From our own experiences, the Aires in France lead the way. The most popular ones (that is, busy) were those close to the edge of town or village.
I have sometimes found it difficult to locate these "sites" so signage is important.
It's a great start. I wish the UK would follow suit. Good luck with your task.
Ireland is on our wish list to visit.
------------- cramming for my finals in the twilight zone
Answers:
1) maximum walk 1 mile.
2) If the walk back to motor caravan is safe, up to 1 mile max.
3) If there are plenty of places to visit in the town and/or the “site” is central to other places of interest, two or three nights could be envisaged
4) Our campervan has no grey waste water tank at present. So we would need a drain to empty a waste water vessel. We are OK (all is 12 v in our campervan) for up to 72 hours without electricity
5) see the typical prices in euros in other replies. The better the facilities, the more we would pay.
6) Groups definitely.
7) None experienced
8) Feeling secure is high on our list, so lighting, access and location away from known trouble spots is important.
------------- cramming for my finals in the twilight zone
Quote: Originally posted by LobeyDosser on 23/4/2014
...and whilst I am sure that some Travelling Folks are genuinely nice and well mannered people who would never dream of encroaching on other people's land or overstaying their welcome anywhere, we came away with the feeling that if you tow or drive a camper, we were all tarred with the same brush and unless you drove directly from one caravan park to the next and did not stop anywhere, then you were not welcome.
I do not like being labelled as a Second Class Citizen but that was the feeling that Ireland left me with. Now whether this is a problem for a change in government policy or a change public attitude, I know not, but it is a problem and Height Barriers are the physical signs that tourists first see that all is not as it should be when they tour there.
Off Topic,sorry..but..
I think we do have to accept that it is not always "Travellers" that have caused these barriers and restrictions to be put into place........
Unfortunately there are many cases where the "Motor-homers" have and are still being, their own worst enemy... (.e.g Scarborough, Huttoft Car Terrace etc).
I fully agree with you Pepe63. There are many areas here in Scotland where, 20 years ago we enjoyed motorhome wildcamping in beautiful and scenic surroundings.
These days those same places are rubbish heap eyesores where the blame can be laid firmly at the doors of the motorhome fraternity.
We have always camped on the premise of Leave nothing but tyre/foot prints and Take nothing but memories.
Also we only wildcamped where there was no alternative campsite. We could hardly be able to afford the purchase price and the running costs of a motorhome and not be able to afford to stay on a designated campsite, if one had been in the same area.
There will always be a number of different reasons why people would rather wild camp away from the confines of a designated campsite with all its rules, restrictions and fellow campers, but there does seem to be a rise in the numbers of those who use remote places to hold wild and very drunken parties that they would not dare to hold in their own back gardens and the mess they leave behind is appalling.
...there's a "discussion" on the *MMM forum (outandaboutlive) at the moment, concerning the Aberystwyth MHers...and one of the chaps who had been staying there(4 days) in his "stealth camper", is actually on the thread(..and had posted photos)
..and...wait for this...during such "stays", he sees nowt wrong in routinely defecating into bin plastic bags and then disposing of it in the dog bins..or (as is the case in New Quay, where he moved on to), the ordinary bins, in which you can put dog mess!
(As he says.. .."..it's no worse that dog pooh..." !? )
I kid you not..and he's not a wind up, because he's posted similarly before now..
And they wonder why we get a bad press?!
People eh!.....I'd ban the bl**dy lot of 'em!
(*Mods: Sorry about the reference to another forum..but the fact that some MHers/campervanners behave in such a way, does need getting out there).
That is disgusting Pepe and I thought I had seen it all when we watched a motorhome drive out of the car park in Mallaig with his grey water tank open as he emptied the contents right along the Main Street.
Must remember to include bins and plastic bag dispensers in my report.
Seriously though there's Is a huge problem with the shall we say none-hobbyist motorhomer caravan owner here in Ireland leaving any open area worse than pig styes with the council paying thousands in clean up. Hence overhead restricted everywhere. We are planning some sort of booking / registering system where a credit card detail is taken over the phone so that the clean up costs can be reclaimed if needed.
I on a separate topic I'm planning taking my family and MH away for a couple of nights this bank holiday weekend about 2 hours from home to give it a run after repairs from the Doe test. Prior to a long track to Cornwall in June.
my missis wants to take the car so she can return home so one of the lads can play a friendly match and then return to the campsite. Is this a reasonable request.
