Hi everyone,

Im going to west europe, from Kiel to Normmandie, from there i do not have any specific plan. But this is the first time im going to use my tent for accomondation. due to that, I am wondering, how easy is it to find camping site for tent along the way, is it better to plan a bit in advance or as easy as to find hotel in smaller citys?

Any tip is welcome.

Hi
2024 will be the 30th year that my wife and I have been motorcycle camping in Europe - usually for around 4 weeks during the peak summer months.
We have never booked a campsite in advance, even when we have been to high density tourist places like Corsica.
In France there is a campsite in every town and in between - it is the most visited country in the world.
We love France and could easily spend 3 months there every summer pottering around from campsite to campsite. In fact this year we are riding from the UK to Stuttgart then over to Brittany via the Morvan. Then a ferry from France to Ireland, a tour around and home. We will be camping for three and a half weeks - nothing is booked except the ferries.
I know that some people like certainty and a schedule but if you’re not necessarily that way inclined then, I believe, it’s better to wing it.
Have a great time

You won't have any problems finding campsites in France. Virtually every town (and some villages) will have their 'municipal' site - basic but sometimes in wonderful locations. Then there's a whole load of commercial sites going right up the quality scale to places like the Castels group (an 'elite' group with sites in places like the grounds of chateaux etc). Prices to match of course, with some more expensive than cheap hotels (F1 etc).

In the middle of summer some of the sites in more desirable locations do fill up early and there's a few I use regularly that in July / August that I always try to get to before 6.00pm. You might also bear in mind that increasingly campsites are cutting back on cafes / restaurants as the majority of visitors these days are in camper vans rather than tents and cook for themselves. So it'll be either bring your own food, find a local restaurant or sometimes there will be a burger van or similar that turns up in the evenings.

You're not going to Spain but my experience there is completely the opposite to France. A lot of sites have vanished, and those on the med coast in particular have transformed themselves into 'holiday centres' that don't take people wanting to stop for one or two nights.

Just search on google or Apple Maps when you get to a location that you like the look of and you will probably be spoilt for choice.

I have never had a problem when on a bike with a small tent you will nearly always find a spot

camping .... just bear in mind two things
! french camp sites are not noisy
2 spanish sites are very noisy .some people dont arrive till very late !

Don't worry. You will find camp sites.
My most common routine is to take a break at 2-3 PM. To study maps and campsites. And decide where I want to end the day.

Sometimes, when I know my destination already the day before, I look up camp site(s) in the evening. Just to avoid using hours in the next evening, searching.

One thing. Many camp sites are made for camper vans. With hard surface. Those days with soft grass och soul are mostly done. So I prefere cupol tents that stand without pegs. As longa as it is not windy. And bring some kind of hammer to get the spikes down,

And I prefer campsites in the nature, rather than in cities. But that is just my taste.

Camping or hotels are both easily possible and there are plenty of apps to find vacancies. Unless you have a firm itinerary Erik's plan is a good one, take a break early afternoon and book your place for the night. Wild camping is not always easy in Europe and if you do go to a campsite you'll have the advantage of washrooms etc. Personally I'm of an age where I prefer the comfort of a cheap hotel and a pub meal, but I generally take camping gear with me in case the weather is fine and somewhere nice presents itself.

The usual suspects for hotels usually work ok but I've had mixed results with campsite apps. Pitchup in particular is one I now treat with great suspicion. A couple of years back we booked - and paid a deposit for - two sites with them. One had turned into a skatepark when we arrived, and a second one, a couple of days later, didn't exist at all. I've also turned up at a few that only took camper vans and not tents.

The are campsites and campsites.. Some has advanced facilities and goodies like Swimming-Pool (heated, cold), washing machine, Restaurants, Tennis, Beach Volleyball and so on.

For around 10 Euro`s there is an App available from the german ADAC. It covers Europe and has a huge Database.
https://www.adac.de/services/apps/campingfuehrer/

There you can filter for thoose goodies. And more: you can see the very valuable User-Ratings, pricetags, helpful hints, probably sections of the campsites who are preferable and so on.

Scan for campsites nearby during your trip could too be a nice function...

A time-safer for thoose who are short on time and plan to stay more than just for overnight.

Surfy

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Thanks all for the information. I had a very nice trip and no problems at all to find campsite.
Will def go camping for next bike trip. Hope it is as easy to find in east as it was in west.

What apps or websites do you use to find the campsites?

I've been using iOverlander to find safe spots to camp in a campervan, but this time we will be motorcycle camping.