First Caravan Trip
Hello. Nice to meet you all. We have just bought our own caravan. Very excited. We went to France last year just with car to the Loire Valley and loved every minute of the French lifestyle. Wine and bbqs every night, visiting local villages and the Chateau
Chambord. Rocking up to local music festivals looking completly out of place but loving every minute of it. The electric storms over the valleys were amazing. Such an experience which beats any all inclusive sun package holiday.
So we have a few months avalible...start of May for 2 months (could have been 3 but a wedding got in the way 
..)
Just wondered if I can run my route pass you experienced caravanners/motorhomes/camping people..
So to start we are 2 Adults with 2 children ages 4 and 2. We like the outdoor life and dont shy away from adventure. We have decided not to book any campsites and are awaiting for our ACSI card to arrive.
To to start we thought about getting the ferry from Portsmouth to St Marlo. 'Mootch' down the west coast of France. Main two stops/areas of interest Le Vendee and Dordogne.
Then to the south of France to experience the French Riviera...to see Nice and husband wants to see Monaco. Any other good spots on the south of France would be gratefully recieved?
Next stop to Italy to experience the lakes in the North, Verona and Venice. Lake Garda im aware can be very busy so slightly worried about this.....any advice? I know the Germans have a holiday mid May and like to pop down to the lakes?! Maybe pop down to
Pisa where I am aware there is minimal to see apart from the leaning tower but at least we can say we've seen it.
Was going to pop to Austra next but worried about time...?
Otherwise next stop to Germany to see the Black Forest and spend a few weeks here....back to France to see Paris on route to get ferry home.
Does This make sense...good trip or am I going completly wrong. We are laid back folk and don't mind a sudden change of direction or plan. We generally just want to go with the flow and enjoy this adventure meeting good people and enjoying the local culture..
any advice, recommendations and experience would be appreciated. Nice to meet you all 
Comments
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If you are planning to spend "a few weeks" in the Black Forest how many weeks are you leaving for cramming the rest into? My first thought is those poor little mites stuck in the back of the car for hours on end. Sorry, if it were just two adults I would
think what a wonderful trip, even though we like to explore an area and not just skim the surface but everyone to their own, but with two very small children I think it sounds horrendous.0 -
Even giving yourselves 2 months you are planning a very long trip especially so with 2 young children. Why not either do France or Germany/Austria/Italy? Give it some thought. Regarding Italy, yes Pisa is the obvious bits but nearby Lucca is worth a visit
as are Tuscany and Umbria; not sure I would recommend dragging the children around Florence.0 -
Sounds great, but.....I think you may just need a little longer to fit everything in on your wish list....and this is coming from someone who often gets the sort of comments I am giving you here!
We are missing out the 'west coast/ Dordogne' bit and are not doing Paris or Austria. We're doing: Mosel (near Cochem), Black Forest (Freiberg), Rhone, N.Provence, Frejus, Florence/Tuscany, Savoy (nr Geneva), Chalons-en-Champagne, and then back to Calais
and home, in 7 weeks.I reckon you are going quite a bit further and only a little more time.
David
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I'm sorry if we are sounding a bit negative but we are very experienced european travellers and trying to help you enjoy your trip. We do 2 long trips a year; end May to begining of July and end Aug to begining of Oct. In May we are going to Bavaria, Austria and into Italy (Umbria and Tuscany). End of Aug we are off to France, Languedoc, where we used to live, and probably Dordogne and the French Alps area - depends on the weather! Sure people like Val, our French expert, and others will be along soon to offer comment and suggestions.
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Don't be put off by the old folk.
Go and have fun. Enjoy yourselves and let the children do that too. You may not finish the whole tour, but it's worth making a start and seeing where you get to. You can't do everything first time round but
there's always next year.Take care and let us know how it goes.
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Jeez..ok ok. Trip far too ambious. Back to drawing board. Thanks for advice and obviously I will put my children first.
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Just a thought but would it be too expensive to fly home for the wedding? I know some of the over winterers in Spain fly home for Christmas and the like. It would give you more time to get a bit further into what you want to do.
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The distance is do-able but probably find the stays will be too short, as its first time I would err on the side of caution and make it more of a relaxing holiday. Cut down on the 'to do' list, relax and enjoy your stops, there's always next year and the
year after that
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Lke Comeyras we prefer long trips, going away for several months at a time. In fact we have had two 12 month trips. The route you are suggesting is a long one if you want to stop and enjoy the places you visit. In your shoes I would be tempted to limit
yourself to a couple of those destinations. It strikes me from the description of your trip last year that you like to linger and soak up the atmosphere of a place.You are new to caravanning, it seems, so first stop should be France. You have been there, have a smattering of the language (or maybe more) and the French are into caravanning. If something (minor) goes wrong, or you need help, then you will get it easily.
This would be the same anywhere in Europe, but probably easier in France. After a couple of weeks getting into the swing of it, move on to Germany or Italy, or maybe both.As David says, be flexible. Plan the first couple of weeks, then move on as the sites or weather dictates. That of course is the joy of caravanning, the flexibility and mobility.
The most important piece of advice though would be to ENJOY. Do not set a target you might not achieve for that way lies disappointment. You have years ahead of you and the aim this time is to make sure the experience is one you want to repeat for years
to come.0 -
Thank you David and Dave. Yes your advice is probably right on relax and take it easy. We enjoyed it so much last time we probably just got over ambious, too excited and maybe with our original 3 months in mind. Will rethink and probably cut trip in half.
