¿Viajar por el Valle del Loira en autocaravana o camper? 🚐 En este video recorremos una de las zonas más espectaculares de Francia, famosa por sus castillos renacentistas, sus viñedos y sus experiencias únicas como los paseos en globo aerostático.
Visitamos Amboise, un lugar cargado de historia, con su Castillo Real, residencia de reyes franceses y tumba de Leonardo da Vinci en la Capilla de San Huberto. También exploramos el Clos Lucé, donde el genio italiano vivió sus últimos años y dejó huella con sus inventos y maquetas.
Además, te contamos todo lo práctico para disfrutar el Loira en autocaravana:
✔️ Áreas para autocaravanas baratas
✔️ Campings municipales con todos los servicios
✔️ Consejos para moverse en bici, moto o camper
✔️ Precios de entradas a castillos y vuelos en globo
✔️ Nuestra experiencia real en el camping de Chaumont-sur-Loire
El Valle del Loira es Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO 🌍, con más de 300 castillos entre Orleans y Nantes. Algunos de los más famosos son Chenonceau, Chambord, Villandry, Blois y Amboise, todos accesibles en camper o motorhome.
Si sueñas con recorrer Francia en autocaravana, esta ruta es ideal: historia, paisajes, gastronomía y experiencias inolvidables como volar en globo sobre el río Loira. 🎈
👉 Consejo práctico: reserva con flexibilidad tu paseo en globo, ya que depende del clima. Te contamos los precios actualizados y las mejores opciones.
🔔 Suscríbete para más rutas en autocaravana por Francia, España y Europa.
#ValleDelLoira #AutocaravanaFrancia #CastillosDelLoira #Amboise #LeonardoDaVinci #VanLifeEurope #FranciaEnCamper #MotorhomeTravel #ViajarEnAutocaravana
This week we look at balloons and give you all the practical information. We tour a castle closely associated with Leonardo da Vinci and a tourist-inclined village. And we visit a very affordable municipal campsite with all the amenities. Because today we are in Jumont-sur-Loire and Amboise, in the heart of the Loire River, France. Join me, my name is Carlos and this is Practical Motorhome. The Loire River Valley, or Loire, in the heart of France, is known as the land of castles. For more than 280 kilometers, the Loire glides between landscapes of vineyards, villages, and hills, offering the perfect setting for the construction of these impressive residences. But why are there so many castles there? Originally, many were military fortresses during the Middle Ages, rustic and spartan buildings that served to protect territories, control trade routes, and defend their inhabitants. Over time, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries, when France was already a power and almost no one dared to attack it, many of these buildings were transformed into luxurious residences for French nobility and royalty. They were not just homes; they were symbols of power and wealth, places for hunting, music, art, and court life. And although even today, in the 21st century, we still call them castles, they were actually more like palaces, which in some cases even housed entire royal families. The most famous castles are spread between Orleans and Nantes, as well as cities like Tours and Blois. Notable among them are Jambon, with its staircase and enormous towers; Genonceau, the Chateau des Dames, reflected in the Gerre River; Amboise, where some French kings rest; and Villardry, famous for its ornamental gardens that look like a work of art. After the French Revolution, many of the castles entered a slow decline that led to some being destroyed. Loaded with debt and unaffordable maintenance costs, their owners gradually handed them over, by fair means or foul, to private foundations or the state, and over time, they became tourist attractions. Today, the area has a good infrastructure for visiting by motorhome. Along the Loire River, there are many campsites, some motorhome areas, and even parking lots from which we can visit these magnificent castles. And of course, we’ll tell you about the campsite we’re staying at, but imagine having a beer or a coffee with that landscape. Impressive and indescribable. But what’s truly indescribable are these balloons we’re seeing in the air right now, passing right over the campsite. And this is more than just a coincidence. And now I’ll explain why. We told you we were going to give you some practical information about balloons, which are an attraction in this area of the Loire. A tourist attraction, obviously, but one that many people might enjoy. What’s this about? These are hot-air balloon rides. They have their limitations. And what are they? These balloons can only take off when the wind is less than 10 kilometers per hour. Of course, when there’s no thunderstorm, when the weather is good, basically. And that limitation can complicate things for us if, for example, we go for a weekend, two or three days, because we’ll have to be there right at the moment when the weather is good. Companies offer these services, which are a balloon ride of approximately one hour, a little more than that. Although the total journey, in theory, is three hours, from the time the balloon is filled with hot air until it lands and we pick you up, it lasts approximately three hours. But the actual balloon flight lasts approximately one hour. How much does it cost? It depends on the company. You know that we don’t sell anything here or provide any links for you to make any purchases. But we were able to find out at that time that this basic service will cost between 125 and 250 euros for a group of up to 22 people. Those large balloons carry a lot of people. There are 22 people in a balloon, with separate spaces so people don’t crowd or stick to each other. If we want to spend a little more money, between 250 and 500 for a group of six. And if we have money left over and want to have some attention for our partner, for more than 500, almost 800, you can have a flight specifically for two people. A pleasure, definitely. But, as I said at the beginning, this will depend on weather conditions. So much so that some companies charge in advance. And if the weather isn’t good that day, you don’t lose that voucher, that reservation, but they’ll reschedule it for another day. The problem is that if we come from Spain, that won’t work for us. So, if you want some practical advice, there are some companies we were able to research that allow reservations, but if the flight can’t be made on the day we booked because weather conditions don’t allow it, they’ll refund your money or not charge you anything. Also, I’d like to point out that the location of the balloon’s departure and arrival is entirely dependent on the weather. So, you can fly over the campsite, just