MARCH NEWSLETTER from
motorhomingfrance.co.uk
Here is this month's newsletter from France :
COMING TO FRANCE?
What are the new requirements for coming to France after ******?
For full details go to: ‘More Useful Info’
The borders of France are closed to visitors from non-EU countries (including the UK) & entry from EU countries requires a negative Covid test. However, due to the constantly changing Covid19 situation, please check with French government travel restrictions as well as UK government rules regarding entry & a future return to the UK.
The current ferry/ tunnel situation is as below:
Brittany Ferries have recently confirmed that two ferries will be laid up & a third will not resume crossings. Most routes are either reduced or suspended, this has the following effects:
Plymouth to Roscoff: Service resumes March 2021.
Portsmouth to Cherbourg: Weekly service has recommenced using their new vessel 'Galicia'
Portsmouth to St Malo: Suspended until March 2021.
Portsmouth to Caen: Running daily but reduced capacity between Nov & March 2021.
Portsmouth to Le Havre/ St Malo & Poole to Cherbourg: Services suspended
Plymouth to Santander: Service resumes March 2021.
Portsmouth to Santander: Twice weekly service
Eurotunnel are operating a regular service, check-in at least 45 mins before travel.
DFDS are sailing to normal schedules but have reduced passenger capacity, face masks required on board.
P&O have said that their ferries are still running on the Dover to Calais routes for ‘essential travel and freight services’.
FRENCH ROADS IN MARCH
France is not under 'confinement' at present & 'leisure' travel between regions is again allowed although there is a 6pm to 6am curfew, hence traffic levels in March will still be relatively low on French roads (especially at night). There is just 1 problem day forecast by the French traffic information agency 'Bison Futé' for the month & this is the 6th which is forecast as orange - 'difficile' in the morning & red - 'tres difficile' in the afternoon. This possible problem day is due to holiday traffic around the ski resorts but any traffic problems are dependant on any future Covid-19 restrictions that may be introduced by the government.
See the website "Travel" page for latest traffic news.
The 2021 Traffic forecast calendar for French roads is now available on the website “Travel” page together with Weather forecasts, Fuel prices & links to “Live” traffic maps for France.
FRENCH WEATHER – 7 DAY FORECAST
After an unusually warm week in France which has also seen most of the country receive a dusting of Saharan sand, the first 7 days of March in France continue dry but with a return to more seasonal temperatures. The week remains dry but with varying degrees of sunshine/ cloud cover. Daytime temperatures throughout the week range from a low of 8C in the north-east to a high of 17C in the far south-west of France.
FUEL PRICES
French fuel prices in February have again continued to rise. The national average price for a litre of diesel on 28th February, 2021 is 1.43 € up 0.06€ from last month. The cheapest diesel in France today is at the Esso station in Eu near Dieppe selling at 1.29 €/ l. Go to the website "Travel" page for the latest average diesel prices at French supermarkets, autoroutes & other filling stations.
WHAT’S NEW ON FRENCH ROADS 2021
2021 will see several changes regarding driving in France.....See the ‘News Blog’ for more details.
2020 ROAD DEATHS DOWN
The number of people killed on French roads in 2020 was 2,550 – 700 fewer than in 2019, representing a 20% drop, mainly attributed to the lower traffic volumes during the pandemic. There was also a corresponding drop in the number of people injured in road traffic accidents – 44,997, down 19%.
TWO WHEELERS BEWARE
The practice of motorcycles driving between two lanes of queueing traffic has always been illegal in France but a scheme to see whether it should be allowed (as long as the speed was under 50kph) was trialled in several French departments from 2019. The experiment however finished last month without a decisive result, the practice therefore remains illegal for the time being & is punishable by a €135 fine, however a new trial is due to start soon.
WHICH FRENCH DRIVERS TO AVOID
The French insurance comparison website ‘LesFurets.com’ has conducted a survey of which are the worst French drivers based on a study of over 5 million car insurance quotes & claims made from 2019 to 2020. According to this study....See the ‘News Blog’ for more details.
VILLAGE ETAPE GUIDE
Village Etapes are small French villages of less than 5,000 inhabitants that strive to maintain their character as well as offering a range of services to travellers en route. The association has just published its free guide of 70 of these villages that have a motorhome service area & parking close to the village. This free guide can be downloaded in PDF format from: www.village-etape.fr/boutique/
DON’T OVERTAKE A SNOW-PLOUGH!