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Brilliant advice. Thank you oldagetraveller. Will take a step back and rethink. Was ready to scrap the travelling idea at the start of the post but I appreciate the more positive replies. I was probably a bit naive and you guys gave me the reality check
I needed. Thank you.0 -
I am sorry if I made you even think for a moment of not going travelling at all. That really wasn't what I meant to do. We caravanned with our children from three years old and have magical memories of those times. Reality check was all I was trying to do.
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That's exactly it David. And trust me I've tried to suggest not going to the wedding but it's my husbands brother who is getting married and I'm not getting anywhere on that one
Yes your words were cutting long time but probably needed.
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I would just 'do it'. My children both started travelling to France when tiny babies - and they both still love travelling, and as adults in their thirties they now choose to camp in France for their climbing and surfing holidays. We camped and eventually caravanned with them every year until they were seventeen - when they chose to stop coming. They never complained about the journeys, and always loved our holidays.
As far as ambitious, yes, perhaps, but if you're all prepared to be flexible and travel just as much as you feel you all want, then you should have a fantastic holiday.
One of the good things about caravanning in France is that you can be completely flexible - you don't have to book and so you can move on when you want, or stay if you find your idyllic location with the best pitch on the site, and the best weather in Europe.
My own personal feeling would not be to go as far as Lake Garda, but I think that's due to personal prejudice as we had an unpleasant experience with Italian police when on our way from Garda back to France. We didn't like the west coast of France either, and have never been back, so I'd probably avoid that too, but many people love it so I'm obviously out of step. We prefer more rugged scenery and dramatic rivers and gorges. I like the Dordogne which is very pretty, and definitely worth seeing, but I would also include the very dramatic Gorges du Tarn/Jonte area in your itinerary (perhaps on the way to the Med).
As far as Germany and Austria are concerned, we have only very limited experience, with a tour through the Black Forest in 1976 when on our way to Czechoslovakia in a hired motorhome. This also involved, a stay on Lake Constance, then we had another holiday staying at Staufen which my son's didn't enjoy because they were told off for singing nursery rhymes in the street by policemen they called 'the Noise Police'. So again we haven't been back! During our 'grand tour' in 1976 we stayed at Linz, and near Salzburg, in Austria, but I'm afraid that neither Germany or Austria captured my heart like France has done.
So, plan how to keep your children happy, but don't overplan the holiday, keep flexible, perhaps if you find the travelling onerous then change your ultimate destination, and just have a wonderful time.
As far as 'flying back for the wedding' we've just arranged to go to France at the end of this month, flying back in early May for my son's 30th birthday, and spending a week back here, before flying back to France where we now have a holiday home. The return flights for two have cost us just 66 euros with Ryanair! I would perhaps think again about leaving your caravan somewhere and flying back.
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Ambitious plans. I would avoid Pisa/Lucca as the roads are busy and narrow and pitches very small. Garda is fine and ideal for a family but stick to the southern part of the lake as it gets narrow and congested if you try to go too far North. Personally
for western France I would go to the area around Royan. Nice sites along the Cote Sauvage.0 -
I agree that your original plan was rather ambitious but but as others have said just go for it and adjust your destinations to suit your feelings when you're there. As for Garda, Florence and Piza I'd recommend you skip them until your children are older
and go to the north Adriatic Italian coast where the beaches are fantastic, your children will love them and the family sites in Italy.0 -
We spent three months in France last year and didn't see half of it! Don't try and fit too much in in one trip - you want to enjoy where you stay and not be driving all the time - especially with two youngsters in the car.
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Val A has made a useful suggestion. We did this when we took our first 12 month trip, which was May to May. Come Christmas we left our car and caravan on pitch in Spain (Vilanova Park, south of Barcelona) and flew home by Easijet for Christmas. Our insurance
company (Caravan Club) okayed it and the English couple on the next pitch were happy to keep an eye on the outfit for us in exchange for us bringing them back a Christmas pudding. It saved a long and unneccessary drag back to the UK. Might suit you for the
wedding?0 -
Thank you all for your replies. We did think about flying back for wedding but didn't think leaving are caravan and car would be so easy. Something to think about tho.
you have all put it in perspective and we now thinking of enjoying France as we loved it so much last time.
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Most of the smaller sites in France are happy for you to leave your caravan on the pitch. If they are under pressure for pitches (unlikely) then they may move it to somewhere else on site, but generally you pay only a token amount for the nights when you're not using the caravan.
Cars can be left at the airport. Parking generally costs less at the smaller airport compared to the cost in this country.
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If you are staying in France try Le serpolin. They do storage. We have used them short term before while coming home for a week. Easy drive from there to Dieppe for the night
ferry too.0 -
I think that if you want to leave your van on site and unattended you would need to check the insurance carefully. Our Motorhome insurance specifically excludes this situation.
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I think that if you want to leave your van on site and unattended you would need to check the insurance carefully. Our Motorhome insurance specifically excludes this situation.
As I mentioned in an earler post, when did this in 2009. we were insured with the caravan club (for car and caravan) and checked with them. They were fine for us to leave both for 10 days, on site, with hitchlock, wheel lock and tracker alarm. The same
applied when we left the van at Le Serpolin in 2012 for a week. Always best to check with your own insurers first though.0
