crime rate abroad southern france?

smiler

Guest
:confused:Hi there maybe a silly question but has anybody else heard anything about travellers being targeted ie not just motorhomes being broken into but the owners being mugged when either getting in or out of their motorhomes or as they come out of eateries.
Does anybody or has anybody experienced any of the above as we have just been warned by a friend over in spain the crime rate has sored in france and spain since the recession.
 
Hi smiler,
we probably have the same problems here in UK, just don't hear about it.
Just be careful, check surroundings, if shopping one of you stay with van, if dining try to park under street lights and if possible so that you can see the van from inside the restaurant, all the commonsense things.
If we both enter a supermarket for instance, once we get indoors, I give it a maximum of a minute then go back outside to check. If the B--t---s are going to breakin they will do it sooner rather than later.
By the way I suspect a Security Guy did my door locks at a supermarket in Lisbon (mentioned in a previous thread) he was around my van when we had finished shopping , looking a bit sheepish, didn't notice the locks until the day after, but that's life. Take care.

Happy Camping:)
 
thanks

we generally do pretty much the same thing as you have described. And tend to sleep with one eye open lol.
We have 3 large dogs we tend to leave them in the van when going into a supermarket with roof vents open but we have been told that the morrocans quite happily gain entrance this way even when the vehicle is moving (which i find hard to belive myself but there you go)
Belive the weather isnt 2 good at the moment but still its better than here i suppose.
 
Just take care, in southern Spain and S of France, my mate who now lives in Belgium had Motorhome, scooter, cycles, two dogs in the van parked up at supermarket in Orange, went into shop, end of story, lot taken. 12months later it was returned by the German Police, someone did a check on it during a sale and reported it stolen. Dogs still missing.
The same year, I witnessed a van being robbed, but thought it was the owner coming out of the van, on a beach in Spain. The owner when he came back from a walk with his dog, was an Englishman living in Spain, Spanish Reg van, LHD, but still did him. Take care.

Happy Camping(well most of the time)
 
glad they got the van back but the dogs i think they would have preferred the dogs return. after all the dogs become part of the family a van can be replaced. i think we all need to be more security conscious in these times, abroad or in this country there has been a speight of car break ins where i live recently. we have lived here 5 years and its not happened in the past but over the last few months 4 cars have been broken into luckily not me up to press
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Spot on mandrake, Jan still cry's over the missing dogs, two lovely Yorkies.
 
yea when a pet dies its bad but at least you know they are no more, but when you lose them in that circumstance you always wonder where they are .we lost a cat 18 months ago went out one night never came back still wonder what happend to her
 
Last edited by a moderator:
We got broken into last summer during the night when parked at the last service station south of Clement Feraud (I think thats how its spelt).There was three of us asleep in the van at the time and we heard nothing which is unusal because the central locking makes a fair noise on opening.
 
It's careless to stay /sleep overnight at French Motorway service stations - esp. in southern France. These are the best places to be robbed.

By the way - it's spelled Clermont-Ferrand :)
 
Thanks for that.

We had done a long drive from Spain and at the time of night it was the option
 
oTTo said:
It's careless to stay /sleep overnight at French Motorway service stations - esp. in southern France. These are the best places to be robbed.

By the way - it's spelled Clermont-Ferrand :)
Click to expand...
Golden advice ! Don't use the parkings on the French or Spanish motorways.
Don't use the vaste parking lots of those 'hyper-marchés' near the major cities.
Leave the motorway and spend your money at the smaller supermarkets in the villages, and spend the night safely far from the crowd.
For safe places, and aires, in France: have a look at
http://a.ccl.free.fr/annuaire/accueil.htm
 
service stations

Hi
last year was the first time for us abroad and we had been told not to use the service stations but the first night we came of the toll roads and couldnt find a camp site. we retuned back on to motorwas just to find a service station and we ended up staying every night on a service station al the way through france and down to albetera.
First few nights didnt sleep well but eventually relaxed enogh to get some sleep.Looking back i dont know if we were just lucky or if things arnt as bad as people think.
 
