France in Sept (1 Viewer)

[Mike123]

Ok Folks - never been abroad in the MH and considering the below, any pointers / help would be great.....

Thinking of booking a ticket for the MH on Eurostar this Sept (after school hols) for £305 return with a Flexi ticket, can I change this for 2022 in things don't improve re COVID ?

Plan to travel done to the Loire Valley from Calais (avoiding Paris), any particular routes favoured, or to be avoided ?

Campsites v Aires - have never been on an Aire before and other half would prefer to go to a campsite, is it worth booking one night at a campsite in advance and then find other sites / Aires when down there - how easy is it to book aires when travelling, have to ask as never been

Loire Valley - thoughts on the area ?

Random thoughts I know and I bet answered a thousand times, but looking to book the Eurostar this week and keen to get some first hand experience from the MFs.

Mike

 

[dosser]

We did some of the Loire last year absolutely brilliant time. Didn't plan anything really just followed the river We had 5 weeks mind you. We went from West - Eastwards we travelled.along the Normandy coast then down we wanted to see some of the ww2 sites we missed last time. Loads of places to stop vineyards, campsites and Aires. Used park4night mainly for looking for places to stop. Samuar is really nice, Ambois as well. It's Chateaux overload there stunning area.
Once you've been over you'll see the difference and how well it's set up for motorhomes and campers.
Germany is very similar as well for ease of motorhoming.
We are heading over end of August no real plan but heading for Annecy at some point. We always use the tunnel now because the dog comes with us and is easier just stay in the van.
Enjoy.
Kenny.

 

[brynric]

Agree with Dosser, France is a completely different ball-game, well l set up for Motorhomes who are well catered for.
We only use campsites if we plan to stay for a while and perhaps use facilities like laundry. Otherwise Aires are fine with water and disposal and often in brilliant places… but not always - if you dont like the look of a place move on. There’s no booking for Aires, first come first served but inland in September shouldn’t be at all busy. Get the Aires books which give a good idea of what to expect. And expect a complicated mix of payment methods which baffles everyone, including the French. Motorhoming is MUCH easier in France than the UK. Enjoy.

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[Phileas Fogg]

The trouble with going to France is it will put you off camping in the UK.
Enjoy we will be over too.

 

[Casper46]

We will be on our way in September. It will be the first time in 20 years that we haven't been aiming for our house in Charente Maritime. It will be nice to go South on a different route.

 

[Clarky]

In the last few years that we’ve been pootling around France we have never booked a site.
Apart from Camping-Car Park sites, which are commercial company run aires, you can’t book aires. As others have said, just turn up and take pot luck.
As you are going to be inland and away from popular coastal towns you should have no problem getting in to sites or aires. Bear in mind that the majority of French camp sites close at the end of September, some before.
Aim to drive for just s few hours and try to arrive at your destination by early afternoon. That means spaces on popular aires and sites and gives you time to explore the local area.
France is a big country so don’t try to see too much in a short time. Once you’ve been you will long to go back, so plenty of time to see more.
Enjoy!

Richard.

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[suavecarve]

Ok Folks - never been abroad in the MH and considering the below, any pointers / help would be great.....

Thinking of booking a ticket for the MH on Eurostar this Sept (after school hols) for £305 return with a Flexi ticket, can I change this for 2022 in things don't improve re COVID ?

Plan to travel done to the Loire Valley from Calais (avoiding Paris), any particular routes favoured, or to be avoided ?

Campsites v Aires - have never been on an Aire before and other half would prefer to go to a campsite, is it worth booking one night at a campsite in advance and then find other sites / Aires when down there - how easy is it to book aires when travelling, have to ask as never been

Loire Valley - thoughts on the area ?

Random thoughts I know and I bet answered a thousand times, but looking to book the Eurostar this week and keen to get some first hand experience from the MFs.

Mike

There appears to be a number of early September departures and no doubts a thread will start where you may be able to see where people are.

My advice is to not discount Aires which is easy for me to say but difficult to convince the wife.

If you only try one then Sully Sur la Loire nearly always has space but weekends will be fuller even with the overflow.

Might be worth having a look through the 700 pages of photo of the day thread to see many different types of Aires.

 

[Itsmcb]

If you've never taken the van abroad before and the other half wants a campsite then it makes sense to spend at least the first night or two on campsites to reassure her. After that maybe be a bit braver and use an Aire as a stopover on your way to another town. Check out 'campingcarpark' Aires you can pre-book so you know you will have a space.
Happy wife, happy life , you know it makes sense

 

[Jays2]

In my opinion, why book the crossing now, we only ever book one way, then look for the best price crossing, the price doesn’t change, therefore you are in control of your journey.
We did use the tunnel and were very impressed, but at a cost!
The experience we have had of motorhome in Europe is that parking up for the night is expected, this means the NIMBY attitude we can get in the u.k is not experienced.
Good luck and enjoy.

