lots of vans use them so that's a clue.
Don't use the "Aire de Repos" on the motorways-they're fine for a daytime stop but not overnight!
Aires shown in the books have the co-ordinates for a sat-nav & you'll find directions in the text.
You may find the English 'All the Aires' useful with photos.

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Easyliving

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On the subject of apps, I bought the 'pro' version of Camperstop and downloaded the maps to use offline. Unfortunately, my phone does not have GPS built in and Camperstop will not work offline with the maps without it. I don't know if this applies to other apps but it might be worth checking before shelling out.

Paul
 
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There are also loads of blogs on-line with details of aires, mine also has GPS co-ordinates on most of the Aires we have used.
Also, there are lots of YouTube videos showing the way in to aires, @KeithChesterfield is a notable example.
My blog and YouTube channel is in my signature if it helps.

Richard.
 
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Don't want to go on about this, but just an example of park4night app, and if you actually download the free app it has pictures and reviews and directions to each one from where you actually are, this is one small part of France but it covers all of Europe.

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WynandJean

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Here's something else you might like to add to your armoury.

Broken Link Removed

Not so much of the bells and whistles maybe but wherever you happen to be open the app and it will list Aires starting with the nearest, then the next and so on. Each has an arrow showing which direction it is in. Simple.

We do carry the others but find we tend to use this more.

As others have said it's simpler than you expect it to be. Think of it like finding somewhere to park your car at home - you don't need to plan it, just go and find the nearest. If it's full or you don't like it go to the next. Many are in stunning locations and they are usually close to a town, village, or other place of interest. It really brought it home to me when back in the UK having to plan your route and think about how long from a to b then where would you stay and how many nights etc. It's so easy over there.

Wyn
 

Zigisla

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I have been following this thread closely, as I will be off over the Easter period and intend to Aire stay most of the time as well. A while ago, someone posted that the "All the Aires" books were being revamped and were to be more up to date than the "renaming the year" that went on before.;) Does anyone know if the new books have improved or are just like the previous years? :sneaky: I do prefer to use books over E-devices, but if the book is no good, then I too will have to opt for the above apps etc.(y)
 
Oct 30, 2010
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We use and like "All the Aires" but you have to remember that any book is going to be partly out of date by the time it has been researched, laid out, published, printed and then distributed.
On-line apps like CamperContact can be updated almost immediately rather than waiting a couple of years for the next printed edition.
I posted some info about two closed aires to CamperContact a couple of weeks ago and it was on-line within two days.

The answer is to carry books if you prefer them, but use apps as backup to check if there have been changes.

Richard.

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Nov 23, 2015
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Just checked to buy and there are updates on the website, also the new edition will be out end of march, early April.

Mickey.
 
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Hi @GWAYGWAY , I use the gps settings from either Camper Contact app or Camperstop app to find each aire , but I do a lot of research before I go ,to find some nice ones by water ( canals,lakes,rivers,beach etc) also as we avoid major towns / cities, also for nice area's to walk the dog,we dont need resturants etc ,just boulangerie & poss small supermarket.
What area are you thinking of going? If you need any suggestions on aires just ask.
 

moulin 87

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It is by Department, and I do not know which department I might actually by in when looking.
.

The easiest way to know which department you are in is to look at the number plates of the cars parked nearby...They will have a little picture on the right hand end with the department no. included. On older cars it is the last two digits of the registration number, though they are less numerous now...

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