as you can fly 50 kilometers up or 50 kilometers down. And now, from the campsite, we’ll head directly to Amboise, which I’m sure isn’t pronounced that way in French. And let me also tell you a little about the practical side of this. From where we are right now, it’s going to be about 20 kilometers . The problem here is that there isn’t much public transportation to make this trip, but we can do it perfectly well on a motorcycle, as we did. It’s a real walk, but it’s even better on a bicycle. Better if it’s electric, because there’s a path parallel to the Loire River that runs almost entirely through it for tens of kilometers. And in this case, we’ll be able to cover those 20 kilometers completely safely along that path. The only thing is that it’s not paved, but rather a kind of gravel road, but it’s not inconvenient for any bicycle. A walk to keep in mind. When we arrive, Amboise is an extremely touristy place, very touristy, too touristy. In fact, there’s a campervan area right there that’s even cheaper than this campsite, although the reviews aren’t too good. But if we want to be right in the middle of everything, there’s a campervan area that I think costs 14 euros and provides us with the basic services of the Camping Car Park campervan areas . That is, parking, water changes, and electricity, which is interesting, for only 14 euros. But yes, we’ll have to be a bit crowded. Next to this campervan area, there’s a campsite with all the amenities, but be careful, that campsite is already more expensive. So, we preferred to stay a little further away at the municipal campsite, as we’ve already mentioned. Once we entered the city, the village, whatever you want to call it, the main attraction is obviously the Royal Castle of Amboise. A place that isn’t expensive to visit; it’s approximately 14 euros, a little more, plus the city council fee, and you can visit independently. The castle in general has some rooms that are a little more furnished; some are refurbished with more modern furniture, and the others are basically something for tourists to enjoy. Perhaps the most important attraction in this castle is the Chapel of Saint Hubert. The Chapel of Saint Hubert. Why? Because it’s home to Leonardo da Vinci’s tomb, which unfortunately was lost to us during the filming. There were a lot of people, which is complicated, especially if you happen to go on a weekend, because it’s going to be packed with French and foreign tourists. A visit to the castle, which may not be the best in the entire Loire Valley, is nevertheless worth it. It’s also worth exploring the town a bit, packed, yes, with people, but also with cafes and restaurants, all obviously geared toward tourists. And you know, we have to look for this, because we got, for example, coffees for €1.30, but there are also coffees for €2.50, and we got, in front of the castle, ice cream for €1.50, the kind you don’t see anymore, and it’s very, very good. But anyway, for the rest, it’s just a matter of walking around, enjoying the crowds if you like being around a lot of people, and if not, leaving the castle quickly and going somewhere else . An interesting alternative to visit in the area, where there are many castles. You can visit them , even with a motorhome. You can leave the motorhome right at the castle door. Some require a fee, around €6 or €7, and from there we can follow the route and continue on our way. Also an alternative, the prices for the castles range from €10 to €30. I think this is the most expensive. It’s up to us to choose which ones we want to visit this beautiful area of the Loire Valley. But let’s go back to the campsite because we also want to tell you a little about this area. As we told you, the campsite is approximately 20 km from Amboise, but it’s also about 10 or 12 km from Blois, which is another place where we can also find these castles on the Loire River. A place that, in our opinion, is strategic, but we also basically chose it because it’s a campsite with all services included, for only €18, which is what we paid in May 2025. Remember, this campsite is located in this little town called Chamond -sur-Loire, a very, very small town, with practically nothing to do, basically I don’t even think there’s a bakery. So from a strategic point of view, it’s useful from an operational point of view, but a little complicated if we need to buy something. In this town, Chateau de Chamond-sur-Loire is also one of the best castles on the Loire River. The entrance fee is a little steep, but it’s within walking distance of the campsite, so we won’t even have to move. It’s also a good option to continue visiting these beautiful castles. Let’s talk a little about this campsite. It’s a campsite, as I said, with all the services. This means that in addition to the pitch, which isn’t at all delimited, we’ll also have access to 16- amp electricity—this is a lot, really—plus full bathrooms with unlimited hot showers and traditional toilet facilities, as well as places to wash dishes and clothes, and even laundry machines. A complete service, but it’s obviously a fairly limited municipal campsite . There are a lot of people, especially on weekends, and remember that you’ll have to live with the campsite environment. This means that you can also pitch a tent next to your motorhome . Bike tours are very common here. People take their bikes to a tent or even rent one at the campsite. They stay there overnight, and I think it only costs them 10 or 7 euros. It’s very, very cheap. It’s a family campsite. There are a lot of people, a lot of noise. If you just want to rest, this isn’t the best place, and there’s another problem. If it’s hot, there are some shaded areas. They are very, very nice but they are very limited and as the campsite fills up quite a bit especially on weekends they are going to be It may be difficult to find. Otherwise, we believe it’s a reasonable alternative at a reasonable price to visit this beautiful area of the Bar Castles. And at this point, and as always, we invite you to subscribe and activate the notifications box because this helps the channel but also helps the entire community. And if you liked the video, we also invite you to like it because the YouTube algorithm likes it. At this moment, we’re displaying the exact location of this campsite in case you’re in the area and want to visit. As always, we hope you enjoyed it and we hope it was useful. Remember that we have almost 200 videos online right now, so we invite you to check some of them out. Until next time. This is a practical motorhome video.
1 Comment
Gracias, una vez más; por aportar tus experiencias y sensaciones, son de gran ayuda, Saludos.