France in a VW Type2

So July has dawned and France's campsites are filling up. Of the 35-odd nights we're spending on French campsites we've only actually booked four nights anywhere, and is it turned out even that booking was totally unnecessary. But our Lonely Planet has occassional dire warnings that campsites in certain areas are totally booked out for July and August - the months of the school holidays in France.

Well looks they were right kind of - we woke up yesterday to queues to get into our campsite. While we're not yet surrounded on our pitch - Camping St Martin in Moliets et Maa, where we are until Tuesday, has over 800 pitches - we certainly don't have the same privacy we had in June. The weather has also hotted up considerably (was over 30 degrees at 6 o'clock yesterday evening) so we're expecting things to get a lot more busy. The Tour de France will also be crossing our route at some time in the next week so looks like it could be time to make a few bookings.

Owners of Type 2s don't need to be told they are not the most economical of vehicles. 20 miles to the gallon seems to be the average, and that's not even for a fully laden vehicle. Well falling for Eddie Hobbs' rip-off Ireland hype, we assumed that petrol would probably be a bit cheaer in France. How wrong we were. When we left home we were paying about €1.15 a litre but pulled off the ferry to prices of €1.30-€1.40.

Anyone planning to bring a vehicle over here should be aware of a couple of things. All the 24 hour petrol stations you see advertised are actually unmanned outside normal hours (which included early Sunday morning when we arrived). And they don't like Irish credit cards because even though we have PINs, they look for a signature every time we use them. As a result we were running very low on fuel the first day before we found a petrol station with an open shop attached.

The cheapest places to fuel up are the hypermarches - we've been getting it for €1.27 a litre compared to other places advertising up to €1.39. That's quite a difference when you are talking about a €60 tank of petrol every few days. Avoid the stations on the autoroutes if you can - they have a monopoly so not surprising they are a lot more expensive.

Also being a metric country the air pressure is expressed in bar rather than psi, which totally stumped me the first time. Apparently the formula is psi x 0.07 = bar.

There are a couple of key things that will influence the success or failure of an extended camping trip like the one we are on. Knowing how much to pack is one of them. You have to have your creature comforts but at the same time you don't want your head wrecked every time you want to move down the road.

The Dutch family camped beside us recently were a great example of how to do it badly. They had a car, caravan and awning and seemed to have brought their entire home with them - they even had high chairs and travel cots for the kids. Fair enough I thought - they just throw it all in the caravan and off they go. If only. I kid you not - they spent an entire day packing. The lady of the house washed and scrubbed every bit of equipment before it was packed - we actually thought she was having a nervous break down.

Now I've always liked a bit of minimalism - in my music and home furnishings but being a messy sod kind of undermines the second one. But we've learnt that when it comes to camping - only pack what you need and make sure everything has its place in the van. Although I got a custom interior built for my van I took ideas from the various conversions on the market over the years, so we fit a surprising amount in our van. Surprising at least to all those people driving around in massive RVs with their life possessions on board.

It's the only way to avoid a very public nervous break down on a crowded campsite.

By the way we're in Moliets et Maa about an hour north of Biarritz - had to come here to get some sun after five days in the gloom underneath the sand dune.

If you’d said to me a year or even a few months ago that I’d be able to look at a vintage Volkswagen engine, find the carburettor and remove and clean the jets, I’d have said ‘no way!’. I’ve owned two early 70s Beetles since 1998 (the latest one sold to pay for my camper purchase) and bought the John Muir book, How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive – A Manual of Step by Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot, shortly after my first Beetle. In the intervening time I’d say I’ve only once ever sat down with the book open beside me as I looked at my engine.

That’s all changed in the last year. Since I got my camper I’ve increasingly found myself peering into the engine with Muir at my side. Does that suggest my camper is less reliable than either of my Beetles? Not at all. It’s just my Beetles were daily drivers used around Dublin city. In contrast the camper is used less frequently but typically for much longer journeys. As a result the stakes are much higher and a breakdown is going to foul up your trip rather than just being an inconvenience.

People always said the VW engine is simple to find your way around and I’m finding out that they were right. Admittedly sometimes that’s not through choice but because I’m having a crisis at the side of the road. But if I can manage to handle any emergencies it can’t be that hard. Right?

Duh. Arrived at La Foret, a campsite at the base of Dune La Pyla – at about 114 metres, apparently the largest sand dune in Europe – at about 6.30 yesterday afternoon. It had been a longish day – driving down the rather boring A10 autoroute, negotiating the manic drivers as we by-passed Bordeaux and then finding our way around the one way system in Arcachon to stock up on supplies.

Found a nice shaded site and set up camp. Couldn’t figure out why the ground underneath the awning was like cement – and very stony too. With the awning almost fully set-up and everything in its place for camping Sandra arrived back from the toilet. A lot of people seem to have parked their cars on that stony bit. A light bulb came on over my had – we’d only gone and bleeding parked on the driveway! Bloody posh French campsites - don't have any of that in Ireland!

