La Drôme Provençale en camping-car : advice, areas, routes

Itineraries, rental, parking : discover all the good tips to visit the Drôme Provençale in camping-car or furnished van.

Visiting the Drôme Provençale in camping-car or in furnished van will be an excellent idea. He is one of the most beautiful places in France for a road trip. Traveling on a camper provides the sensation of freedom. This also gives the possibility to travel without having to book any Airbnb hotel or apartment.

La Drôme Provençale is a tourist area of the Drôme department. It holds its name from its direct proximity to Provence. It is also a territory enjoying a rich heritage and a strong tourist attraction. Also, the region releases a perfume from the Midi while being away from the mass tourism of the PACA region.

Discover our mini-guide advice to visit the Drôme Provençale in camper or van set this summer.

Ideas of itineraries in Drôme Provençale in motorhome

You will not have the same routes as you come to Drôme from the north or from the south. The Drôme Provençale region has 177 municipalities and covers one third of the area of the department. La Drôme Provençale is one of the most visited areas in the region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. In fact, there are must-see towns and villages: Montélimar, Buis-les-Baronnies, Dieulefit, Grignan, Nyons, Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux.

Your steps will be logically determined according to your desires for activities and depending on the duration of your trip. Your journey will be different depending on whether you come for a week or a month.

Here are our ideas of itineraries to visit the Drôme Provençale in camping-car, between lavender fields, mountains and picturesque villages:

• Drôme Provençale in a week: the Rhone Valley (Montélimar, Pierrelatte (La Ferme aux crocodiles), Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux), the natural park of the Baronnies Provençales (Nyons, Bourdeaux, Dieulefit), Montbrun-les-Bains, La Garde-Adhémar, Poët-Laval, Le Poët-Sigillat, Puygiron, Château de Grignan
• Visit Drôme Provençale in 15 or 20 days: The same routes plus the villages and castles of the Drôme Provençale (Roussas, Valaurie, Montségur-sur-Lauzon, the Baume-de-Transit, Saint-Paul-les-Trois-Châteaux, Allan, Chamaret).

Drive in Drôme Provençale in motorhome : traffic rules to know

The legal provisions governing the road code in Drôme do not differ from other departments. The road code is the same as elsewhere. And the camper is considered as a car from the perspective of French law.

However, it is necessary to know some important things related to the driving of the camper. Increase caution consistently, especially if you are not used to driving such a vehicle.

The roads in the Provençal Baronnies Natural Park can be narrow. And the secondary sections of southern France are sometimes lined with platanes: it can give the impression that the crossings are more difficult. The template of a motorhome is indeed imposing. In addition, braking distance is greater only a car or a furnished van.

You should also take care of the vehicle's side-by-side doors: take wide turns not to scratch the bodywork by maneuvering. Each passenger must have closed its seatbelt when the vehicle moves.

In addition, the driver’s license (permit B), the grey card and the vehicle’s insurance certificate must be in possession. It must also be equipped with a reflective vest and a signage triangle in the event of an accident.

The speed limits are:

• 50 km/h in agglomeration,
• 70 to 80 km/h on secondary roads,
• And 90 to 110 km/h on separate roadways.

Motorway pass in Drôme Provençale: what price for your camper category?

The Drôme is crossed over its borders shared with the Ardèche and the Vaucluse via the A7 motorway. This axis of the Rhone valley, nicknamed “the highway of the Sun”, is the only highway in the department. The A7 motorway is managed by the VINCI Autoroutes dealer, and subject to to to tolls .

Coming to visit the Drôme Provençale in motorhome, the rate in Class 2 You'll be asked. Everywhere else in Drôme Provençale, you will ride on free roads. Here are some indicative prices on the A7 in motorhome, in effect in 2020:

• Valence-Montélimar : 7,60€,
• Valence-Bollène : 10€,
• Lyon-Montélimar : 21,30€,
• Lyon-Bollène : 24,60€,
• Montpellier-Montélimar : 22,80€,
• Avignon-Montélimar : 10,70€.

The A7 motorway is known to be one of the most frequented and also one of the most expensive.

How and where to rent a motorhome in France?

Do you want to go to the discovery of the Provencal Drôme in a camper or fitted van? With internet, it is now easy to rent a motorhome in France. Just go to linking platforms between tenants and particular camper owners as Yescapa For example.

For those wishing to rent from professionals, it will not be difficult to find a rental point in the Drôme. Even if you thought to rent it on the way to Montélimar and its surroundings.

How does it work?

• At first, you have to choose the motorhome in your city (For example Bordeaux, Nantes, Toulouse, Paris, Montpellier or Marseille).
• Be careful choose unlimited mileage, to check the number of beds available and if travel abroad is possible.
• Do your work online rental request and share your travel information (dates, rental options, mileage, etc.) to the owner.
• If your request is accepted and after payment, you will have access to the owner's contact information to organize a First meeting.
• Day J, present your driver's license and pour bail.
• One. status of premises is executed and a lease is signed between the two parties. Once you get back from the Drôme Provencal, sign the state of the return places and the tour is played!

Camping-car areas in Drôme Provençale: where to park?

Where to park?

The French law prohibited the wild camping . This practice is regulated by a Decree dated December 28, 2015.

Despite everything, he is allowed to sleep in his vehicle for bivouacing. And we can, of course, park in motorhome on all parking spaces (white and blue lines). Outside the towns, parking is allowed if it does not interfere with traffic and road signs.

When you are camping-car or in a fitted van, you need to focus on service areas and campgrounds to settle legally. The official website of the Drôme Provençale lists 35 campsites throughout the country. These offer different services at varying prices, each having its own framework: near the vineyards, in a private vineyard, on a shaded land, etc.

Where to settle?

The border between wild camping and legal parking is porous. In theory, one cannot settle on the public space to spend the night. But in reality, He'll be easy to find a place to sleep without disturbing anyone, without being verbalized by the police.

If you found a spot in the middle of nature, make sure you don't bother anyone. Get away from homes and towns. When possible, request approval from the owner of a field or land before you install.

Other important advice: to not be visible (or denounced), stay discreet, arrive late and leave early, leaving the place clean. Finally, do not install parable, cale or tables and camping chairs on the public space.

Looking for good "spots" where to sleep in camper? See our travelling Bible: the Park4night app. This tour guide is community-based: a notification system published by the travelu·rs·ses allows you to see the best places to sleep. As a bonus, GPS coordinates to go without searching!

What is the best time to travel by camping-car in Drôme Provençale?

The south of Drôme suffers a Mediterranean climate with warm and dry summers and mild winters. In the summer, mistral and drought reinforce. Maximum average temperatures frequently exceed 35°C or 40°C locally. The sunniest month is June and it is one of the dryest months of the year.

The winter season south of Drôme is soft but nights can be cold. Come on. April and May , temperatures rise, but the weather is unstable for a long time: storms are sometimes violent in the spring.

Summer can be suffocating , like the Vaucluse and the Gard, very close. When autumn comes, it is much less hot, but it is also the season of cevenol episodes.

September and October are the months the most rainy of the year , sometimes with heavy rainfall. We recommend visiting Drôme Provençale between mid-May and mid-September .

Now you have all the cards in hand to visit the Provençal Drôme in motorhome.