You can’t at present..., but if you ever drive along a snow covered road in France - you should be aware of a regulation that forbids you to overtake a snow-plough whilst it is clearing the road. The possible fine is €90 & a maximum 3 year suspension of a driving (French) license.
NEW SUPER-RADARS NOT SO SUPER
At the end of 2016 the French government announced the introduction of the Mesta-Fusion 2, or ‘turret’ radars, that were said to be able to detect numerous motoring infringements including using a phone, not wearing a seat belt, not having insurance, no MOT as well as recording vehicle speeds. It now turns out that these claims were somewhat exaggerated & the government has just revealed that the ‘turret’ radars can at present only be used to record speeding vehicles.
FIRST SPEED BUMP VICTORY
Three French motoring organisations have for the past few years been trying to outlaw ‘ralentisseurs’ or speed bumps that are too high or in a wrong location & they have just achieved their first success. The courts have recently instructed the town of St-Jean-le-Vieux to remove one of their humps, the first of 250 municipalities that are being taken to court over these matters. It is hoped that this ruling will set a precedent for other illegal ‘bumps’.
2021 FRENCH AIRES SURVEY
The French motorhome magazine ‘Le Monde du Camping-Car’ has recently compiled its annual aires guide & subsequently has completed a comprehensive survey of French aires. The main findings from this survey are .....See the ‘News Blog’ for more details.
FRANCE PASSION GUIDE 2021
The new France Passion guide for 2021 is now available, this 29th edition includes 27 regional maps, directions, GPS coordinates, the services offered & the activity of each host, their products, the best restaurants at the stopover and photos of the locations. The guide, member card & sticker which give access to over 2,000 farms & vineyards is available from : www.france-passion.com/en/ for €30 plus p&p.
WHICH DEPARTMENTS HAVE RETURNED TO 90km/ hr?
Driving in France has become more confusing since 2019 when the various departments were allowed to set the speed limits on their main roads. The various main roads in France were all limited to an 80km/ hr speed limit in 2017 in a bid to reduce road deaths but after two years & no definitive results, the departments were allowed to return to the original 90 km/hr limit if they wanted.
This lack of a uniform national speed limit makes life very confusing as you travel from one department, that may have returned 100% of its roads to the 90 limit, to a neighbouring department that has over 90% of its roads still at the 80 km/hr limit. In fact, in all of France only 3.5% of the 900,000 kms of road that previously had a 90 km/ hr limit have been returned to that speed limit. Adding further to the confusion, especially for foreign drivers, all the main ‘Routes Nationales’ remain under the control of the regions & remain at an 80 km/ hr limit.
In order to help drivers to be aware of the various limits, the French ‘League for the Defence of Drivers’ has produced a map to show the percentage of roads that have returned to a 90 limit. To see the map, go to the ‘More Useful Info’ page on the website.
KINDLE VERSIONS OF GUIDES
Three of our books;
‘Best Aires in France 2021/ 22’
‘Historical Tours in France by Motorhome’
‘Most Beautiful Villages & Towns in France by Motorhome’
are now available in Kindle versions from the various Amazon websites. For more details see here.
WHAT’S ON (& not on) IN FRANCE IN MARCH:
NOTE: Due to the coronavirus pandemic there won't be as many events taking place in France this year & events already planned are subject to cancellation / postponement. This month's events that are continuing, cancelled or have been re-scheduled are listed below.
