Le Quercy in Camping-Car: advice, areas, routes

How to visit the Quercy in motorhome or van? GV gives you all the useful information to discover this beautiful South-West region!

Are you coming to the Quercy on a motorhome? The Quercy is a historic region of South-West France, spread over the limestone plateaus of the causses of the Lot and Tarn-et-Garonne. It also includes some communes of the Corrèze , Dordogne and of Aveyron .

This itinerant trip by camping-car or by furnished van will lead you to cities and villages to visit. These include Cahors, Figeac, Collonges-la-Rouge, Martel, Castelnau-Bretenoux, Rocamadour , Padirac , Saint-Cirq-Lapopie , Moissac, Caussade and Montauban.

Visiting the Quercy by camping-car allows you to explore a remarkable historical and cultural heritage, unique and varied landscapes and classified villages. Here is our mini-guide advice to make this journey in the South of France, between the Causses, the Perigord and the Garonne valley.

Ideas of itineraries in the Quercy by camping-car

The Causses du Quercy are located on the northeast edge of the basin Aquitaine Between the Central Massif and the Garonne valley. You will arrive in Quercy by the north from Brive-la-Gaillarde.

By the south you will visit the region from Montauban or Toulouse . Therefore, you are not going to visit the Lot and the Tarn-et-Garonne in the same way as you come from. The size of these two departments is 8,934 km2, which is equivalent to that of the Gironde or Landes .

You will therefore have to adapt your steps to the duration of the trip and also to your desires. You don't know where to start to visit the Quercy on a camper or in a furnished van? Here are some ideas of itineraries to explore the must-see heritage of Quercy:

• Le Quercy en camping-car en 5 à 7 jours : Collonges-la-Rouge, Martel, Castelnau-Bretenoux (and the homonymous castle), the gulf of Padirac, Rocamadour, Gramat, Figeac, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, Cahors ;
• The Quercy in 15 days: The same steps, the more Puy-l’Évêque, the site of the Pech-Merle in Cabrerets, Bouzies and the way to halage, the beach with pterrosaures in Crayssac, Autoire, Loubressac, Carennac, the cave of Lacave;
• Visit Quercy in 20 to 30 days: Souillac and the Dordogne (classified biosphere reserve by Unesco), the villages of Cardaillac, Capdenac-le-Haut, Carjac, Marcilhac-sur-Célé and Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie, Montbrun, Faycelles, Montvalent, Calvignac.

You have more time, or have you done the Quercy Tour faster? To the south you will find the Gorges de l’Aveyron between Tarn-and-Garonne and Aveyron, from Bruniquel to Najac .

Visit also Montauban, Moissac, Cordes-sur-Ciel , Albi , Toulouse . These steps are of course only indicative.

Driving in the Quercy by camping-car : the traffic rules to know

To drive in Quercy, you must of course respect the French road code. Be careful exploring the Lot massifs. The valleys of Lot and Celebrity, Ségala, Causse de Limogne, etc., visit the small roads. Camping-car crossings will sometimes be difficult or even impossible. Take a step and even, stop on the sidewalk to let the cars pass and fluidize the traffic.

Other fundamental advice: to visit the Quercy by camping-car, pay attention to the vehicle's template. Take the corners wider than with a car and be aware of the braking distances. With the weight of the camper, it requires more time than a car to stop.

Motorways in Quercy: what price for your camper category?

The Causses du Quercy Regional Natural Park is crossed from north to south by the highway A20 . Known as the "Occitane", it is the highway that connects Vierzon (Cher) to Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne). You will certainly take it to go to Quercy, from Limoges and Brive-la-Gaillarde or from Toulouse and Montauban.

The good news of this article is that the ‘A20’ is free from Vierzon to Gignac’s toll, which marks an entry point in Quercy. Conceded by ASF, it is paid on the rest of the section, that is, throughout the Causses du Quercy Regional Natural Park: Souillac, Cahors, Caussade, Montauban.

Here are some rates to visit the Quercy in motorhome (class 2) by highway:

• Vierzon-Montauban: 21,30€,
• Bordeaux-Souillac (A89, A20) : 31,80€,
• Gignac-Cahors : 10,50€.

How and where to rent a motorhome in France?

Would you like to visit the Quercy 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 South West, and once done, the tour is played!

Camping-car areas in Quercy: where to park?

Parking is always a thorny question, especially in the cities and camping-car. In the Lot department there are no big ones conurbations . Cahors, the department's main city, has barely 20,000 inhabitants.

However, we recommend that you prefer the service areas for camping-car to park in cities and villages (Cahors, Figeac, Rocamadour, Gourdon, Saint Cirq Lapopie...). In van, you can park on all car locations. In any case, whether they are public or private, the choice is rather wide!

To find where to sleep, you can use an application such as Park4night. This traveler-to-spot sharing tool has a free limited version. The camping wild being banned, avoid leaving your camping equipment (tables and chairs) on the public road.

You will find service areas for motorhomes, campsites or car parks (extra charge) for your steps. In nature, move away from dwellings and avoid road traffic or signalling. Quercy is a protected natural area: always leave the virgin place of all detritus.

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

When are the weather conditions optimal for visiting the Quercy in camping-car? Because of its geography, the Quercy has several climatic influences. In the east, the proximity to the Central massif makes the mountain climate. In the south, the climate is more temperate, with oceanic, continental and Mediterranean variants.

Rainfall is large and regular on Quercy, with an average of 883 mm per year. The Lot is swept by the winds, including the autan wind and the north wind. The average maximum temperatures range from 9°C in January to just over 30°C in July and August. The nights are fresh all year round, even in summer. Average minimum temperatures are 12 °C in June, and 20 °C in July.

July is the hottest and dryest month of the year, with on average 30 °C and less than 40 millimetres of precipitation. Summer heat often causes storms and heavy rains. The best season to visit the Quercy in camping-car is summer, between June and early September .