Val de Loire & Champagne

Val de Loire & Champagne

02.06.23

Today we head towards Val de Loire with heavy hearts.

We decide to take the highway to avoid having to drive through thousands of roundabouts and towns. However, this results in high toll fees. From La Rochelle to Amboise, it costs a whopping 37 €. But at least the French highways are empty and easy to drive.

Since castles are not our thing, we only catch a glimpse of a few while driving by.

We have chosen a place called "La Poterie" near Mosnes on the Loire for tonight and are lucky that there is still one spot available for one night. The reception is once again very warm.

Today we are doing a wine tasting with the wines we bought this morning and with our new camping chairs.

Unfortunately, the place is not right on the Loire, so we cycle off again. It's quite nice here but somehow reminds us of the Sieg or Agger rivers.

We watch the sunset today with a view of the Loire.

03.06.23

We wake up early thanks to the birds chirping and frogs croaking.

We don't leave until 8:30 am because that's when the barrier to the campsite opens. Campers really are late risers 💤😴 Today we are heading towards Champagne. We drive along the Loire for a while.

Since we are driving on country roads today, it takes quite a while, especially since we are driving through flat land. Probably the breadbasket of France.

Just before the champagne producer M&S Jobert, where we want to stay tonight, there are slopes planted with vineyards.

We end up in a backyard and are personally greeted by the winemaker.

There will be a champagne tasting with other motorhome guests at 6 pm tonight.

After a walk through the village, we prepare ourselves with bread and cheese for the tasting.

Two French people who also speak English join the tasting.

Michael lets us taste different champagnes, the glasses are always quite full and Michael also drinks along. 😉

Then there is a selection of Ratafia, an aperitif similar to port wine. Michael talks a lot about champagne and cultivation, he is the 9th generation to run the estate.

Since we buy a few bottles of champagne, the accommodation is free. (Otherwise, you would have paid 9€, which wouldn't have been much considering the amount of drinks.)

We finish off one bottle while watching the sunset and looking out over the vineyards.

We sleep on the vineyard until the .... crowing of a cockerel 🐓

04.06.23

We set off towards Epernay without breakfast.

Here there is an Avenue de Champagne, where all the major champagne producers are located.

We drive up and down this avenue and stroll through the still sleepy town. 

After breakfast, we head home. We still have 400 km ahead of us, then the wonderful vacation is unfortunately over.

Our conclusion on France:

We haven't met a single unfriendly French person, on the contrary, from the supermarket checkout to the restaurant, everyone was always eager to help us, despite our lack of French language skills. We were always warmly greeted at the campsites.

That the French are unfriendly and don't speak English - for us an outdated prejudice.

The French are a relaxed, wine-drinking nation.

In terms of landscapes, France, and we have only seen a tiny piece of it, has a lot to offer and we have wondered why people even fly to New Zealand when there are such beautiful places in Europe as well. We have seen breathtaking cliffs, Mont Saint Michel, deserted beaches, and pretty towns. Great food with wonderful weather (not a drop of rain in 2.5 weeks) and a really affordable travel destination. Camping sites here cost between

11 and 20€, at least now in the off-season.

Groceries are priced comparably to Germany.

We were lucky that it was still the off-season and not too crowded, except on weekends, and we didn't know that half of France is on the road with a motorhome on weekends.

But we will definitely continue to explore France.

Au Revoir France 🇫🇷🫶 we'll be back!!!