Beauté, tranquilité et sécurité ! ?

ajs said:
yep looked.... it's in French :eek:... sorry... liguistical moron here :confused:
regards:eek:
ajs
Click to expand...
OK linguistacal moron :eek::D:D allow me to help you out :rolleyes:
Open http://a.ccl.free.fr/annuaire/accueil.htm, Click on a department on the green map of France (there is also a larger but unclickable map) Take a department e.g 62. Then you get a list of places. The best spots are tagged in yellow (these are BTS - Beauté, Tranquillité, Sécurité- Nice, restfull and safe places) under column 6 is the situation (Babel-fish wil help you out to translate)
Column 7 means: P = parking, ap = services; column 8: e= water available, eu= gray water disposal, k7 (=cassette) toilet disposal.
Really these BTS are the best you can get, you will not be disapointed.:)
Voilà c'est simple comme bonjour. ;):D
 
Do need to keep these supposed risks in perspective.

The most dangerous part of your day is not the chance of getting robbed.

It is not even the very high danger of death and injury involved in driving for 300km on the wrong side of the road.

It may well be the risk of breaking a hip - with the very high risk of death by complications - as you step out of the motorhome on to a frosty step.
 
Belgian said:
(Babel-fish wil help you out to translate)
Click to expand...


:p... just translated directions to 1 of these places...


"to 'Merpuis'10km-N-terminal - on the water"


looks like i've to learn how to walk on water :eek:

regards:D
aj
 
smiler said:
Hi
last year was the first time for us abroad and we had been told not to use the service stations but the first night we came of the toll roads and couldnt find a camp site. we retuned back on to motorwas just to find a service station and we ended up staying every night on a service station al the way through france and down to albetera.
First few nights didnt sleep well but eventually relaxed enogh to get some sleep.Looking back i dont know if we were just lucky or if things arnt as bad as people think.
Click to expand...


we used to do the same for many years and always felt safe infact we never gave any thought to question of being safe or not we just did what we would have done at home the quieter the airea the better
the aires are watched by cctv and we have never had a problem and if you dont pass the peage in 24 hours they are looking for you
as we are getting older may be we should not do it now .if we had to love in fear of our lives life would not be worth living ,
there is just as much crime all over the world so why should france be worse
some people do look like first timers with gleaming new motorhomes with new biles on the back advertising the fact that they are not too badly off and are an obvious target
we like to blend in with the locals but do prefer now the local villages most have a parking area near facilitys and safe like for instance these places :
http://www.village-etape.com/the_villages_etapes/rubrique36.html?&lang=en

do not be put off exploring by the scaremongers we all are taking the same chance just traveling the roads,some are unfortunate and some are not
 
Perspective folkes couple of years ago on an Isle near normoitier !?)* In France .
we had parked on an aire and went to dip our toes.... then we looked in a few rock pools and then decided to walk into town from the aire. I had gone about a kilometre, the aire was 2 out of town, when i suddenly thought ...... I didn't lock the Van.....PANIC.... I walked.. nearly ran back , as I was worried as the fellow pitchers were a bit of the Gypsy ilk.
When I got back all van doors were unlocked, my camera was on the table and all our stuff was just ... There.
I breathed a sigh Of relief, the nieghbours just shrugged and pointed to there eyes as if to say, we were looking after your Van.
So keep things in perspective....

IF IT FEELS WRONG.... MOVE ON. ..........IF IT FEELS RIGHT.... SIT TIGHT
 
Last edited:
Tony Lee said:
Do need to keep these supposed risks in perspective.

The most dangerous part of your day is not the chance of getting robbed.

It is not even the very high danger of death and injury involved in driving for 300km on the wrong side of the road.

It may well be the risk of breaking a hip - with the very high risk of death by complications - as you step out of the motorhome on to a frosty step.
Click to expand...

Next question: Is right the right side or left side the wrong side ? For you the left side is the right side, for us right side is the right side ???:confused::confused:
Solution: take the middle of the road :D:D
 
ajs said:
:p... just translated directions to 1 of these places...


"to 'Merpuis'10km-N-terminal - on the water"


looks like i've to learn how to walk on water :eek:

regards:D
aj
Click to expand...

:confused::);)
That's why the French are sometimes called frogs. :D:eek::D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who viewed this discussion (Total:0)

Back
Top