finding campsites.

[jags]

so how do you find campsites when you touring,easy i suppose for the well season traveller,but for the novice what's the secret in finding one.
are they really that well signposted .i haven't said where im going ,but does it matter the problem will be the same no matter what country im in .thanks..

 

[xilios]

Best way (in Europe) is to check out the tourist offices in the area and ask about campings and best cycling routes there. We also take the time and do some research of the area where were cycling through and have a list of campsites with us. Don't forget half the fun is in the planning.
On our next tour we'll be taking along a small/mini laptop with programs like Auto Route Express, ANWB Camping select (in Dutch) and a few others that we can use offline.

 

[vernon]

Maps are a good start. There's also camp site books that list a range of sites. Off course if a site doesn't pay to be entered it's omitted. Joining the camping and caravanning club of great britain gets you a massive directory of UK camp sites many of which are unobtrusively signposted and can be missed as you whizz by.

OS maps for the UK show a lot of camp sites as do the Philip's Road Atlases. I used the latter for LEJOG and tore out the relevant pages and took them with me.,

In France I initially used the Michelin maps augmented by an AA road atlas. I didn't bother looking for camp sites on the maps as they were very common and well sign posted if I wanted to use a cheap camp site I'd ask a local for directions to the municipal camp site.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

I'd get a road atlas...plot my route..then do some research and mark the campsites and hostels on the maps before I went. I also now have a GPS loaded with european and uk poi files...just hit the button and it beams you in.

I am one for knowing where I am going...especially after a long hard ride in the rain...it's no fun trying to track down a campground then...I say know before you go.

 

[jags]

thanks a million for the info folk's much appreciated.

 

[samid]

I d/loaded a POI file with British campsites from those guys: www.gps-data-team.com (the site requires a small one-time donation, $5 IIRC) and it saved the day at least once for me this summer in England, when a campsite marked on a road atlas turned out to be non-existent. Of course, you need a GPS for this to be of use.