Way2Go Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Can someone from the "we wouldn't stay anywhere else but Aires" camp please explain the difference between the following types of Aire :-1. 'Aires_non_verifiees'2. 'Aires_services'3. 'Aires_stationnement'4. 'Aires_autoroutes'5. 'Aires_camping'Although the translation is fairly straight forward I don't really understand what facilities are on offer at each type.I'm assuming that :-1. means it's unconfirmed and you take pot luck.2. would give a range of white water in/grey water out and possibly toilet empting?3. means nothing to me (Vienna) whilst . . . .4. I assume is on a main road or motorway so limited facilities?5. has an Aire on a campsite so would have full facilities?Many thanksW2G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Way2Go - 2008-01-26 5:18 PM Can someone from the "we wouldn't stay anywhere else but Aires" camp please explain the difference between the following types of Aire :-1. 'Aires_non_verifiees'2. 'Aires_services'3. 'Aires_stationnement'4. 'Aires_autoroutes'5. 'Aires_camping'Although the translation is fairly straight forward I don't really understand what facilities are on offer at each type.Many thanksW2G 1 As you say, unconfirmed (by whatever source you are using).2 Has water, grey and usually toilet dump facilities - but you may not be able to park/stay. Some are for services only.3 Parking without services. May or may not be limited to motorhomes, but there should be no restriction on access. You may, or may not, be able to overnight.4 Motorhome services (as 1 above) accessible directly from an autoroute - usually via parking area. May associate with an autoroute rest area (i.e. without pumps etc) or a service area. These are the ones not to overnight on. They seem to be where nearly all the gassings/robberies are alleged to take place and the French police secifically advise against overnighting although this is not illegal - just unwise.5 Usually an aire with water and dump facilities on which you may stay for at least 24/48 hours, sometimes for an unlimited period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 26, 2008 Author Share Posted January 26, 2008 Ahh thank you Brian . . . makes a lot of sense now. Thank you for explaining it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 26, 2008 Author Share Posted January 26, 2008 The reason I was asking is that we're heading to Southern Germany in September and we'll be hitting France at approx 22:30.As its about 500 miles and some 7 1/2 hours to Southern Germany we'd like to get an hour or two into France before stopping for the night.Do you know of a Aire around the Arras area that we could just 'drop into'? We wouldn't need anything as we'd have it all on board.Kind regardsW2G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 W2G: I think your 5 - 'Aires_camping' - is more likely to indicate commercial campsites that have motorhome service-points (ie. where you can take on fresh water and dump waste tanks). It would be helpful to know the source of the French terms you've quoted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Brain has covered it pretty well, but from experience you just have to go and accept what you get, sometimes there will be more than you expected, sometimes less. There will always be something and 90% certainity that there will be someone else there. I use the Aires and also just stop in a village and ask to stay somewhere, bar car park, church car park, cemetry, police station, stadium, village green, etc. I have stayed on them all, met some very nice people and drunk a lot of wine! They are more relaxed about the whole idea, unlike this over regulated, over yellow lined, parking charge ridden, height barrier obsessed, and generally motor home unfriendly country! And then the seaside resorts complain about holiday makers going abroad!!! Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianR Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 I can recommend the aire at Arques - see http://www.campingcar-infos.com/index1.htm - and the aire outside the Camping Municipal at Bapaume - sorry i haven't any more details with me on this, but it should be open in September. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peejay Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Derek Uzzell - 2008-01-26 7:00 PM W2G: I think your 5 - 'Aires_camping' - is more likely to indicate commercial campsites that have motorhome service-points (ie. where you can take on fresh water and dump waste tanks). It would be helpful to know the source of the French terms you've quoted. An educated guess, but i'd say from the poi downloads on the excellent cc-infos website. