Motorhoming in France

[Maladict]

Isn't 8 weeks enough time for both France AND Italy?

A lifetime isn't enough for France OR Italy.

[Threviel]

Isn't 8 weeks enough time for both France AND Italy?

A lifetime isn't enough for France OR Italy.

Reading up on France I have realized that 8 weeks is not enough for Normandy and Bretagne, never mind the rest of France.

We also plan on taking it quite easy, we have two small kids and the main point of the trip is to be with them and for us all to relax and have a good time, not to burn miles and see all the sights.

[Oexmelin]

We plan on going to Bastogne first (Yes, I know, Belgium) and then enter France and stay a first day or two in Verdun. Then on to Champagne, see some castles and buy some Champagne. After that it's Eurodisney, apparently they have a nice motorhome parking place. We will not be going into Paris, that is an entire trip itself.

Depending on what you wish for, Champagne isn't the greatest region for castles. Many of them were replaced by 18th century Chateaus.
Still, I'd visit Chantilly, the seat of the Conde family. Provins is a nice medieval town, which you can even visit when they have their reenactment days, if you enjoy these things. https://provins-medieval.com/en/ In any case, Reims for the Cathedral, and for champagne.

After that it's out to the coast, somewhere in Normandy and then follow the coast down (perhaps a detour up the Loire)

Many nice things to see there. I like Rouen, and the Normandy coast is gorgeous. Have a stop at Etretat to see the needle. At Lillebonne, you'll find some of the most northern  roman ruins in France: a theater.

Caen will also have good stuff to visit, and the Bayeux tapestry is amazing. On the boundary between Brittany and Normandy, you'll find Mont Saint Michel. It's not too far from there to Cancale for famous oysters, and Saint-Malo for a 17th century town. Granted it was rebuilt after WWII. If you are a fan of medieval architecture, you can also get to Dinan.

The Loire Valley is worth it for the great 16th century chateaus and nice little towns. Chambord and Chenonceaux were my favorites. For kids and SCIENCE! you can go to the Futuroscope. I also like the Clos Luce, where they have hands-on replica of da Vinci's inventions. I'd follow the Loire to Nantes, then head south. La Rochelle, Rochefort (17th century arsenal) and Bordeaux are nice. You can then follow the Gironde, and the Canal des Deux-Mers. It's really pretty.

If you go to Avignon (the Pope's Palais is worth it), go north to Carpentras, and from there, to Sault. Heart of lavender country. Beautiful.

As others have said, Orange, Vaison-La-Romaine, Nimes and Arles will have some good roman ruins.

FWIW, I really like Marseille.

I haven't spent too much time in the East, except for Burgundy, which is again a great place for wine. There are some great days to be had around Fontenay, Flavigny, Alise-Ste-Reine.

[Threviel]

Thanks guys, some really great tips here that I haven't heard about before. I will be investigating them thoroughly.

Etretat is a good example of why 8 weeks is a short time. I haven't heard of it before and it seems like a nice place I want to visit, and around it I have 2 or 3 places I also want to see. And that is before we get to the area around Caen and the invasion beaches. And then there's Rouen...  We could probably spend 4-5 weeks just in Normandy. We actually plan on going straight to the area around Caen, reasoning that Normandy can be visited on a shorter trip, we want to focus on southern France and the parts that are not easily reachable in a normal 2-3 week vacation. But there sure are some nice places we'll be missing, just look at Saint-Valery-en-Caux, it's ridiculous.
Edit: Google images are apparently not easy to put in a post, go here: https://goo.gl/maps/qTb4uKyJyAq

We will also be playing it safe, checking in on official motor home parking places or camping places and not freecamping in any way, no risks with the kids in the car. The coastal strip between Barcelona and Marseille have a bad reputation around here, so we will be avoiding it.

We would have had the UK as plan B, it's after all in the same general direction and if France sucks it's just a ferry from somewhere. But with Brexit and the unceirtanty with that we'll probably not go there. But on the other hand, in May it should have cleared up.

