Châteaux of the Loire by Motorhome: rentals, advice, areas, itineraries

Are you planning to visit the most beautiful French royal residences? And if you go to visit the Châteaux of the Loire in a motorhome?

What if we stayed in France for the holidays? France is full of regions with a rich heritage to visit. You could, for example, visit the Châteaux de la Loire in a motorhome! They offer great ideas for cultural getaways. The fortresses were built to protect royal power during the Hundred Years War. They therefore symbolize the bitter quarrels that raged between England and France in the Middle Ages.

Castles dot the Loire Valley, a natural region located in Loiret, Loir-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire and Maine-et-Loire. Many historic towns are not to be missed in the region: Orléans, Blois, Tours, Saumur, Angers, etc. Visiting the Châteaux of the Loire in a motorhome allows you to travel the roads, in the footsteps of the kings of France. So, ready to go! Here is our mini-guide to visiting the Châteaux of the Loire by motorhome.

Read also :Visiting the Châteaux of the Loire: our ideas and adviceHow to fly over the castles of the Loire in a hot air balloon?Where to sleep along the Châteaux de la Loire?The Loiret by motorhome: advice, areas, itinerariesThe 14 essential things to do in the Center Val-de-Loire

Ideas for itineraries around the Châteaux of the Loire by motorhome

Photo credit: Shutterstock – gumbao

By road, the region of the Châteaux de la Loire stretches over more than 320 kilometres. From Sully-sur-Loire a few kilometers from Orléans, going up the Loire will take you almost to Nantes. The Châteaux de la Loire extend mainly over three departments: Loir-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire and Maine-et-Loire. Thus, you will cross the essential towns of Chambord, Cheverny, Chenonceaux, Amboise, Saumur and Angers. The Loire-Anjou-Touraine regional natural park, spread over 270,858 hectares will reveal their charms to you. Of course, you can cover the distance from Orléans to Nantes in a single morning. But that is not your goal. Visiting the Châteaux of the Loire by motorhome will involve stops, essential stages.

Whether you come from Rennes, Nantes or Paris or the east, you will not establish the same route. Also, this will be defined according to the duration of your road trip. Don’t know where to go? Here are our ideas for possible itineraries to visit the Châteaux of the Loire by motorhome:

• The Châteaux of the Loire in 5 days: Orléans, Chambord castle, Blois (Saint-Louis cathedral, castle and city center), Cheverny, Chenonceaux,

• Visit the Châteaux of the Loire in 15 days: same stages, plus Chaumont-sur-Loire, Amboise, Tours, Saumur, Chinon, Langeais, Clos-Lucé, Azay-le-Rideau, Ussé,

• The region of the Châteaux de la Loire in one month: same stages, plus the castles of Loches, Gargilesse-Dampierre, Villandry, Plessy-les-Tours, Beauregard, Brissac, Montsoreau, Sully-sur-Loire.

These steps are only indicative, but in any case, you will have to make choices. Indeed, the list of castles to visit is so long that you will not be able to browse them all. All the more so if you only come to visit the Châteaux de la Loire for a weekend or just a week. For a one-week road trip, you will therefore logically have to limit your stages. For a trip of 15 days or a month, also take the opportunity to discover the heritage and the terroir of the region: the vineyards of the Loire in particular.

Driving around the Châteaux de la Loire: the traffic rules you need to know

Photo credit: Shutterstock – Viacheslav Lopatin

The Châteaux de la Loire are all located in the Centre-Val-de-Loire and Pays-de-la-Loire regions. Therefore, the rules governing driving are the same as everywhere else in France. From the point of view of French law, a motorhome is a vehicle like any other.

Here is a reminder of the basic rules of the French highway code. Driving is on the right, and overtaking on the left. Priority to the right is required when there are no markings on the ground, except in roundabouts. Make sure that the motorhome is equipped with a warning triangle and a reflective yellow vest. You must have your seat belt fastened when the vehicle is in motion.

Also, you must be in possession of the vehicle papers (gray card, technical control and anti-pollution and insurance) as well as your driving license. Note that there is no special permit for motorhomes weighing less than 3.5 tonnes. Often, specific road signs supplement the legal provisions that apply to motorhomes. Local authorities have the power to restrict certain accesses or reduce speed limits in certain places.

As a general rule, speed limits in France are as follows:

• 50 km/h in urban areas,

• 70 to 80 km/h on secondary roads,

• 110 km/h on four-lane toll-free roads,

• 130 km/h on the highways.

Remember that in France, the maximum legal alcohol content allowed is 0.5g/Llike cars.

Motorway toll around the Châteaux de la Loire: what price for your category of motorhome?