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Just to muddy the waters further, 'aires de services camping' have differing categories/facilities as per the 'Guide Officiel Aires De services camping-car book.... Aire interieure '1 nuit mini' - a reduced price for an overnight stay with a motorhome within the site. Aire interieure 'cc de passage acceptes' - usually a small fee to use the facilities within the campsite and sometimes a further additional fee for an overnight stay. Aire exterieure 'avec parking' - a designated place just outside the campsite where you can park for the night either with or without servicing facilities and either with or without a fee accordingly. Aire exterieure 'san parking' - usually a motorhome service point outside the campsite without overnight parking, purely a service stop, sometimes free, usually with a charge for taking on water/electricity. pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peejay Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Just had another thought... 'Aires_non_verifiees' If my original educated guess is correct then this is a poi list of aires that have as yet unconfirmed poi coords, so the gps positions may or may not be correct. pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 26, 2008 Author Share Posted January 26, 2008 peejay - 2008-01-26 9:03 PMAn educated guess, but i'd say from the poi downloads on the excellent cc-infos website.Yes that's where I got them ;-)Thank you all for the valuable information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panagah Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 Reading through this thread got me thinking. should the mods have a sticky post where we can post details of aires on this forum? along with decent directions and pictures? I have at least 10 really good proper aires that could be used and I am sure others have as well. Within a couple of years we could gt quite a comprehensive list of proper decent aires that we could al use and share a bit of knowlege of. I have a few books both in French and English. there is never enough information to determine what your going to get. Just an Idea for those in the know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianR Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 BrianR - 2008-01-26 8:50 PM I can recommend the aire at Arques - see http://www.campingcar-infos.com/index1.htm - and the aire outside the Camping Municipal at Bapaume - sorry i haven't any more details with me on this, but it should be open in September. Brian My apologies, but the second suggestion is in the wrong town - it is actually outside the Camping Municipal at Peronne, and is listed on the Campingcars-info site. It costs about 8€ for the night and officially closes on the 15th September. After that you may be able to park for the night without paying. There is some traffic noise from about 7AM onwards, but it is not too bad. However, it is probably too far, and in the wrong direction for you. Equally far, but maybe in the right direction, is Caudry, just beyond Cambrai. Between Arques and Caudry seems to be a desert so far as aires are concerned. Probably because it is too industrial to attract people. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 For us part of the fun of it is never quite knowing exactly what the Aire is, where it is, what it has, what is missing, how much it costs (if anything), etc because all the books contain not only errors caused by alterations carried out after the print date but errors caused by 'sans faire rien - c'est la vie' type feed back from site owners etc. We just make a habit of watering and looing one day before we really need to and that way it matters not if the borne is damaged, locked up, missing or was never there in the first place! It is of course so much easier if you identify where you are going to overnight before it gets dark, but even then as long as you have water and loo capacity it matters little as long as it is safe and quiet enough for a decent kip! Hey diddley hee, a nomad's life for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 27, 2008 Author Share Posted January 27, 2008 I agree that its nice to make it up as you go along and we really enjoy doing that.However, both of us will have done a day's work followed by a 3 hour drive to Folkstone followed by a 30 minute relax on the train before our arrival in France at 22:30 (local time).We'll be tired but excited and I don't really want to be driving around aimlessly looking for somewhere to stop safely overnight.As I said, we've got a long way to go the following day so if we can shorten it by getting 50 or 60 miles into France then that's going to be a bonus.We'll be heading down the '26' and there does appear to be a bit of a shortage of Aires at a reasonable distance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 27, 2008 Author Share Posted January 27, 2008 My apologies, but the second suggestion is in the wrong town - it is actually outside the Camping Municipal at Peronne, and is listed on the Campingcars-info site. It costs about 8€ for the night and officially closes on the 15th September. After that you may be able to park for the night without paying. There is some traffic noise from about 7AM onwards, but it is not too bad. However, it is probably too far, and in the wrong