[Oexmelin]

Btw, maybe you know this but, just in case: https://park4night.com/

[Threviel]

Btw, maybe you know this but, just in case: https://park4night.com/

Are you perhaps also a camper? Do you happen to know the area around Verdun? I would very much like to visit Fort Douaumont, but I haven't really figured out where to stay, this place https://park4night.com/lieu/16430//arrondissement-of-verdun-chemin-du-d%C3%A9pot/france/meuse#.XFdWOs9KjUI seems dreadfully boring. Apparently you can stay at the Ossuary, but that feels a bit on he wrong side. We don't want to go to camping place either.

[Oexmelin]

Are you perhaps also a camper? Do you happen to know the area around Verdun? I would very much like to visit Fort Douaumont, but I haven't really figured out where to stay, this place .

Unfortunately no, but my father was a truck driver, and on the roads, truckers and campers share a bunch of resources, at least in North America. I have travelled a lot in France but that is because it's the object of my research.

For Verdun, try this: https://www.tourisme-verdun.com/en-camping-car-dans-le-grand-verdun

[Admiral Yi]

The Academy gave "camping car" a pass?

[Oexmelin]

The Academy gave "camping car" a pass?

Probably not, but that's the widely used expression in France for self-driving RVs (as opposed to trailers, which are usually called "caravane". In Quebec, uses vary, between use of the the brand Winnebago as a generic, and others like "campeur" or "roulotte".

[The Minsky Moment]

Loire is definitely worth going to, lots of interesting towns and villages
In addition to Chambord and Chenonceaux, there is also Chinon, which: (1) is the setting for Lion in Winter (though filmed elsewhere), (2) served as the prison for Jacques de Molay, and (3) was the site where Charles VII met Joan of Arc.
Plus the country around the castle grows the best reds in the Loire -and still an excellent value.
The whites in the Loire are even better of course.

In Champagne the big marques put on a good show and the caves are a good visit; the vineyards themselves are not as fun to visit as Burgundy.

For my 2 (euro) cents you can't ever go wrong with Burgundy --> Rhone.

[Threviel]

Dang, Loire sounds like something we really ought to visit. So much to see everywhere

Are there no frenchmen here? What's the status with the yellow vests? Are they disruptive outside the mayor cities?

[The Larch]

Are there no frenchmen here?

Nope. This forum is Americans plus a few weirdos from here and there. 

In any case, my impression is that the yellow vests are active mostly in Paris. And yes, the Loire is great, and also very touristy, so it should have plenty of places for you to set up your motorhome.

[Syt]

I assume Duque de Braganca is compiling a detailed travel guide at the moment.

[Duque de Bragança]

Are there no frenchmen here?

Nope. This forum is Americans plus a few weirdos from here and there. 

In any case, my impression is that the yellow vests are active mostly in Paris.

Wrong, they are only active in Paris on Saturdays and less so since a few weeks.
Actually, small towns are more likely to be blocked by yellow vests than Paris. Btw, just put a yellow vest behind the windshield and they will let pass you since you show a token of support for the movement.
By the end of May, it will time of European elections so expect some campaigning but it's not the most followed election.

[Threviel]

Are there no frenchmen here?

Nope. This forum is Americans plus a few weirdos from here and there. 

In any case, my impression is that the yellow vests are active mostly in Paris.

Wrong, they are only active in Paris on Saturdays and less so since a few weeks.
Actually, small towns are more likely to be blocked by yellow vests than Paris. Btw, just put a yellow vest behind the windshield and they will let pass you since you show a token of support for the movement.
By the end of May, it will time of European elections so expect some campaigning but it's not the most followed election.

Ahh, so a yellow vest in the windshield and a thumbs up where appropriate and the silly buggers will let us be? Are there a lot of queues because of them? None of us speak a word of french so I hope that we can get by with a smile and a badly pronounced bonjour.