Photo credit: Shutterstock – pedrosala

Are you coming to visit the Châteaux de la Loire by motorhome? The Loire Valley region is crossed by several toll motorways. This is theA10I’A11I’A87I’A85 and theA71. In motorhomes, you will have to pay the rates in class 2. This class corresponds to vehicles whose total height is less than or equal to 2 meters, and whose weight does not exceed 3.5 tonnes.

Reaching the Châteaux de la Loire region can be relatively expensive. The alternative to avoid paying too much is to take the network of national roads, but the journey will be much longer and more accident-prone.

Paying tolls is simple. It consists of withdrawing a ticket at the entrance terminal of the motorway. At the exit, you pay by credit card for the distance covered. On average, it takes 1€ for 10 kilometers. Here are some prices for the sections you will take:

• Paris-Orléans North (A10): €16.50,

• Paris-Tours-Centre (A10): €35.90,

• Paris-Angers-Corze (A11): €45.40,

• Paris-Poitiers (A10): €54.70,

• Nantes-Angers-Corzé (A11): €14.30,

• Angers-Corzé-Tours (A85): €15.50,

• Tours-Centre-Orléans-Nord (A10): €18.50,

• Blois-Orléans Center (A10): €9.30,

• Bourges-Orléans Center (A71): €18.20,

• Bordeaux-Tours Center (A10): €50.30.

Crossing the Pays-de-la-Loire, Centre-Val-de-Loire and Nouvelle-Aquitaine regions could therefore represent a certain budget. But since you will be sleeping inside the motorhome, you will gain. You have no hotel reservation fees!

In France, is it now possible to book your motorhome online? How ? Thanks to the various online booking platforms, such as Yescapa for example.

How it works ? 

• At first, it is necessary choose the motorhome in your city (For example BordeauxNantes, ToulouseParis, Montpellier or Marseilles).

• Pay attention to well choose unlimited mileageat check the number of beds available and whether travel abroad is indeed possible.

• Do your online rental request and share your trip information (dates, rental options, mileage, etc.) with the owner.

• If your request is accepted and after payment, you will have access to the contact details of the owner to organize a first meeting.

• On D-Day, show your driver’s license and pay the bail.

• One inventory is made and a rental contract is signed between the two parties. On your return, after scouring the castle roads, sign the return inventory and you’re done!

Rent a motorhome in France

Photo credit: Shutterstock – Viacheslav Lopatin

The region of the Châteaux de la Loire is very touristy. Therefore, it will be relatively easy to find motorhome rentals. However, favor the big cities, such as Orléans, Angers, Blois etc.

However, demand is strong. It may be that once arrived, no more motorhomes are available. It is for this reason that it is wiser to book your motorhome for the Châteaux de la Loire, online, before leaving.

Book your motorhome for the Châteaux de la Loire

Motorhome areas around the Châteaux de la Loire: where to park?

Photo credit: Caramaps

But then, where to park to visit the Châteaux of the Loire by motorhome? From the point of view of French law, a motorhome is a car like any other. Therefore, you can park wherever places are available. This, on the locations materialized by white or blue lines.

Warning : wild camping is in France, need we remind you, strictly prohibited. If you decide to stop to spend the night near a castle, never take out your camping equipment (tables, chairs), satellite dish and wedges on the public road. If you can sleep inside the motorhome on a regular parking spot, installing your equipment will be considered wild camping.

Nevertheless, it is often possible to find a place to sleep away from police checks and prying eyes. Always stay away from houses. Also, avoid regional parks, regional nature reserves and the city centers of large cities. In a camper van, you will also go more unnoticed than in a motorhome. Whatever your vehicle, several solutions are available to you to spend your nights: in particular campsites and service areas for motorhomes.

Would you still like to camp in the open air, in the middle of the countryside and near the most famous Châteaux de la Loire? Here is your best asset: Park4night. It is a sharing tool between travelers, which allows you to view on an interactive map all the spots where to settle for a night or two.

When is the best time to travel by motorhome around the Châteaux de la Loire?

Photo credit: Shutterstock – Viacheslav Lopatin

When to visit the Châteaux de la Loire in a motorhome or camper van? The question of the climate and the weather is essential when you travel while itinerant. Because of course, spending 24 hours a day in the motorhome is not an option! Most of the royal castles are concentrated along the Loire, in Indre-et-Loire.

In this department, the climate is of the temperate with oceanic influence, with an average annual temperature of 12°C. The summers are soft, but are experiencing heat waves. Temperatures above 35°C are reached several times between June and August. The winters are mild and rainy. After August, temperatures slowly decline. Thunderstorms and rain return, with October being the second wettest month of the year.

The best times to visit the Châteaux of the Loire are therefore logically late spring, summer and the early fall. The nights can however be cool from the end of August: bring a little wool!

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