A new way to see the Cities of Europe. (Part 2)

Most people, when they think of Motorhome breaks, think of campsites and fields, a slower pace of life, often surrounded by beautiful countryside. And that’s great, we love to kick back and chill in a lovely campsite, but we also like to add other dimensions to our Motorhome tours. I’ve always enjoyed city breaks. I love exploring new architecture, eating new food and learning the history that has shaped a city, and even a wider country. I enjoy the hustle and bustle of other people going about their daily lives as I sit with a tea (or wine) watching the world go by. As our boys have grown we have used our motorhome as a base of some incredible European city breaks.

In the UK and Europe we tend to use 2 main apps to find our park ups and campsites. SearchforSites.co.uk is usually our first stop, and if that fails we will turn to Park4Night.

Daytime Parking on the street.
It’s great to find city centre parking when we are visiting a city for a day. But it can be almost impossible to find somewhere safe and large enough for a motorhome. The beauty of travelling by motorhome is that you have all your possessions with you. The downside of travelling by motorhome is that if you are unlucky enough to be broken into, thieves have all your possessions to choose from! So selecting your safe parking spot is very important.

Nighttime Street Parking.
As a family, we don’t really enjoy lay-by and street parking. We worry that it’s noisy, the vibrations of traffic shake our van and we aren’t exactly comfortable with the idea that people can be walking within a foot of our beds. None of these factors make for a great night's sleep, however, some locations are worth taking a chance on.

On our recent trip to Berlin, we were unable to find space in either of the two local aries and decided that parking with a view of the Brandenburg Gate was well worth the on-street location.

Pub Stops
Many UK pubs allow Motorhomes and Campervans to park overnight in their carparks for free, so when travelling in the UK this is obviously one of our favourite kinds of stop. We always recommend checking with the staff either before or as soon as you arrive, but generally, as long as their is room in the carpark, you can stay for a small fee or in exchange for using the bar or restaurant. If you were planning to eat out anyway, this is a great way to enjoy an evening in the pub, without the hassle of making your way home late at night. The pubs can be in great locations for visiting some of the UK's most historic cities.

City Aires
Our first choice of park-up when visiting a city will always be an Aire. An Aire is generally a piece of public or private land for motorhomes and campervans to park safely overnight. They were not created to be campsites, and if they indeed have them; the toilet and shower facilities can vary wildly. Spaces are allocated on a first come, first served basis and can sometimes feel like a tight squeeze. As Aires were established for self sufficient vehicles, setting up a pitch is frowned upon, especially if it prevents other vehicles from parking up!

However, Aires are generally in fantastic locations, and when we are looking for somewhere safe to leave our van and somewhere safe to sleep, toilets and showers are a great bonus, but not really a priority for a one or two night stop. Of course we love a free aire (who doesn’t), but when we are visiting a city we are happy to pay for the peace of mind that our van is somewhere safe and secure.

City Campsites
Sometimes, you just have to bite the bullet and pay to stay in a campsite. Not all campsites are created equal! Our own family priority when we are paying to stay at a campsite is a pool. When you have spent the day exploring a hot sweaty city, there is nothing more wonderful than cooling off in a pool.

It’s impossible to drive a motorhome through some of the ancient walled cities on the Adriatic coast. Both Dubrovnik and Kotor stand out as stunning but totally inaccessible cities. Just because we can’t drive a motorhome around, does not mean we would be put off visiting. We were staggered that the closest campsite to Dubrovnik was £90 per night in the height of summer, however it was our only option.
Thankfully, we found cheaper day parking a 10 minute walk to Kotor.

Obviously many of the cities we have camped in are a long way from our home in Milton Keynes, so popping to visit for a weekend break isn’t likely to be as easy as hopping on a plane and booking an AirB&B. However, when we tour Europe we like to balance fun campsites, quiet wild spots and city breaks. With a bit of time and research it is bsolutely possible to explore huge and ancient cities from the comfort of your own motorhome.