# Dieppe and Normandy Aires update



## petercheason (Jun 5, 2009)

Having just returned yesterday from a week in Normandy I thought an update on the Aires where I visited might be useful .

DIEPPE. There is an Aire at the roundabout  right next to the Ferry disembarkation point in Dieppe , it now costs 7 euros to park for 24 hours but if you get there after 9 at night and leave before 9 in the morning you will get away scot free because the very nice (and attractive) French Lady who checks the Aire only works days. It has Waste water point and fresh water top up , I did not however find any power points. An alternative is to drive to the sea front /promenade where you can park for free in the Car park. there is a public Toilet close to hand . 

ARROMANCHE-LES-BAINS . a lovely Aire which is totally free although it says it has only space for 14 camper cars you are allowed to park on the adjoining Car Park as well last Monday evening which was a holiday in France there were 39 motorhomes parked mainly French , Three Brits , one Aussie and his Missus , 2 Dutchman an Italian and a Spaniard ....There is Fresh water , waste water disposal point and a public loo all on site and 2 minutes walk to the nearest Bar and a wonderful Boulangerie for fresh bread and luverlee pastries. There is an alternative up on the cliffs next to the memorial and 360 degree cinema which depicts the normandy landings , Mulberry Harbour history etc. It is a large car park and costs 4 euros for 24 hours , but no water or waste facility , there is however a public loo in the Cinema.Lovely view in the morning as the Sun rises over the channel.

PORT-EN-BESSAIN. I was a little disapointed with this Aires as it is tucked away in a housing estate on the outskirts of the town and is about a 10 to 15 minute walk into town .Did not appear to have any facilities other than water and it was 6 euros a day .

BAYEUX. Beautiful town , wonderful Cathedral and terrific tapestry , the Aires has spaces for 50 motorhomes with public loos although only 3 were occupied while I was there! Public Loos (30 cents ), water , waste disposal point and 4 electric hook ups however I was put off by the signs extolling all motorists not to leave valuables in sight as there is a lot of theft from vehicles in the area, so I stayed during the day whilst visiting the sights and made the  pilgrimage to the British War Cemetry, after which I returned to Arromanche.

On speaking to the locals and fellow Motorhomers of various nationalities they all agreed that there is more than ample wild and Aires facilities in the Area and it is very rare to see sign advising against motor home parking . I can thoroughly recommend the area and as at the moment Transmanche Ferries are very competatively priced from Newhaven to Dieppe (I thought a bargain) , my return trip cost me £151. and finally an added bonus ..the Sunshone all week too !!!!!


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## barryd (Jun 5, 2009)

Nice one thanks for the update.  We are off on our first European trip on Tuesday morning and Arromanche is our first stop.  I also want to do the cemetary and the landing beaches.  We are going to try and wildcamp where we can an use our scooter to visit places nearby.


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## Belgian (Jun 5, 2009)

Thanks for the updates Petercheason, very welcome.
But please could you put it under thread European > France > Departement 14 Calvados. In this way everything stays together, and it would be easier to find it back.
Nevertheless many thanks for the valuable add.
Happy wilding
Leo


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## Belgian (Jun 5, 2009)

barryd said:


> Nice one thanks for the update.  We are off on our first European trip on Tuesday morning and Arromanche is our first stop.  I also want to do the cemetary and the landing beaches.  We are going to try and wildcamp where we can an use our scooter to visit places nearby.


You'll find wilding spots near the US cemetry at Omaha beach I can recommend:
*OMAHA BEACH (32AF20)
USA. cemetry > church
>> P cemetry (>17h) exterior P (gates of the interior parking are closed at dusk). N 49 21 29.1, W 0 51 0.5
The next 3 are wilding places (at least they where 3 years ago)
P Omaha Beach( below US cim.)> beach, towards German blockhouses at the end
W > "Les Moulins", N 49 21 39.6, W 0 50 48.5
W "Vallée du Ruquet" N 49 21 52.3, W 0 51 48.7
(Happy landing)


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## petercheason (Jun 5, 2009)

Belgian said:


> Thanks for the updates Petercheason, very welcome.
> But please could you put it under thread European > France > Departement 14 Calvados. In this way everything stays together, and it would be easier to find it back.
> Nevertheless many thanks for the valuable add.
> Happy wilding
> Leo



I shall try to do that Leo and thank you for your goodwishes which are returned , pleased the info is of use


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## barryd (Jun 6, 2009)

Belgian said:


> You'll find wilding spots near the US cemetry at Omaha beach I can recommend:
> *OMAHA BEACH (32AF20)
> USA. cemetry > church
> >> P cemetry (>17h) exterior P (gates of the interior parking are closed at dusk). N 49 21 29.1, W 0 51 0.5
> ...