MULHOUSE CARNIVAL
The Carnival starts in the evening with the parade on Place de la Réunion and continues until Sunday evening. Throughout the weekend there are processions of decorated floats, accompanied by fifes and drums. People in fancy dress follow the procession in a festive and friendly atmosphere. At night, the carnival-goers gather for live music in the carnival's partner restaurants and bars. POSTPONED TILL MAY
BORDEAUX CARNIVAL
On 8th March, Bordeaux Carnival welcomes the arrival of spring to the Aquitaine and an energetic cocktail of dance workshops, a grand parade at 14:00 and musical performances take place on Sunday. As well as huge digital displays there are chariots & costume parades along the banks of the Garonne river. CANCELLED
VENETIAN CARNIVAL
This carnival takes place in Annecy & runs for three days, several hundred masks from all over Europe parade and pose in the streets of the old town, by the lake, on Le Pâquier field, in the Jardins de l'Europe gardens or along the canals, in customary silence. Everyone vies to have the most colourful and eye-catching costume, and to display the most decorations and creativity. POSTPONED TILL APRIL 16TH - 18TH
MONTE CARLO ARTS FESTIVAL
Monte-Carlo Spring Arts Festival is a classical music festival that lasts for four or five weekends in early spring, spanning the months of March and April. The concerts take place in several concert halls in Monaco as well as unusual venues & include orchestras such as the LSO &the Zurich Orchestra. The event runs from 13/03 till 11/04. |
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AIRE at BONNETABLE in SARTHE (72) (image above)
1) The historic ‘porcelain’ city of Limoges, capital of the Limousin, has never had an aire, meaning it has often been bypassed by visitors in motorhomes. The city council however has now decided to undertake a survey to find a suitable site that will be close to the city centre yet in a pleasant location to encourage motorhomers to visit the city. The survey results are due in May & hopefully a new aire will be available there by early next year.
2) A new private aire has opened last January near Le Mans at Bonnetable in Sarthe (72). The aire, run by CampingCarPark, is situated in the former Municipal campsite, about 400m east of the village centre & next to a small river/ lakes. The 15 large (50m2) pitches are on hard standings (most shaded by trees), lit at night, with 6A ehu’s & wifi with toilets adjacent. Euro-Relais service point with drainage platform. Access by automatic barrier, CCP card required. A pleasant location next to the river, close to the village centre & quiet with good shaded pitches bordered by grass areas & wifi/ ehu’s for all 15 spaces. Play area, picnic tables & 1 handicapped pitch. SuperU, cafe, bars, boulangerie, etc in village as well as a château. Market in village on Fridays.
3) In 2020, CampingCarPark opened one of their ‘Camping Mon Village’ aires in Toulon-sur-Arroux, Saone-et-Loire (included in our ‘Best Aires’ guide), which has proved to be one of their most popular aires, however although a very pleasant aire - possibly one of the main reasons for this popularity has been the decision by the town council to ban motorhome parking in any of the town car parks.
4) It has also been noted that four other towns that have CampingCarPark aires have also taken similar steps to ban motorhomes from parking in the municipal car parks. The communes of St Andre-des-eaux, Merlimont, l’Argentiere-la-Bessee & Veuzain sur Loire have all issued laws that force motorhomes to use the CCP aire if they want to stay in the town. Whilst it seems a strange coincidence, CCP have denied that they have any involvement in the introduction of these bye laws although they obviously profit from these rules. See the ‘News Blog’ for more on this story…...
5) CampingCarPark has also opened a new aire last year in the riverside village of St Vulbas in Ain (01), 45 kms from Lyons. The aire is located 400m from the centre of this small rural village in a small parking area with 10 individual parking spaces on tarmac, next to hedges/ small trees providing some shade & with lighting at night. The artisanal service point & large drainage platform are adjacent. Access via automatic barrier, CCP card required. A pleasant, quiet aire located on the north side of the village, next to the Rhone river, easy to access. 10 hard standing spaces with ehu’s/ wifi & separated by small grass verges, shaded by trees. Not much in village, shops include a superette & bar/ restaurant. Medieval village of Cremieu nearby. 12€ per day, services included. GPS: N45.83236 E 05.29175
Details of the above are on the "Aires News" page.
AIRE OF THE MONTH
The Aire of the Month for March, 2021 is the aire at Mont de Marsan in Landes (40) (picture below). Click here to visit the "Aire of the Month" page.
If you have any news of aires or campsites please email them to: contact@motorhomingfrance.co.uk |
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MOTORHOME BOOKS
This monthly newsletter & the website are entirely funded by the royalties from sales of our 7 Motorhoming guides from Amazon. These are:
- NEW! The Best Aires in France 2021/ 22 *
- 50 Great Motorhome Tours in Northern France
- 50 Great Motorhome Tours in Southern France
- Best Places to Visit & Stay by Motorhome in Northern France
- Best Places to Visit & Stay by Motorhome in Southern France
- Most Beautiful Villages & Towns in France by Motorhome *
- Historical Tours in France by Motorhome *
* Also available as a Kindle version
For full details of all of our books please visit the "Books" page on the website |
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