If you’re planning a road trip through France in your campervan, grab a cuppa and get comfy because this 5-week route covers everything from alpine lakes and mountain passes to the Atlantic coast!
Along the way we stayed at a mix of campsites – some amazing, some we wouldn’t return to (!) – and we drove over 2,000 miles around some beautiful French scenery. Here’s a breakdown of where we stayed, what we recommend, what to avoid and top tips for planning your own trip!
At the end of this article you’ll find a downloadable itinerary (with costs included)! Please note the costs are exactly what we paid during the school summer hols and will vary depending on when you go – but sometimes it’s useful to have a guide. I haven’t included food costs because we rarely eat out and would be a cost if we stayed at home – sort of nets itself out of “holiday” costs!
Click here for our route map (including all campsites)
Getting There: Ferry from Portsmouth to Caen
We chose the 6 hour Brittany Ferries crossing from Portsmouth to Caen, leaving at 8am and arriving in France at 3pm local time. Having used Brittany Ferries last year, it was never a question whether we would use them again. It starts and ends our holiday perfectly with that real feeling of pampered adventure! It’s a convenient crossing, and whilst it may not appear the cheapest, when we weighed up a further drive to and from the cheaper crossings, we felt that what we paid was reasonable for fully flexible tickets (I must have made approximately 10 changes!), a campervan with roof load and bike rack, C Club Lounge access outbound (absolutely worth the additional cost for day crossings in my opinion!) and a cabin with window inbound – which was an overnight crossing. Click here to go straight to the PDF with costs and details.
Tip: If you have a campervan with a roof rack you will just need to manually change the height of the van in the booking, including rack load. Currently you cannot add a roof rack to a motorhome on the Brittany Ferries website (true of August 2025). We had a VW California, roof bars and a rigid kayak on the roof – we changed the height on the booking to 2.6m. This is so you can be loaded into the correct part of the garage on the ship (note the space in the pic above!).
The Route & Campsites
1. South Paris (Overnighter)
Campsite: Camping Samoreau
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £23 per night
Distance from Caen: 191 miles (3h30)
A handy overnight stop to break up the long drive south. Clean, simple, and a good location for a night. Could be lively at weekends as there is a local bar in earshot playing live music (we enjoyed this in the main though!).
2. Lac Aiguebelette (3 nights)
Campsite: Camping Ferrand
✅ Yes – scruffy facilities and site but great location
Cost: £91 (£30 per night)
Distance: 318 miles (4h45)
Aiguebelette is approximately 5hrs on from the first stopover in Paris. It took us a bit longer as we had a few stops for food / loo breaks (you know the score!). And we made sure we stopped for a decent food shop on the way.
On entering the campsite it looks a bit scruffy, and reception is in fact at the campsite next door (also owned by Only Camp) which added an extra half hour of confusion to us dazed and confused travellers. Especially as there is a very sturdy electric gate with no buzzer and a small map that doesn’t make much sense. Maybe we missed something on the check in instructions.
The lake itself is beautiful and ideal for swimming or paddleboarding. There is a strict no motorised craft policy which ensures the lake is clean and warm and rich in wildlife. Campsite facilities were dated, but the setting makes it worth it. The campsite rents out paddleboards and pedalos with slides on.
Top tip: you can paddleboard/kayak over to the Huttopia campsite beach (takes about 45 mins) for a change of scenery, or to the little island in the middle to explore an old chapel.
3. Lake Annecy (3 nights)
Campsite: Camping Le Lanfonnet
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £175 (£58 per night)
Distance: 47 miles (1h15)
A great base for exploring Lake Annecy with its turquoise lake and surrounding mountains. Facilities and location both good. A lovely bar by the jetty makes it very relaxing!
Top tip: if you paddle left off the jetty you will eventually find a lovely beach with a cafe and bar and great safe swimming area in front (about 30 mins paddling). We loved this and spent 2 days over there. Check the forecast if you’re paddling over there as we almost got caught in a massive thunderstorm heading home.
4. Chamonix area (4 nights)
Campsite: Camping du Glacier d’Argentier
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £141 (£35 per night)
Distance: 55 miles (2h00)
Wow factor level: 10. Perfect for hiking and exploring Chamonix and surrounding mountains. Fantastic scenery and plenty of outdoor activities nearby. This campsite is actually a ski area during the winter and still has a drag lift in situ, plus plenty of interesting woodland hikes / mountain bike trails around.
Top tip: The campsite gives you a free train ticket for the duration of your stay – make the most of this. The station is a 20 min walk away and takes you straight into the heart of Chamonix. From here you can get several different cable cars or funiculars up the mountain to see different things. This needs a blog post in its own right so I will do this soon!