Anyway the reason for the sporadic updates is that after getting a laptop brought out by some family members we were hooking up with, we've managed to camp in two sites where I can't get a mobile signal for 3G internet access. At least it means I'm not stuick to the keyboard all the time.

So two weeks into our mini-odyssey around France in the van. I'm wrting this from Ile de Re, the island just off La Rochelle on the west coast of France, where we are staying two weeks into our six week trip around France in the van. Having lots of fun, catching lots of rays, drinking cheap beer and wine and generally having a chilled time, spending four or five days at a time on a site.

Can be pretty tiring as well though as Aoibh (3) and Keelin (18 months) can find the heat a bit much, sleep too much in the day and are then up half the night!

Been pretty happy with the van too until we got to La Rochelle last Thursday and since then it's been a bit of a nightmare. Fortunately I've had Emilio of Emilio's Beetles fame at the end of the phone to talk me through such fun tasks as bridging the solenoid to get us started. Much respect and hopefully the worst of our problems are behind us.

The facilities in France for camping are exceptional. Admittedly we've chosen mostly three and four star sites so there's pools and playgrounds to keep the kids happy but even the two star municipal sites look cleaner and better equipped than most of the sites at home.

The French love their camper vans but only seen one other Type 2 since we got here and a sprinkling of Type 25s (including a very nice early specimen with chrome wheels but otherwise very straight). The Type 2 was actually on our current site when we arrived. A nice green 1976 Westy owned by an English couple - only spoke to them a couple of times as I spent a large part of Friday peering into the engine with Emilio on the end of the phone as he talked me through things like removing carburetor jets and cleaning them.

Anyway lots learned and lots experienced, so will start sharing some thoughts, and storing them for myself, over the next couple of days.

Isn't the pic of the van in a typical French setting outside the village of Ars en Re nice?

Yes! Got a functioning laptop and 3G connection so expect lots more updates. Late now but should have pics and posts tomorrow. Currently on Ile de Re, the island off La Rochelle about half way down the west coast of France. Been having a few mechanical problems to keep us on our toes but more of that tomorrow.

Quick post just to let people know I haven't fallen off the edge of the earth, but we have had some technical difficulties - namely a sick PC, which to make things more complicated is also riddled with spyware. Currently in Carnac in Southern Brittany which is home to lots of megaliths and sandy beaches. But not too many Internet caffs.

Trip going well. Overcame first mechanical problem with van. Wouldn't start in mid-day heat - nothing when turned key. Got underneath, smacked starter and hey presto. Thanks for the tip Tony and thanks Dave for showing me how to put it in action before we hit the road.

More updates soon hopefully.

Excellent US site Type2.com has a great online resource - AIRS (Aircooled Interstate Rescue Service) - which basically lists van enthusiasts in the US and around the world who are willing to help out if you happen to break down when travelling in their area. Unfortunately there are no listings for anyone in France.

Although I'm bringing a fair few spare parts with me for our French odyssey, it would be nice to have the contact details for VW-friendly mechanics and enthusiasts in the areas we will be travelling (Brittany, Bordeaux, Dordogne, Loire Valley). Anyone any ideas?

Spent a few hours this morning plotting a route around france that makes for realistic distances to be travelled (about 250km a day is the max the kids can handle). Upshot is that between the morning of June 4 and evening of July 14 we'll be covering 2,148 km (1,335 for the imperialists among you).

We're getting the ferry from Cork to Roscoff and will travel down the Atlantic Coast as far as Arcachon, which is just south of Bordeaux. Then its inland to the Dordogne to stock up on fine foods and more wine (we're planning three nights neat St Emilion - one of myself and Sandra's favourite varieties of the red stuff), and head up inland to Mont St-Michel. From there it's a stroll along the North Coast back to Roscoff. We're planning to stay in most places at least 3 nights and there's only one overnight to break up a long journey. In fact the average drive is under 150km with the longest clocking in at 277km.

I used the RAC Route Planner (pic above) which I found really good - provides an overview map and detailed directions for each leg. It's actually just a skin on Map24.com, which I've always found excellent for Irish driving. Someone also recommended Via Michelin to me, and Mappy.com also looks good, but to be honest I don't see a lot of difference between any of them.

UPDATE: Have spent a bit more time with both the RAC Route Planner and Mappy.com. RAC service gives me better routes - direct via D roads, which is my kind of driving. But the extras on mappy.com are great - highlights speed cameras, shows what the motorway signs you are looking for are like, and you can add in cash machines, Wi-Fi spots and other useful services along you're route. As a result I'm having to force mappy.com along the routes the RAC has suggested.