West coast France tour April 2024 camping

[marmite]

I have not bike packed for years but my buddy wants to and the west coast of France (Vannes to La Rochelle) is more or less flat. I am at a loss as to how to find the right sort of campsite, preferably in advance so you know how far you must cycle each day. My preference is for nice quiet rural sites with proper toilets and no disco. Previous french tours have used small pensions, airbnb, occasional Ibis in a town. But not campsites. Please share your experiences with me.

This route (approx)
https://www.komoot.com/tour/1458853388/ ... leabR#tips

[Jdsk]

We like to find the site during the evening of the day before so it's a bit different, but as a starter:

Homework
Check dates of school holidays, big events etc.
Research using guides books and the web, including this forum. Google Maps is good at finding campsites that you can then investigate further. For April check opening dates.

On the road
Are you happy using a web browser and apps on a smart 'phone?
Ask at each campsite for recommendations for others.

Many campsites are predominantly used by people with motor caravans. They will usually admit cyclists and walkers and you have to decide how you feel about staying in them.

Jonathan

[slowster]

Use the forum search function: there are a lot of threads with very useful information which you might not get in the replies to this thread which you have started. For example, this thread - viewtopic.php?t=159731, contains some particularly useful information, including a warning regarding campsites not being open at that time of the season.

[beinbhan]

Download an app called Archie’s. This shows campsites all over Europe. A quick search shows loads of sites on your route.

[tatanab]

It is well worth detouring inland in The Parc Natural Regional du Marais Poitevin where there is a huge network of tiny brooks and roads. Very attractive, a bit touristy in places (photo is one of those), and with many campsites. I have stayed at a couple of municipals. I have crossed the area a few times, always a bit inland and away from the coast, so no immediate comment about your route.

[Psamathe]

Download an app called Archie’s. This shows campsites all over Europe. A quick search shows loads of sites on your route.

Archies app seems to have lost some campsites that were previously listed before the website closed. Last summer I was finding campsites using the last Archies website gpx download (before it closed) as well as cycle.travel (which I believe is also from a pre-web site closure Archies download) and on several occasions I found I was camping at a site that was open (I was camping there), was previously listed on Archies but was no longer included in the Archies app! I only noted this in France, didn't bother to check after France (when into Germany & Netherlands).

Ian

[marmite]

Use the forum search function: there are a lot of threads with very useful information which you might not get in the replies to this thread which you have started. For example, this thread - viewtopic.php?t=159731, contains some particularly useful information, including a warning regarding campsites not being open at that time of the season.

Thanks, I found that thread first. But I am trying to scoop up data wherever I can.

[marmite]

We like to find the site during the evening of the day before so it's a bit different, but as a starter:

Homework
Check dates of school holidays, big events etc.
Research using guides books and the web, including this forum. Google Maps is good at finding campsites that you can then investigate further. For April check opening dates.

On the road
Are you happy using a web browser and apps on a smart 'phone?
Ask at each campsite for recommendations for others.

Many campsites are predominantly used by people with motor caravans. They will usually admit cyclists and walkers and you have to decide how you feel about staying in them.

Jonathan

Thanks, I did the booking a couple of days ahead thing with hostels on the Camino de Santiago, but that route does rather spoon feed the traveller. Easter being early, some places seem to be open from the end of March but may close for a week or 2 in May. If places are shut now, then trying to book now won't work. I do want to avoid the caravan-only sites.

[Bogawski]

Check out Brouage, very interesting and good base for a round trip to Il'e d'Oleron, good crossing on the bridge but pretty boring after that. Nice trip.

[Ian the woodworker]

Have a look at cycle.travel
https://cycle.travel/
You can search for campsites along the route using the site.

[Slowroad]

Have a look at cycle.travel
https://cycle.travel/
You can search for campsites along the route using the site.

It's a great website! The campsites link to Archies Camping, now only available as an app according to this https://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/chatter/di ... readPage=1 Not sure which cycle.travel links to.

[Rob D]

I haven't gone any further south than the Gulf of Morbihan. But SSE of Vannes, there's a lovely little passenger ferry across Saint-Armel, which may, possibly, give you a noce route to start? Really quiet - and we love ferries!

[Rob D]

Slall point re campsites: if you book in advance, you're committed to that distance, which may be hard if you have bad headwinds.
Also, whilst municipal campsites can be great, we had a terrible experience at one, about 30 km north of Le Conquet, late June 2016. It was a Saturday night, no staff on duty and there was a sort of rave. Seriously loud music until something like 7 am, 30 mins break and it started again. It was the first night of our tour, my now wife's first cycle tour. It was hell, zero sleep. All I could think about was sneaking out in the dark and cutting wires with my Leatherman.

So you might want to check reviews for such things?