5. Bourg Saint Maurice (3 nights)
Campsite: Huttopia Bourg Saint Maurice
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £131 (£44 per night)
Distance: 52 miles
Fantastic location for exploring Les Arcs. In the summer the funicular up to the foot of Les Arcs is free. Lift passes after that are fairly expensive but worth it for stunning walks and hikes.
The walk between the campsite and funicular provides a beautiful mountain river to paddle in, a water park, skate park and play areas. We didn’t factor in time to just enjoy the surroundings – you could easily fill a day just pottering around this stuff particularly if you have kids! We got a lot of grief from the 8 year old for not factoring this in….
Well-kept site with good facilities in the trees. A massive Super U (my favourite French supermarket) is walking distance just across the road.
Top tip: Take the free funicular to Les Arcs and get the chairlift up to the beautiful lookout with a swing. There are LOADS of hikes and mountain bike trails around here – we will definitely be going back to explore more!
6. Neuvic (Overnighter between the East and West of France)
Campsite: Camping Municipal du Lac
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £12 (!!)
Distance: 313 miles (5h12)
This is a fantastic municipal campsite on a lake. Had we known how lovely it would be we would have stayed another night! You can get your paddleboard out on the lake here – and there’s a lovely pizza restaurant 10 mins walk from the campsite on the edge of the lake, along with a play park and plenty of places to bike. You could comfortably stay 3-4 nights here!
7. West Coast nr Bordeaux (Booked 5 nights, stayed 1)
Campsite: Le Lac – Camping Siblu
❌ Wouldn’t recommend – dirty facilities, lake was grim.
Cost: £253 (£51 per night)
Distance: 261 miles (4h12)
The check in and pitch were fine (and we saw some wild boar snuffling around outside the fence! But we left after 1 night as the facilities were so poor and the lake seemed muddy and dirty from this site. On the first night we were kept awake by a rave in a nearby car park and fireworks that went off at around 1am. Not to be grumpy but just isn’t what we want! When we checked out there were queues of other people complaining about various things. Such a shame as I think it used to be a well run municipal site until recently acquired by Siblu.
Top tip: if you’re not happy and it’s not fixable by the campsite, move on. This happened twice on our trip and I was so relieved to drive away from both campsites we left – it’s not an endurance contest, it’s a holiday!
8. South West (4 nights)
Campsite: Camping La Comtesse
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £97 (£24 per night)
Distance: 54 miles (1h25)
Lovely little site, good facilities, and a quieter base compared with the coast. A fair few static caravans here which we were sandwiched between (but it didn’t ruin our experience as it was nice and quiet!). Lovely swimming pool and a couple of waterslides. A great bar and restaurant with different food themes each evening (check out the moules-frîtes!). Lots of owls and wildlife can be heard at night which we loved. Certainly better than the rave at the last place…! 🙂 Very friendly site – we’d definitely go again if we’re that way.
9. South West Inland (Booked 6 nights, stayed 2)
Campsite: Huttopia Vallée du Lot
❌ Not ideal – the pool was filthy and overcrowded, our pitch was next to the toilet block so we barely slept due to the noise of doors slamming and hairdryers going off until late (I blame the campers not the site), then a load of noise from 5am (I’ve never experienced such early starts at a campsite before!).
Cost: £206 (£34 per night)
Distance: 144 miles (3h15)
We cut this stay short as the area felt too quiet and restrictive. The pool was too small for the number of campers and there was no other water to swim in. It didn’t help that it was 41 degrees while we were here and almost unbearable.
The ground was solid dirt with big cracks and a massive trip hazards for energetic kids (mine took several layers of skin off his knees!!) – not the campsite’s fault but a factor of the environment and worth noting for here!
There is not much to do on site other than the pool and some games up at the club house. The surrounding villages and bastides were absolutely stunning and well worth a visit but you’ll need use of a car (not that easy with a campervan when you’re set up for the stay). So we cut our losses and booked a B&B nearby with air con in the room!
10. Villeneuve sur Lot: West, slightly inland (4 nights)
Bed and Breakfast: B&B Favau
✅ Would recommend
Cost: £413 (£103 per night)
Distance from last campsite: 14 miles (0h25)
This was not on the agenda but with temperatures in excess of 40 degrees we needed a break from the dusty heat of campsites. This was a lovely inland respite with friendly Belgian hosts and a stunning pool. Great for a slower pace and comfort after a dusty few weeks of camping. Was nice to be able to disappear off in the van each day to explore. Breakfast was utterly brilliant with a mixture of pastries, yoghurts, fruit, cheeses and breads.
