Le Cantal en Camping-Car : location, conseils, areas, routes

Are you going to visit the Massif Central? Here is our mini-guide advice to visit the Cantal in motorhome!

To the edges of the Occitania and to the west of the region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, hangs the Cantal in the heart of the Massif Central. Renowned for its gastronomy and exceptional natural capital, Cantal is one of the best holiday destinations in France. With its large spaces of nature, it is an ideal department where to travel by camping-car.

Whether for a sporting holiday in the mountain (hiking, cycling, paragliding, skiing or climbing) or for a travelling trip, you will not miss things to see and do in the Cantal. Here is our mini-guide advice to visit the Cantal in camper, for a weekend, one or two weeks.

Ideas of itineraries in the Cantal by motorhome

The department of Cantal covers 5,726 km2 between Aveyron , Lozère , la Haute-Loire, le Puy-de-Dôme, le Lot et la Corrèze .

Sitting on an area of 2,700 km2 around a diameter of 70 kilometers, the Cantal is the largest volcano in Europe. It is also the oldest, dated between 11 and 3 million years before our era. The former crater of this stratovolcan shows a huge circus next to which are the highest points of the department: the Plomb du Cantal (1,858 meters above sea level) and the puy Mary (1,787 meters) are the most famous.

Whether you’re coming to enjoy a 100% nature stay in the Cantal by camping-car, to explore its culture or to do sports, you’ll have to logically model your itineraries according to your desires and the duration of your stay. Here are some ideas of steps to be taken in the Cantal by camping-car.

Visit the Cantal by camping-car on a weekend

• Day 1: Aurillac, Saint-Flour and viaduct of Garabit (70 km, 1h15);
• Day 2: Saint-Flour, Murat, Salers (75 km, 1h30);
• Day 3: Salers, the Puy Mary (Le Claux) (20 km, 30 minutes).

Le Cantal en camping-car sur une semaine

• Day 1: Aurillac, Saint-Flour (70 km, 1h15);
• Day 2: Saint-Flour, viaduct of Garabit (90 km, 1h20);
• Day 3: Le Claux, Tournemire (Château d’Anjony), Lac de Saint-Etienne-Cantalès (75 km, 1h40) ;
• Day 4: Lac de Saint-Etienne-Cantalès, Lac du Pêcher (Neussargues-en-Pinatelle (90 km, 1h40) ;
• Day 5: Lake Fisheries, Lioran station (and the Plomb du Cantal) (30 km, 1h);
• Day 6: The Lioran, Chaudes-Aigues, (60 km, 1h) ;
• Day 7: Chaudes-Aigues, Massiac (55 km, 45 minutes).

The Cantal for two weeks

We offer you the same course of the first week, plus the following steps for the second week:

• Day 8: Allanche, Condat, Mauriac (75 km, 1h20);
• Day 9: Chambeuil waterfall, Lac de Sauvages (17 km, 20 minutes);
• Day 10: Lac de Sauvages, Lac de Grandval, Lac du Barrage de Lanau (70 km, 1h20);
• Day 11: Lac du Barrage de Lanau, Laguiole, Séverac-le-Château (120 km, 2h) ;
• Day 12: Severac-le-Château, Gorges du Tarn Causses, Florac-Trois-Rivières (70 km, 1h25) ;
• Day 13: Florac, Saint-Jean-du-Gard (by the cornice of the Cevennes(120 km, 2h20);
• Day 14: Saint-Jean-du-Gard, Alès, le Pont du Gard, Avignon (100 km, 1h40).

This course is of course only indicative. You can choose to stay longer on these steps or to restrict routes. But since the Cantal area is relatively small, ten days are enough to visit the Cantal by camping-car.

For this reason, we offer you to get out of the department for a circuit to the gates of the Provence . So, to punctuate your second week of travel, go to the discovery of the south with steps in the Cevennes and in the Gard.

Alternatively, you could also choose to go to the beaches of Hérault and favor Montpellier, Sète or the pond of Thau.

What budget to travel by motorhome in Cantal?

Every camping-car trip has a cost, but it is sometimes difficult to anticipate the holiday budget. Know that the department does not have a toll motorway, as the A75 has not been granted. Circulating on the highway between Massiac (Cantal) and Albaret-Sainte-Marie (Lozère) is therefore free .

But because of the relief in the Cantal and the deliveries on the massifs, your camper could consuming more fuel than usual .

Average budget for 1 weekend

• Rental + motorhome insurance : 261 € (87 € per day on average);
• Essence: 25 € about;
• Parking : until 10 € per day;
• Total: 320 € about.

Average budget for 1 week

• Rental + motorhome insurance : 609 € (87 € per day on average);
• Essence: 90 € about;
• Parking : until 10 € per day;
• Total: 770 € about.

Average budget for 2 weeks

• Rental + motorhome insurance : 1 218 € (87 € per day on average);
• Essence: 180 € about;
• Parking : until 10 € per day;
• Total: 1 470 € about.

Camping and driving in Cantal

What are the essential information to know about traffic conditions in Cantal? Here is all the information you need to know, specific to driving in the Cantal by camping-car.