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[denisejoe]

In my opinion, why book the crossing now, we only ever book one way, then look for the best price crossing, the price doesn’t change, therefore you are in control of your journey.
We did use the tunnel and were very impressed, but at a cost!
The experience we have had of motorhome in Europe is that parking up for the night is expected, this means the NIMBY attitude we can get in the u.k is not experienced.
Good luck and enjoy.

Some insurance companies insist that a return journey is booked so best to check before just booking one way.

 

[kimndon]

Download ‘searchforsites’ and do your research. We will be over to France in September heading to Brittany. I mark all the aires and campsites with good reviews a d decide when we travel as to where we stay primarily using aires.

 

[Tribute615]

Have a look at my French blogs plenty of pics, not many campsites but plenty of aires and have done a lot of the Loire.
<Broken link removed>

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[hja]

We havent been camping "over there" for a few years now, but I dont think it has changed that much. We had a caravan then, but we still only ever booked the crossing. It is much easier now with apps etc, but, being caravan club members we used to buy their site book which contains sites people had visited not those the Club had a deal with. As said up-thread, arrive mid afternoon and avoid massive tourist areas. Used to make sure we were on a site on the Friday so could stay the weekend. We used CMC for Red Pennant Insurance, and having had cause to use them on a couple of occasions (problems with the van, son broke arm & ended up in hospital, husband had a problem with his insulin, husband did his back in) they were really good.

 

[62272]

We have toured a quite a bit in France, the comments that you will be spoilt is spot on! Make sure you get an ASCI book (the discount card is included in the back), cost about £16 on Amazon currently. This card will give you access to literally hundreds if not thousands of campsites across France, off season at a rate of about 12-20 Euros a night, dependant on the site. Most sites are signed up to ASCI (which is a French scheme). We never book, and in the years we have been touring have only ever found one campsite to be full, so went to another down the road.

 

[rod_vw]

I distinctly remember talking to a gent on a Aire in France whose partner was nervous about using the Aire, she said she would be happier on the adjacent campsite. Her worry was about less security on the Aire which was quickly allayed when I pointed out that the only difference was a single barrier at the campsite entrance. i.e. no additional security at all!

When using Aires your own feelings about the place will tell you to stay or move on BUT NEVER use motorway services to stay overnight.

We favour Search for Sites to find locations and have used hundreds over the years however if you use that service (or others like it) please leave a review to help others following you.

We rarely use a designated campsite either in France, Germany or the UK.

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[royandsharont]

ACSI, is Dutch actually, not that it matters, but is a must for anyone camping on the continent, can save a fortune & purchasing the App after the books makes offline searching for sites so simple with tons of information readily available re facilities reviews directions & gps location etc that is hard to get from the books.

 

[Lenny HB]

France is Motorhome heaven, you won't have any problems finding a place to stop for the night. We never use campsites in France just Aires or wild. If there is no Aire no one will bat an eyelid if you park up in the village car park or outside the Marie (Town Hall).
We find Camper Contact is more reliable than the other apps.

 

[Stealaway]

Camper Contact is the best. You really don't need any thing else especially if you a happy having a supprise location every night.

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[Mike123]

All - thanks for the feedback, really appreciate it.

 

[EuroTrotters]

Ok Folks - never been abroad in the MH and considering the below, any pointers / help would be great.....

Thinking of booking a ticket for the MH on Eurostar this Sept (after school hols) for £305 return with a Flexi ticket, can I change this for 2022 in things don't improve re COVID ?

Plan to travel done to the Loire Valley from Calais (avoiding Paris), any particular routes favoured, or to be avoided ?

Campsites v Aires - have never been on an Aire before and other half would prefer to go to a campsite, is it worth booking one night at a campsite in advance and then find other sites / Aires when down there - how easy is it to book aires when travelling, have to ask as never been

Loire Valley - thoughts on the area ?

Random thoughts I know and I bet answered a thousand times, but looking to book the Eurostar this week and keen to get some first hand experience from the MFs.

Mike

Learn a few words, phrases of french

 

[Stealaway]

Take the route West of Paris towards Let Man's.
I think the Dordogne is better and the Lotte even better.
But hey it all needs seeing and make your own mind up.

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[Potty]

I wouldn’t bother with a flexi ticket for the tunnel, much cheaper to book a return as you can change the return crossing on line as long as you do it at least 24hrs before the original time.

 

[Scotch mist]

As you’re going in September, I would try to get as far south as Limoges if you want decent weather
the end of September can be a bit chilly in the north

 

[Lenny HB]

As you’re going in September, I would try to get as far south as Limoges if you want decent weather
the end of September can be a bit chilly in the north

Pot luck last time we were in the Loire it was in the 30's late September. Just follow the weather.

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[jannyman]

Any and all of the above, but not mentioned yet is the France Passion listing and is worth joining (though the Search for Sites app has most of them listed). I believe that Britstops was modelled on this? A quick google will give you all the info. Enjoy your trip. You'll be a Francophile before you know it.