direction for you. Equally far, but maybe in the right direction, is Caudry, just beyond Cambrai. Between Arques and Caudry seems to be a desert so far as aires are concerned. Probably because it is too industrial to attract people. Brian Not a problem Brian. They do seem to be a bit few and far between huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelly58 Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 We stopped at Aques N50*44.731 E002*18.276 last May there is a parking area outside the campsite you only have to pay 2 euro's for a token for services but free if you only park up its off the D210 onto Rue Michelet very quiet and safe and open all year we used it twice once in each direction there is also a car park on side of the road where some other motorhome had stopped during the night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 Derek and PJ are right about the aires camping, they are almost bound to be on/by campsites. Regarding your itinerary, it will be dark when you arrive in France, so you'll be aire hunting in the dark. Unless you a) have sat-nav (which I assume you have) and b) have absolute confidence in the quoted co-ords, this may be a bit ambitious. Aires are not always well (at all!) signposted, so finding them by daylight can be quite difficult and time consuming! By night? You're on your own, kids!!Me, I'm a coward, so I'd just head round to the aire by the port at Calais, get something to eat, and then go bye-byes! There is an aire at Arques, near St Omer, which is about half way to Arras. It is outside the Camping Municipal "Beausejour" in Rue Michelet, 25 places, open 1 April to 30 October. 2 Euros for services, 9.35 Euros for overnight in 2006. Directions are: leave A26 at Arques exit, follow direction "Claimarais", then "Camping". However, there is a second reference to an aire at Arques, same road, open same dates, claimed to be 30 places, at parking les Trois Etangs, 2 Euros per night. If both are up and running 55 places should see you accommodated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 27, 2008 Author Share Posted January 27, 2008 All good stuff and very welcome I can asure you. Thank you all for your valuable contributions. Yes Brian, we have satnav ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syd Posted January 28, 2008 Share Posted January 28, 2008 Against all advice we overnight on the motorway aires, caution is required but we make sure we are very close to the facilities where there is plenty of light and people traffic. A good spot could be in the section reserved for coaches Usually there are plenty of facilities such as showers, (2 euro's), toilets and shop and of course fuel, it is free too, (no, not the fuel smarty) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted January 28, 2008 Share Posted January 28, 2008 Way2Go - 2008-01-27 9:49 PM All good stuff and very welcome I can assure you. Thank you all for your valuable contributions. Yes Brian, we have satnav ;-) Just a bit more that may help. The Arques aire is in "Camper Stop", "All the Aires France" and the "Guide Officiel Aires de Services Camping-Car", so its provenance is good.Syd really should not promote overnighting in autoroute rest, or service, areas. The French authorities strongly advise against this because of the risks. The best that can really be said, is "so far, so good". I hope his luck holds, but fear the Sword of Damocles will one day descend on him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted January 28, 2008 Author Share Posted January 28, 2008 Brian Kirby - 2008-01-28 3:29 PM Just a bit more that may help. The Arques aire is in "Camper Stop", "All the Aires France" and the "Guide Officiel Aires de Services Camping-Car", so its provenance is good. Many thanks Brian I'll have a read in my Camper Stop book.Thanks for the update Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minstrel Posted January 28, 2008 Share Posted January 28, 2008 http:/www.airecampingcar.com/aire_camping_car_gps.php/1942?z=9 will hopefully get you to an aire address (guignicourt) with gps. It's not where you want to be but the maps are useful. Nothing in the Arras area but useful for other trip perhaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syd Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Brian Kirby - 2008-01-28 3:29 PM Syd really should not promote overnighting in autoroute rest, or service, areas. The French authorities strongly advise against this because of the risks. The best that can really be said, is "so far, so good". I hope his luck holds, but fear the Sword of Damocles will one day descend on him! Hi Brian You are probably correct The sword decended on us last year on our first trip to France/Spain if you remember, and we were totally cleaned out, we are now much wiser and so we park on the motorway aires fully prepared to get our own back on the thieving so and so's. One can only live in hope, Im still smarting quiet badly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.