Top tip: The river Lot is great to explore and paddle on – would be keen to explore the gorges more next time. We found some caves nearby which kept us cool for a couple of hours and the place is surrounded by bastides (medieval villages) to explore: we went to Tournon and is well worth a visit!
11. West Coast – Lac de Lacanau (7 nights)
Campsite: Camping Le Tedey
✅ Highly recommend – fantastic lake for swimming and paddleboarding
Cost: £401 (£57 per night)
Distance: 126 miles (2h45)
Fantastic campsite with great facilities and a beautiful lakefront setting. We met some friends here and spent most of our time on the little beach by the water paddling, snorkelling and playing card games!
12. Return to Caen (Overnighter)
Travel: Camping Le Tedey → Caen Ferry
Distance: 418 miles (6h30) A long final drive back to the ferry.
The drive was long, but thanks to the smooth, quiet French roads it was a breeze! We grabbed a quick bite at the port cafe before hopping on the overnight ferry. The cabin was a proper treat – comfy beds, a great shower, and waking up to the sunrise over Portsmouth with that classic Brittany harp music playing was the perfect way to end the trip.
Trip Highlights
🏔 The Alps – stunning scenery, hiking, and lakeside camping. The absolute dream for us!
🌊 Lakes – perfect for watersports and relaxing by the water. Highlights were Lac Aiguebelette, Lac d’Annecy and Lacanau.
🛶 Paddleboarding & kayaking – gave us extra freedom to explore beaches and sites away from the campsite when we couldn’t move the van once set up!
What We’d Do Differently
- Decide what activities we want to do in advance and use the campsite more as a base. This sounds obvious but being stuck in one place with a crowded pool and nothing in the surrounding areas is not my idea of a fun holiday anymore (but it’s taken me 2 x roadtrips to work this out!!!). Paddleboarding, hiking and maybe biking will be the main activities for our next trip.
- Have a better set up for the rain! Don’t underestimate the amount of different weather you will get: we had storms, hail, gails and extreme heat. We felt extremely cramped in the rain as we didn’t have anything other than our wind out awning. And we obviously took way too much stuff again….!! :). Next year we will get a gazebo with sides to keep more stuff in when it hammers down to give us more space in the van.
- Spend more time reading reviews of campsites and working out things to do walking distance away from the campsite on longer stays. Ideally choosing campsites on lakes or by mountains with walking distance access.
- Break up some of the longer drives with more stopovers. We could have explored more between East and West instead of doing it over 2 days.
- Keep watching the weather forecast and have a maximum heat tolerance you’re prepared to accept (probably around 38 degrees C for us). Have a back up strategy such as finding a B&B or hotel.
Top tips for Your Own French Road Trip:
- Mozzies! The ruiners of all holidays!! Take antihistamine daily for a week before you travel then every other night or so while you’re away – it was incredibly how much this helped our reaction to bites (because seemingly nothing stops these pesky mosquitoes these days). We also had a UV mozzie light in the van which I have added a link to which caught loads of them. I will buy a second to have on the go for next year as it was so effective!
- Weather. Go fully prepared for all weather types! We experienced hail, high winds, downpours, and extreme heat. Our coats and warm layers were totally insufficient for the trip and we ended up buying cheap fleeces and making do with damp rubbish raincoats.
- Ferries. Budget for ferries, particularly Brittany as they are typically more expensive than the Dover-Calais crossings. Weigh up the cost of driving to a further port to catch a cheaper ferry as you might find you’re no better off after factoring fuel and tolls. And ferries can add a bit of wow to the trip. We LOVED the C Club option on our crossing on the Guillaume de Normandie between Portsmouth and Caen. Lovely new ferry, drinks and buffet all day, quiet and very relaxing with views out of the front of the ferry. It was super stable and quiet too. We did the overnight back and the cabin was pure luxury after 5 weeks in a van……
- Duration. Mix short and long stays – it helps balance driving days. Have varying van setups for both – keeping it minimal on shorter stays.
- Break it up. Consider staying at a hotel or B&B for a few days in the middle of your trip. This really helped us especially in the scorching heat. (Tip: search for one with air con!!)
- Book in advance in peak season, especially around the lakes and Alps. Bring your own paddleboards/kayak if you enjoy watersports and an electric pump to save your back, and time! Ours is linked in our recommended gear list.
Final Thoughts
Our 5-week French road trip was an unforgettable adventure. From mountain lakes to the Atlantic coast, we experienced the best (and a few of the worst) that French campsites have to offer. If you’re planning a similar route, hopefully this guide helps you avoid the pitfalls and make the most of your time on the road.
Click here to download a PDF of the itinerary
Coming soon: our favourite camping gear for road trips
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The Touring Bulls 
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