Consultation and input from other wives welcome. Lol.
Speaking from our own experience, what we really missed in Ireland was somewhere we could park our motorhome during the day in the centre of the town so that we could explore the shops and buy some of the more traditional Irish foods that were hard to find over here.
We didn't want to camp in towns as there are many beautiful campsites out in the country or along the coasts.
We wouldn't object to paying for our parking, so a manned parking could profit the council as well as motorhome owners.
You've got quite a difficult task on your hands to be honest..
Okay, so let's say you/they find some parking locations(P&R or existing car-parks that are large enough etc)
So....How many spaces do you "allocate" for MHs?...5?..10?..15?
What happens when word gets out(via forums)of how "motorhome friendly" you are and you get more turn up, all "expecting" a space and there are none available?(maybe because some have refused to move on and set up camp?) ...Where will those vehicles end up?
(*and boy Oh boy! do some people "expect"!...they've, "paid their road tax!"..."it's theirright!" etc )
Unless there are plenty of alternative options(..that are nearby and clearly indicated), you'll end up with them **lining your streets, if you're not careful(** see links above)
I'm not meaning to sound negative on this, it's just that, if done at all, you need to be sure you'll have the capacity, "just in case"...?
Otherwise you may just be opening a can of worms...
This may sound odd but I see this a bit like cycle lanes...in so much as, if they're done at all, they need doing properly!....and not just some half ar*ed attempt by way of a few cheap white lines, encroaching on/into existing road space(..or as may be the case here, existing roadside parking...).
Rather than have a designated motorhome parking area, would it not be more profitable all round to have a proper council run caravan park at the edge of town, either on a bus route into town, or a mini bus service from the campsite into the town.
That way you are not restricting yourself just to motorhomes, but to all forms of campers.
Ireland is well known for its alcoholic hospitality and a method of getting back to the campsite after "well fuelled shopping trip" will have a lot of appeal to relaxing and holidaying campers.
Unfortunately, as we know, it's not the Mhers that'd use a 'site, that cause the problems, it's some of those who'd refuse to use/pay for a 'site, no matter how close in or how good the public transport links were...
And a lot of touring MHers do just want to be able to roll in/onto a town square/sea-front, prom' and just park up there, even if it is only for a 24hrs "stopover"(...parking on the outskirts just doesn't appeal to them, if it did,they'd be using out of town 'sites or P&Rs etc already...)
Although you do raise another interesting "grey area"..the one of being "Drunk in charge"..?
On a "gated" 'site, where you'd obviously be "pitched up", you'd be okay but how would things pan out if you were "overnighting" in a designated bay, in a public carpark?..on in a designated, road side "bay"? ....
These are the sorts of issues that would need ironing out ...
Being "drunk in charge" is enforceable when you are not clearly pitched on a recognised camping park.
So roadside overnighters cannot drink. Simples.
We often overnighted in lay-byes, parking areas, view points etc but we always went to bed dressed so that if we were woken during the night and questioned about why we were there, we could say that we were resting after a long drive and would be moving on soon. No one would argue with that.
However, any overnighting follows the same rules as if you were driving, including being breathalysed.
Quote: Originally posted by LobeyDosser on 29/4/2014
Being "drunk in charge" is enforceable when you are not clearly pitched on a recognised camping park. So roadside overnighters cannot drink. Simples.
I agree Lobey...But what I mean is, by being on/in a "designated" overnighting space (and not just parked up in some "unsanctioned" layby).would some see it the same as being on a 'site?....
I think it's certainly something that would need making clear on any 'park signage...just in case....
It would've been interesting if plod had knocked on a few of those Aberystwyth "prom' campers" windows...to see if any of them had had a drink or two(..as some had reportedly been there for weeks at a time, I dare say it would've been a fair bet..)
Yes, I see what you mean. My guess is that if it was a parking area where someone had paid to stay overnight, then it could be argued that they were not going to be driving. However if they had not paid anything, then who could say whether they were staying or about to move on.
Definitely a Grey Area.
Neither of us drink anyway, so it is not something we have ever really considered, but in reference to Ireland in particular, where you find Grocer's shops with a Bar on the other side of the counter and numerous other types of shops in the same vein, it must be hard for some folks to refrain from a glass or three while out to buy their cornflakes.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Town Parking - What do MH owners need.
(.e.g Scarborough, Huttoft Car Terrace etc). 
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