{"id":20499,"date":"2016-03-28T10:58:57","date_gmt":"2016-03-28T09:58:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ourtour.co.uk\/home\/?p=20499"},"modified":"2021-06-14T14:33:08","modified_gmt":"2021-06-14T13:33:08","slug":"camperstop-thousands-of-free-and-low-cost-motorhome-stops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourtour.co.uk\/home\/camperstop-thousands-of-free-and-low-cost-motorhome-stops\/","title":{"rendered":"Camperstop – Thousands of Free and Low Cost Motorhome Stops"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are over a million motorhomes registered in Europe, and the continent’s evolved numerous facilities to welcome them, and their spending power, into local communities. Alongside a myriad of campsites, there are thousands of official, or semi-official stop-overs available with more basic facilities. You might have come across the names: aires, sostas and stellplatz, among others. We use these, a lot. In fact in the past two months of travel we’ve not stayed on a single campsite. The locals use them too, they are very popular, especially in the summer months!<\/p>\n

\"Camperstop

Camperstop Europe, there is a 2016 edition available now (see end of post)<\/p><\/div>\n

\"The

The types of stop available in Camperstop<\/p><\/div>\n

So how do we find these spots? In a few different ways, one of which is the Camperstop Europe Book<\/a>\"\", which we started using in 2015. We’ve found it very useful, and great value – the 2018 edition has 10,500\u00a0stops, and covers 27 countries.\u00a0The cost of the book is roughly the cost of one or two nights on a campsite, so it earned its keep almost immediately, and wonderfully, it’s all in English!<\/p>\n

\"Orange

Orange is France, Green is Germany and Blue is Italy. There are a serious number of places listed in these countries!<\/p><\/div>\n

So, this is how the book works. It is intended for motorhomes – units which are self-contained so have their own water and toilet facilities. Although some of the stops are campsites, they’re normally more cut-down,\u00a0many of them simple parking areas where you might be just a metre or two from the next van. The book gives an indication of the type of stop (see image\u00a0above), usually with a photo. It explains the cost to stay, any limitations on how many days, the services available and the distance to town and shops, and so on. You don’t need to show the book or a sticker to stay (it’s not a scheme like Britstops or France Passion), and you can’t normally book a place – you just turn up – and almost always you’ll find a space, especially outside July and August. They have 50 teams of motorhomers who check most of the places each year, so it’s never too far wrong.<\/p>\n

To find somewhere to stay, you can either search for the name of a town in the index or do what we normally do, which is to use the maps, like this:<\/p>\n

\"1.

1. First go the overall map page and look for the detail map which covers your area. The 2016 book has expanded to the east and the north, just where we’re going, so we need to get our copy!<\/p><\/div>\n

\"2.

2. On the detail map page, find the stop you’re interested in. Then on the right find the name and look up the page it’s listed on<\/p><\/div>\n

\"3.

3. Turn to that page and scan down it until you find the entry you’re interested in<\/p><\/div>\n

\"4.

4. Here’s a typical entry. Yes, incredibly some of these places are right next to campsites! This stop has space for 30 vans, is free to stay, charges \u20ac5 for water, has grey and black water disposal and batter charging, is open all year and is on the beach, 500m from town with shops, restaurants and laundry. The GPS co-ordinates are at the top, along with the street name so you can double-check you typed them into your satnav correctly!<\/p><\/div>\n

The Camperstop Europe 2018 book is available through Amazon:<\/p>\n