# Aires can be nice but........



## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

.....we've just come back from a brilliant five weeks in France (hello all :wink: ) and we have used a few Aires....

But can anyone tell me why they would pay 8.5 Euros a night for the scene in pic 0733....

When for an extra 4 Euros a night they could stay round the corner, as we did, in the Aire shown at pic 0736????? (that's us at the back, next to the facilities, and our only company for 3 nights is in the foreground)

Seems crazy to me

BTW they're both at at Saintes Marie De Mer, Camargue.


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## mickyc (Jan 20, 2006)

We love Aires Telbell, however you made a good choice there !!

One thing we have noticed about our French motorhoming buddies, is that they will ALWAYS go for the cheapest option.

We stopped at 1 Aires in Avranche just to "fill up and dump" whilst at the Borne a French M/H arrived he asked how much the facilities were 

"2 Euro's" say I

"Sacre Bleu!!!" says he climbing back in his cab

They don't know they're Bourne !!!!!


 :lol:


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## MikeCo (Jan 26, 2008)

From looking at the two pictures of car parks one full of motorhomes and one empty I would still rather use Camping Cheque or ASCI card sites for a few Euro's more.


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## spindrifter (Nov 14, 2006)

Hi Telbel

You have a PM.

Thanks 

David


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## grumpyman (Sep 24, 2006)

MikeCo said:


> From looking at the two pictures of car parks one full of motorhomes and one empty I would still rather use Camping Cheque or ASCI card sites for a few Euro's more.


I appreciate it is everyone to their own but I could not agree more. Security has no value and for the sake of a few euro why take the risks. To add to that the additional facilities. I used ASCI throughout my month trip around France and found it excellent with the average cost of sites around 11 euro. If you can afford a £35000 Motorhome surely you can afford the sites. In saying please do not take it I object to those who use Aires.


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## Ian_n_Suzy (Feb 15, 2009)

MikeCo said:


> From looking at the two pictures of car parks one full of motorhomes and one empty I would still rather use Camping Cheque or ASCI card sites for a few Euro's more.


Hi,

The thing is Mike, we are away from July - Sept. We will have the ACSI book with us but for the brunt of the trip it is not usable due to the peak season charges.

That "few Euro`s" you talk of is more like 40-50 Euros per night for the 4 of us. We are hoping to level our costs out by using a few Aires inbetween sites.

CHEERS

Example~: We are booked into a site for 3 nights (that is in the ACSI for 15 Euro PN off peak). Yet our bill for the 3 nights is 165 Euros. I cannot afford 6 weeks of that.


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## MikeCo (Jan 26, 2008)

That "few Euro`s" you talk of is more like 40-50 Euros per night for the 4 of us. We are hoping to level our costs out by using a few Aires inbetween sites.

CHEERS

Example~: We are booked into a site for 3 nights (that is in the ACSI for 15 Euro PN off peak). Yet our bill for the 3 nights is 165 Euros.[/quote]

I appreciate what you are saying which is why we stay at home in July and August, however the original post was from someone who was in France the same time as we were when Camping Cheques and ASCI sites were available.
There are however quite a lot of sites that take CC or ASCI up to the middle of July and then start again towards the end of August.


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## Ian_n_Suzy (Feb 15, 2009)

MikeCo said:


> however the original post was from someone who was in France the same time as we were when Camping Cheques and ASCI sites were available.


Hi,

Apologies, I didn't consider that.

CHEERS


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

I don't think I said we were in a car park!....and you certainly didn't see a picture of us in one MikeCo.... It was an Aire, next to Camping La Brise.

Didn't want to start the "Aires or not Aires" debate again: Just to demonstrate that there are "Aires" ....and then there are "Aires" :wink: 

Spindrifter- you have a reply


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## telboy1 (Nov 3, 2007)

Hi Telbel where was the empty one. We were in Saintes Maries for the fiesta on June 19th and were squashed in. We moved around the carpark for some extra space and a french little van went right next door so that we couldnt open our window.Loved Saintes Maries, will definately go again. Dawn


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## cabby (May 14, 2005)

Hi tellbell, glad to see you back with us again.Hope you enjoyed your trip, any problems, no surely not with that van.
We used municipal sites where possible on our trip during April and May, got back on the 2 June.Average price was 10 euros.
We did try to stop at Le-Treport aire, but it was full and so was the car park. there were places still in the municipal though. strange place France. :roll: :roll: 


cabby


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

Hi Cabby

Yes an excellent time and excellent weather (too hot in Provence!). Not a bit of bother with "Fleur" during 2300 miles. (though did have to visit the factory at Benet....I'll PM you :wink: )

Yes we did some Municipals too.

And, just like Aires, there are Municipals and there are Municipals.

As there are with all Campsites I suppose :roll: :lol:


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

Dawn

I'll copy and Paste the PM I sent to Spindrifter! :lol:


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## Pusser (May 9, 2005)

One must take a balanced view. Had someone wanted to organise a football match or a sing song around a torch then picture two has it. Furthermore, if there was a flood you are on hard standing in pic 2 but stuck in the mud pic 1.

