To book or not to book.

[Mick and Ruth]

Hi,
We are now about 3 months into owning our motorhome and have been away three times for 2/3 night breaks as my wife is still working until July so have some week long van holidays booked In UK before she finishes. I am intending to go down the west coast of France early September and spend about 3 -4 weeks bobbing along looking at doing 2-3 hrs driving then stopping and seeing the area for a couple of days or even more if we like it (beach) or move if weather is bad. I have joined ACSI and heard people say don’t book anywhere as there are loads of sites/aires for space especially in September. Has anyone had any issues doing it this way or is it worth booking upfront?
TIA

 

[nomadic]

No problem in September with ACSI , enjoy your adventure.

 

[Richard n Ann]

We go in September and never book, always plenty of room at sites. We just usually travel through France using a mix of Aires and sites.

 

[Phill D]

we often go in September have never booked. and when you arrive on site if you are staying 1 night you pay up front, after that you pay the night before you leave.
they usually ask how long you may stay as sometimes that may restrict which pitch you can have as some people do book specific pitches and it may conflict with your stay.

 

[68c]

May I suggest you do your 2 to 3 hours driving around midday, do not do a few hours in the morning and the same in the afternoon as you will find most things are closed when you stop at noon. As a friend's young daughter once said, "France is very nice but mainly closed".

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[denisejoe]

Have never booked in France, full stop, since we've had the motorhome (about 15 years now). Booked the one year we went in the caravan! That was when we decided we'd be better off in a motorhome.

Denise

 

[KeefieWeefie]

Get up, have a baguette and a nice cup of tea and drive off about 11am. When you have had enough of driving check the Search For Sites app and choose a spot to stop! There are always plenty around, some free and some for 6 or 8 euros and those that cost a fortune, the choice is yours. We never book anything other than the ferry and that’s just a couple of days in advance. Don’t put yourself under pressure!

 

[KeefieWeefie]

May I suggest you do your 2 to 3 hours driving around midday, do not do a few hours in the morning and the same in the afternoon as you will find most things are closed when you stop at noon. As a friend's young daughter once said, "France is very nice but mainly closed".

Sound advice!

 

[Mick and Ruth]

May I suggest you do your 2 to 3 hours driving around midday, do not do a few hours in the morning and the same in the afternoon as you will find most things are closed when you stop at noon. As a friend's young daughter once said, "France is very nice but mainly closed".

?? many thanks makes perfect sense, I had noticed out of season the receptions tend to close for a cpl of hours so will build that into my day. ?

 

[Mick and Ruth]

Get up, have a baguette and a nice cup of tea and drive off about 11am. When you have had enough of driving check the Search For Sites app and choose a spot to stop! There are always plenty around, some free and some for 6 or 8 euros and those that cost a fortune, the choice is yours. We never book anything other than the ferry and that’s just a couple of days in advance. Don’t put yourself under pressure!

Thank you? I was trying to work where and when I was going to stop but realised quickly it was taking the enjoyment out of it, and also if committed and weather poor your stumped.

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[mikebeaches]

Like everybody has said - we've never booked in September (or any other month for that matter). ACSI is a good way to go, though obviously other options are available, including aires.

 

[LesW]

The beauty of using aires is, if there's room use it, no need to book in or out.

 

[WillH]

Don't plan, just go and enjoy.

 

[Mick and Ruth]

Thank you for the replies ? we have decided to just go over and chill out and take each day as it comes and see where we end up.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We never book in September. We have a rough plan of which part of Europe we want to head to, but it often changes dependent upon weather and how much we like the area we are currently in. The flexibility makes it more fun, but also allows for a change of plan if we see somewhere that takes our fancy or the weather changes. We've also found that whilst on a site people will often recommend other places to visit.

The only exception we have encountered was Ile de Re, but when we booked ahead a day or two that seemed fine as well.

It's always fun when asked where we are going by non-motorhomers to answer Europe, but no idea beyond that. Two years ago we had a clear plan to go to the Dordogne, we did got to Alsace and Burgundy but got very distracted in Luxembourg and Germany. That's the fun of it.

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[denisejoe]

One year we decided we would go to South of France. Got as far as Champagne and spent the whole 3 weeks of our holiday driving around there. Some days didn't drive more than 10 minutes, other days as much as half hour, LOL!

Denise

 

[Mick and Ruth]

One year we decided we would go to South of France. Got as far as Champagne and spent the whole 3 weeks of our holiday driving around there. Some days didn't drive more than 10 minutes, other days as much as half hour, LOL!

Denise

?? It definitely seems the best way to do France.

 

[Reallyretired]

Been going to France for 30 odd years and never booked. On the rare occasion we go anywhere in the UK we always book though.