What documents do you have on board?

• Driver Permit (B) if the PTAC of the motorhome does not exceed 3.5 tonnes;
• Grey card campsite-car;
• Certificate of Insurance campsite-car;
• The lease contract signed between the two parties;
• copy of the state of the premises from the start.

Other information about driving in Cantal

The Cantal is a mid-mountain department, located at a high average altitude (900 meters). Therefore, it will be necessary with snow tyres or chains if you take your vacation in winter. The snow is no more abundant than in the Alps or in the Jura but the gel keeps it on the ground for several weeks.

It is in the territory of Auvergne Volcano Regional Natural Park the main unmissable mass and puys of Cantal. The roads of the secondary network can therefore be narrow and winding, especially on the slopes of the Cézallier massifs, the Cantal Mountains or the Margeride.

The main routes will allow easy movement between cities (Aurillac, Saint-Flour, Mauriac or Massiac). But Be careful there too because it is on the big axes that road traffic is the densest. Be aware of the difficult crossings.

It is advisable to klaxonner before a bend where visibility is reduced in order to prevent other users from coming. Do also attention to motorcycles , which rafting mountain winding passes and turning the road into a vast open-air racing circuit.

Motorway to Cantal : what price for your camper category?

The Cantal is not crossed by any stretch of highway toll because it has not been granted to any private company. The highway A75 penetrates the Cantal on its eastern flanks to Massiac. It crosses the northeast department to the southeast to the Lozère via Saint-Flour, but it is free .

On the other hand, you will certainly have to ride on several toll highways if you are renting your camper outside the department. On a motorhome, you will have to pay the lump sum applied in class 2. Here are some toll rates if you come from Paris, Lyon, Montpellier, Clermont-Ferrand, Toulouse or Bordeaux :

• Paris-Aurillac (A10, A20): 30,10 € ;
• Lyon-Aurillac (A89, A75): 25,20 € ;
• Montpellier-Aurillac (A75): 16,50 € (Millau River)
• Toulouse-Aurillac (A20): 18,70 € ;
• Bordeaux-Aurillac (A89, A20): 28,50 €.

Campsites in Cantal : where to park ?

The Cantal is an open heaven paradise for nature lovers. Relatively isolated, very rural and populated, the department does not lack places to park without embarrassing anyone.

You can easily find spots where to park in the middle of nature, to bivouaquer peacefully. Sleeping in your camper on an isolated mountain location will allow you to contemplate the spectacle of nature. You will be full of tranquillity and never want to go back to sleep in an urban agglomeration.

However, this practice is prohibited , especially in the Auvergne Volcano Regional Natural Park: it is a protected natural site. If you do, be discreet and leave no detritus on the ground so as not to disrupt the ecosystem.

If you are looking for car camping services in Cantal, you should know that you will find it everywhere , especially around the towns. And logically, the offer is reduced as you take altitude: do not expect to find a camper area on the tops of the puys!

Most service areas are free of charge , except those close to the tourist cities: Mauriac, Aurillac or Saint-Flour. According to the Caramaps platform dedicated to camping-car trips, most areas are well noted by travellers. They offer a wide range of good quality services. You will usually find access to water and electricity, so you can drain waste water.

How and where to rent a motorhome France ?

Would you like to visit the Cantal in motorhome, but you don't have a vehicle? Now it is very simple to rent these vehicles between individuals, especially in France. Many platforms allow this type of rental, online, as Yescapa For example.

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. You'll have to sign it as soon as you get back from the Cantal, and once done, the tour is played!

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

Before anything, let's say that Cantal does not offer such a hostile climate that this . Renowned for the harshness of its climate, we often mention Aurillac as the coldest city in France. However, the rate of sunshine is higher than in Bordeaux and Lyon! It should be noted that the Cantal remains a department in the south of France: the city of Saint-Flour, for example, is only 230 kilometers from the Mediterranean Sea!

The department of Cantal is divided into three climatic zones. The western part has an ocean climate. The centre, corresponding to the high plateaus and summits, enjoys a mountain climate. The east of the department is more continental: dryer than the west, but cold due to high altitude.

Temperature deviations are high in the department: the altitude varies between 250 meters and 1,858 meters! As often in France, the best time to travel to the Cantal by camping-car is between the months May to October .

In Aurillac, the average maximum temperatures range from 6 °C to 11 °C between November and March. So the weather is cold and wet. At altitude, the gel keeps snow on the ground for several weeks and the wind strengthens the feeling of cold. The temperatures rise rapidly in the spring and range from 15°C (April) to 22°C (June) on average.

With only ten days of rain per month, conditions May and June are gathered to travel to the Cantal by motorhome. In summer, the average maximum temperatures reach 25 °C. The summer values exceed 35°C each year in the heat waves from the south. In short, this is the best season to make the Cantal in camping-car.

September and October are wet months in Aurillac, but mild: values reach an average of 21 °C and 16 °C respectively. The weather becomes unfavourable (cold and wet) from November to March.