Itinerary for a van or van road trip built across France

Are you planning to go on a road trip in van or a van built across France? Follow our guide!

What if this year, instead of taking the plane, we were going to (re)visit France? There are so many things to see and do in the Hexagon, that going for a van or van road trip is always an opportunity to take a full view of it!

Ride unhindered at the will of the most beautiful regions of France allows to travel freely, without being forced to check the prices and schedules of trains, accommodations, with in bonus the possibility of falling asleep in the middle of nature under the sound of the waves, observing the stars and waking up by listening to the song of birds – or cicadas! – the feet in a fan facing a resurgent nature.

Happiness in pure state? Almost. However, it will be necessary to find a vehicle, establish a route for its van or fitted van road trip, and see where you can park.

Travel in van or van: our ideas of itineraries across France

France has the largest road network in Europe, with 1 073 500 kilometres roads and highways, meshed in the territory as a vast canvas of spider spread over 551 000 km2 : you know, it will be impossible to visit everything in a single road trip. So it is essential to establish a reasonable itinerary and to target what your goals are: sports holidays and nature, relaxation, gastronomy, cultural visits or a bit at a time?

Would you like to explore with your furnished van or your Normandy van, Brittany , the Atlantic coast, the Auvergne, the Provence , the Alsace, or even the Languagedoc ? Discover the wines of Provence, de Provence Bordeaux to see them Castles Cathares , Châteaux de la Loire , the landing beaches, historical towns and villages, etc?

We have concocted a mini guide for a few routes to be made according to several travel periods:

• La Provence : the Lubéron, Avignon, the Calanques, the Alpilles massif, Marseille, Aix-en-Provence and La Sainte-Victoire, the Sainte-Baume, the massif of the Estérel, the Gorges du Verdon, the beaches of the Var coast (Le Lavandou, Rayol-Canadel, Cavalaire-sur-Mer, the island of Porquerolles, etc.),

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Make the Way of Liberty, tribute circuit to the Liberation of 1944-1945: Sainte-Mère-Eglise, les beaches du Débarquement, Saint-Malo, Chartres, Fontainebleau, Reims et la route du Champagne, Luxembourg,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• La Normandie: Omaha and Utah Beach, Pointe du Hoc, Mont-Saint-Michel, the beaches (Agon-Coutainville, Regnéville, Montmartin-sur-Mer, Hauteville-sur-Mer) Granville, Caen, Houlgate, Honfleur, Deauville, Rouen,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip in Brittany: Quiberon, Quimper, Brest, Morlaix, Roscoff, Ploumanac’h, Perros-Guirec, Trégastel, Côte de Granit Rose, the coast of Émeraude, Mont-Saint-Michel (Normandie!), Rennes,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip on the Atlantic facade: Châteaux de la Loire (Chambord, Saumur, Angers, etc.), Nantes, Pornichet, Les Sables d’Olonne, l’Île de Ré and La Rochelle, l’Île d’Oléron, Royan et la Côte Sauvage, Bordeaux, Arcachon et la Dune du Pilat, Capbreton à Biarritz,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• The Languedoc: the Cevennes, Anduze, Montpellier, Sète, the Canal du Midi, Béziers, the Gorges de l’Ardèche, the nature park of Haut-Languedoc, Clermont-l’Hérault and the lake of Salagou, the Gorges de l’Hérault, the Grau-du-Roi, Port-Camargue and the beach of Espiguette,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip in Rhône-Alpes: the Parc des Baronnies Provençales (Drôme), the Parc Nature du Vercors, Grenoble and the Parc de la Chartreuse, the Pilat de Vienne massif in Saint-Étienne, Lyon and its heritage, the Parc des Écrins between Huez and Gap, the Mont Blanc with Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, Sallanches, the Parc de la Vanoise, Annecy, Chambéry, Geneva,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip in the South-West: Bordeaux and its vineyards, Cahors and Causses du Quercy, Toulouse and the Canal du Midi, Castres, Mazamet, the Montagne Noire, the Cité de Carcassonne, the Châteaux Cathare (Aude), the Côte Vermeille (Collioure, Port-Vendres, Banyuls-sur-Mer, Cerbère), the park of the Ariégeoise Pyrees, the Pic du Can

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip in Auvergne: The Puy-en-Velay, Clermont-Ferrand, Puy de Sancy and Mont-Dore, the Salers, Saint-Flour, Aurillac and the Auvergne cheeses, the Puy de Dôme,

Photo credit: Caramaps

• Road-trip in Corsica: L’Île-Rousse, Calvi, les calanches de Piana, Porto, Ajaccio, Sartène, Propriano, Corte, Bonifacio, Palombaggia, Porto-Vecchio, Bastia, Cap Corse.

These are only ten routes far from being exhaustive and you can of course choose to go from one to another, mix for example Brittany and Normandy, or the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur region with Corsica or Occitania, for example.

Buy a furnished van or van: our tips and tricks

How do I buy a fitted van or van? How much does it cost, do you need to buy a new or used vehicle and where to buy it? You don’t buy a fitted van like you buy a small Clio or Twingo. If you opt for the van or used vans , think about it inspect the vehicle in her little corners to avoid scams.

Think that a well-appointed cabin is comfortable, but it is especially the mechanics that bonus: the vehicle must be in good condition . The choice between a van or a fitted van depends on the template you want, a fitted van being larger than a fitted van. A number of criteria are to be checked:

• The price of the fitted van/van,
• The mileage,
• The bodywork,
• Motorization and consumption,
• Number of beds available,
• The layout (removable or non-removable, foldable or non-removable, rear sleeping type),
• Equipment (refrigerator, water tanks, gas, toilet, heating, etc.),
• Tire wear, corrosion, scratches,
• Maintenance factors, technical control, gray card, etc.

Of course. try the vehicle before buying it. To test it, you can also rent it before buying it on certain rental platforms (Yescapa Occasions and Pilot Occasions for example).

A van or van fitted by a professional can cost between 35 000 € and 50 000 € , up to more 70 000 € , especially if it is recent and new. What do you choose between a California Coast, a Transporter T4, T5 or T6, a Renault Trafic or Master? Discriminate between price, design, template, engine and layout.

If you're a baker, learn to to develop yourself the vehicle from a utility will be much cheaper. Where to buy my fitted van then? Here are several sites and platforms where to find ads:

• The Good Coin,
• La Centrale,
• Ypocamp,
• Hanroad.

You only have to make an appointment to try the vehicle! To you the roads of France!