Satellite and forecast figures refreshed 16 August 2026 at 10:23 UK time. Fire and disruption reporting verified against official sources the same day. Conditions change hourly during fires. National authorities are always right. In danger anywhere in the EU, call 112.

Free · 14 chapters

The France Campervan, Caravan & Motorhome Travel Guide

…that is also a complete wildfire safety handbook. 2026 Fire-Season Edition.

The full touring handbook for France — routes, aires, campsites, regions, daily van life — built around the one thing other campervan, caravan and motorhome guides skip: what to do when the summer catches fire. Evacuation playbook, smoke rules, safe overnight stops, fire-season route planning. Written alongside this live wildfire map and updated from the same data. Every chapter is free to read here, and the whole guide is free to download as a PDF.

Start readingDownload the PDF
  • Every chapter free — read online, no signup, no paywall
  • Free PDF, made for phones & printing — take it offline in the glovebox
  • Free updates all season
  • 14 chapters + printable glovebox safety pages, built around the 2026 wildfire risk

Use it when the map says “check before you move”

Choose the route

Compare Atlantic, inland and Mediterranean options before you commit to the next long drive.

Choose the stop

Check whether an aire, campsite or coastal forest stop gives you shade, exits and backup options.

Move or wait

Use the smoke, wind, heat and evacuation prompts when the safest decision is not obvious.

Keep it offline

Print the glovebox pages and keep the guide on your phone for days when signal is poor.

The 14 chapters

  1. French daily life for travellers
  2. Where to stay: aires, sites and park-ups
  3. Regions: north & west
  4. Regions: South & East
  5. Top Tourist Spots and How Fire Season Affects Them
  6. Fire-Season Survival Knowledge
  7. Getting there
  8. Practical extras
  9. Roads, driving and routes
  10. When to go: seasons, bookings and closures
  11. Routes that work
  12. Activities: water and coast
  13. Activities: land, air and taste
  14. Motorhome and campervan security: theft, break-ins and where not to sleep

The glovebox safety pages

Print them, keep them in the van

Eight pages designed to be used with no signal and no time — the evacuation playbook the rest of the guide is built around.

  • The daily 10-minute check
  • Mediterranean département directory
  • Emergency numbers and operator phrases
  • Campsite evacuation checklist
  • Smoke: stay or move
  • Heat days and wind days
  • Phrase card
  • August traffic and insurance prompts

Who it's for

Anyone taking a motorhome, campervan or tent to France in summer — first-timers who want the whole picture, and old hands who want the fire-season layer they didn't have last year. It pairs with the free app: the map tells you what's happening today, the guide tells you what to do about it.

This guide is free — every chapter, no signup, plus the PDF. Every warning, alert and live map on this site is free and always will be. If this guide and a French authority ever disagree, the authority is right. In danger anywhere in the EU, call 112.

Fire & heat updates by email: don't check, be told

Sign up free and get the briefing: fires, closures and heat for Europe's travel regions, in plain English. Daily updates during the season for subscribers. Double opt-in, unsubscribe anytime, address used for nothing else.