Hi Belgian

Many thanks for this.  I have over the past week been looking through your posts and your GPS wild camping spot posts are fantastic.  I have compiled a document on my PC with screen dumps from Google Earth and your GPS co-ordinates.  They are really useful as you can just paste them into Google Earth and have a look at the spot.  If it looks good I copy and paste the image and GPS into the document for each region (done Brittany and Normandy so far).  Thought I would do as much as I can before we set off on Monday as I am not sure how good an Internet connection I will have when away.  After Normandy and Brittany we will be heading to Loire, Burgandy, Rhone Alps, Switzerland then maybe Italian Lakes, Germany and Austria.

Kind Regards
Barry


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## Belgian (Jun 6, 2009)

barryd said:


> Hi Belgian
> 
> Many thanks for this.  I have over the past week been looking through your posts and your GPS wild camping spot posts are fantastic.  I have compiled a document on my PC with screen dumps from Google Earth and your GPS co-ordinates.  They are really useful as you can just paste them into Google Earth and have a look at the spot.  If it looks good I copy and paste the image and GPS into the document for each region (done Brittany and Normandy so far).  Thought I would do as much as I can before we set off on Monday as I am not sure how good an Internet connection I will have when away.  After Normandy and Brittany we will be heading to Loire, Burgandy, Rhone Alps, Switzerland then maybe Italian Lakes, Germany and Austria.
> 
> ...


Hi Barry,
There is even a better program for co-ordinates conversion. 
GPS coordinaten, nuttige plaatsen, NP, points of interest, POI, waypoints, routes, tracks
It is in Dutch, (which could be hardly a problem with figures ), but it gives you directly Google Earth maps, and is much easier to print out.
I even use it to retrieve the co-ordinates of places I've been but forgot to put the GPS to work.
Enjoy jour trip in "la belle France". When you are in the french Alps don't hesitate to drive trough the Vercors (near Grenoble).
Happy wilding 
Leo


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## barryd (Jun 6, 2009)

Belgian said:


> Hi Barry,
> There is even a better program for co-ordinates conversion.
> GPS coordinaten, nuttige plaatsen, NP, points of interest, POI, waypoints, routes, tracks
> It is in Dutch, (which could be hardly a problem with figures ), but it gives you directly Google Earth maps, and is much easier to print out.
> ...



Thanks again, another very useful site.  I dont know how we survived without all this technology!

Cheers
Barry


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## barryd (Jun 6, 2009)

***** said:


> I never use sat nav and I don't have one
> Some of the nicest and best locations I have found by chance and mostly they were not official aires
> I never go out of my way to find an aire, I just pop into the village



I get the impression ***** that this is what its about in France.  I dont like to be too organised either but as a Newbie to France I have assumed that being prepared and armed with various maps and GPS devices with a list of good spots is a good idea.  From what you and others have said these good spots are all over, especially in places like Brittany.  I dont think however I could be without the Sat Nav though, certainly it takes the stress out of journeys in unknown places.  I have had a lot of time on my hands leading up to this trip and it has been great fun looking up all the places that have been posted especially the stuff provided by Belgian who seems to have been just about everywhere!  We have in the last year become pretty good at sniffing out the wild spots in the UK so I guess if we can do it here we have a pretty good chance anywhere.


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## Pioneer (Jun 6, 2009)

Hi petercheason,
what a lovely place Arromanche-les-Bains is, and today, the anniversary of the D Day landings, I am sure it will bring back lots of memories to the Vets attending the services outside the Mueseum.
A couple of photo's I took when visiting in 2008, showing the remains of the Mulberry Harbour and 25 pounder outside the mueseum.

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/vv72/Pioneer_photos/Berlin-Normandy046.jpg

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/vv72/Pioneer_photos/Berlin-Normandy045.jpg

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/vv72/Pioneer_photos/Berlin-Normandy044.jpg

Happy Camping


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## bob690 (Jun 6, 2009)

Hi Pioneer, good shots. I,m not usually the touristy type but I too visited the normandy coastline last year. Pegasus bridge memorial, gun emplacements, war graves etc. I found it a marvellous experience and extremely moving, thoroughly recommended....Bob


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## Belgian (Jun 6, 2009)

Hi Pioneer,
Nice shots. 
and Bob: Did you have a look at Invasion of Normandy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ?


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