Supposing the other person in the field was an axe murderer then you have no one to report your death in the field but plenty of people in pic 2 and possible witnesses.

The grass is not always greener my friends.


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## putties (May 18, 2005)

As for the cost of accomodation.

2007 12 euros

2008 20 euros

We spent the rest of our budget on all the things a holiday is about. Some sites along the coasts are aminimum of 30 euros a night (sorry but thats 210 euros a week - nearly 3 tanks of fuel - 600 miles).

The more we save the more times we can revisit.

Bon voyage

Putties


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## jeanie201 (Apr 22, 2008)

Hi,
We have stayed on the aire at St Maries a few times; it is not always as busy as picture shows and if you are parked on the front, as we were last October, then you have a nice view. But yes it can be very, very busy; we have stayed when even tighter than picture! Why would we do that you ask instead of using a "nice" site? Well for us the advantge of this, and many aires, is not to do with cost but location. You can walk easily in to town from aire whereas we find most sites are out of town and you need to move van to visit places. Also just back from 3 weeks in France, this time in north, spent just on aires and again really enjoyed freedom it gives. Will post details of trip soon.


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## Mike48 (May 1, 2005)

Ste Marie De La Mer. Lovely place. 50 million midges loved it too.


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

> 50 million midges loved it too.


:lol: :lol:

They must have emigrated before we arrived. No problem to us.


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## Annsman (Nov 8, 2007)

But isn't that the beauty of aires? If the one you turn up at isn't very nice you can just pick another and move on. 

We spent 4 weeks earlier this year mooching up France from Natrbonne Plage, where we've used the municipal site and the aire. We used aires from the "All the Aires book" and there were some fantastic places, St Gengoux Le National being one of the best aires we've ever visited, and it was free! However we did find some we never even stopped at! Just one look, (as the song says!) was enough.

We always have at a few aires in mind. One is the first choice and at least one back up if it proves "iffy" on arrival, and we have a site in mind for "last chance" if all else fails.

But at least the French, and a few other countries, acknowledge the existence of motorhomes, (unlike Britain) and don't try to drive them out of town with height barriers and car parks that forbid you to park, never mind stay the night!


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Hi Tell, hope you had a good time.

The aire in piccy 0733 looks very much like the one on the eastern side of the town by the beach, am I right?

Don't know if you knew this but you can drive past the main aire parking area in the photo, past some boulders to a rough track that runs for several miles adjacent to the sea. You can usually find a good spot down there. The only downside is its further back to the facilities and town. The man comes down on his moped every day to collect the fees.

You're quite right though, there will always be good and bad aires, the same as there are good and bad campsites/municipals.

Vive le choix!

Pete


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## Vennwood (Feb 4, 2007)

peejay said:


> . The man comes down on his moped every day to collect the fees.


Demotion eh Pete, he had a quad bike in March. I also noticed that the barriers were gone as well so most of the French contingent were coming in around 6pm and gone by 8am and never paid a cent.

I notice they still turn off the water after 5pm though :lol:


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

A new quad eh?

Must have been helping himself to some of the fees :lol: 

Pete


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

> he aire in piccy 0733 looks very much like the one on the eastern side of the town by the beach, am I right?


That's right Pete- granted it does (in theory) overlook the beach but on the sort of day we were there only 50% of 'vans would have a seaview :lol:

Pusser-take your point but....organised football matches?.....floods?......axe murderers?..... :lol: :lol:

At least if we'd been gassed :roll: :roll: there'd be a better chance of survival at the aire we selected......more fresh air :wink:


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## homenaway (Jul 27, 2005)

We managed to get a beachside pitch on the aire at st Marie a few years ago and only realised the next morning that you could drive a lot further along the beach.

We have just got back form a few weeks in France and Switzerland and as stated some aires are great others a bit grim.

We called in at Geraudot on Lac d'Orient near Troyes and it was virtually full with some French vans well spaced out - unusual as they are normally parked very close together. We needed water but the borne used jetons and we couldn't find any of the listed shops/restaurants in the village. We watched several camping caristes trundle a trolley around from a tap somewhere - more like at a UK campsite . The campsite next to it didn't open until 1st July - amazing for so popular an area. As it was too hot we gave up and drove to a lovely small campsite nearby in Lesmont where we were able to stretch out on the grass, have showers, get the washing done etc for €7.60 (without hookup).

We also stayed at St Gengoux Le National and at Givry nearby also on the "Voie Vert". Both excellent and free - Givry is now tarmaced with about fifteen bays marked for "camping*s* cars" although cars use some of them during the day for the shade 

Also at Saint Pourcain north of Vichy there is a great and popular free aire alongside the river where we paid €2 for a Flot Bleu borne. As we only have a small tank we only use five minutes worth but other MH'ers fill their jerrycans if the time hasn't run out. Also watched herons, egrets and golden oriels from our pitch - and the local tai chi class on the sports field 

Steve


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