FRANCE – The Best Road Trip In Europe! France Road Trip Starts Here 🇫🇷

FRANCE – The Best Road Trip In Europe! France Road Trip Starts Here 🇫🇷

Have you ever wondered why France is always mentioned as the best road trip destination in Europe? Well, I’ve visited multiple times and spent 5 weeks exploring in my camper van to understand exactly why. In this four-part series, I’m going to reveal all. So, if you’re thinking of coming to France in your camper van, your motor home, or maybe even your car, I’m here to share with you some of France’s very best locations, which will hopefully inspire and help you plan the road trip of a lifetime here in France. Let’s get into it. In episode 1, I begin in northeast France, passing through the charming champagne region before heading to explore the fairy tale villages of Alzas. Next, I go on a mini road trip through the Jorah before experiencing the magical alpine town of Anie. My journey began at the ferry port of Dover as I made the cross into Calala in my converted Peugeot boxer camper van along with my soon wife to be Jasmine and our 15-year-old rescue collie dog Jim. So, Jasmine would be joining me for the first leg of this adventure before returning home. The ferry crossing was pretty uneventful to be honest, apart from some epic views of the legendary white cliffs of Dover, some overpriced pizza, and a guy snoring so loud he could definitely be heard from both sides of the channel. After the 90-minute ferry journey, we arrived in France and found a park up just outside the quaint town of Santaare. Bonjour Batan and welcome to France. Now, that is uh an interesting thing that I never thought I’d be saying on this YouTube channel, but we’re here in a place called uh Sen, which is around 40 minutes from Calala. Uh we stopped in a little air, little park up just on the outskirts of the town last night. After getting off the ferry, we were obviously conscious of staying in Calala, so we’ve moved here. Now, this town itself is a little bit off the beaten track. It’s not a place that you’ll find in many guide books, but it’s got a beautiful square. We’ve just been sat enjoying a coffee. We’re about to head into a Bulanerie and get a tart o papa which is a local pastry to this area. Apparently it’s like got some kind of custard inside it. Had a little stroll past the really impressive cathedral. And there’s also a UNESCO biosphere nearby here which some kind of marshlands where you can do a lot of bird spotting and all that good stuff. So yeah, this is really the first official stop. So welcome to the video. Really excited to start exploring this first leg, this first video on this mammoth trip around France over the next four or five weeks. So, we’re going to head to the Buery. Then, we’re going to head out and start exploring some more of the World War I, World War II places, heading towards the Champagne region. A lot of exciting things. For this first leg, my partner Jazz is with me, which is exciting. And of course, Jem the collie dog. Her first time in France. So, let’s go. M say magnific. Cheers. Eating pano chocolate in France doesn’t get more French, does it? Well, actually, it does get more French than that. Anyway, we made the drive out to the Vimemy War Memorial. So, this mammoth structure behind me is the Canadian War Memorial. Now, this commemorates all of the soldiers from Canada who lost their lives in the Great War, which is World War I. That’s really hard to comprehend that, you know, somewhere so peaceful 110 years or so ago, this would have been filled with trenches, bloodshed. This part of France we’re in. We’re near Aras was pretty much where the western front was during World War I. And if you are a bit of a history buff, then you’ll know that this part of France going into Belgium. There’s a lot of famous battlegrounds during World War I and World War II. On this trip, I’m going to visit a few and then I’m going to end up in Normandy and Britany right at the end and we’ll visit some of the famous beaches there. But yeah, today I thought we’d pay this a visit and shortly after we’ve actually walked around the memorial. There’s a section where you can visit some of the trenches that they’ve preserved. Now, this was home to miles upon miles of trenches, and even today, there’s still areas you can’t walk because there’s unexloded uh shells and munitions and all that sort of stuff. But, as you can imagine, it’s a bit of a somber, peaceful place for reflection, but something that you should definitely visit if you come to this part of northern France and if you are interested in the history of the war. Now, I haven’t done this area justice on this trip as there are many World War I sites and museums definitely worth visiting, all of which you can find in my Road Trip France guide book. Good morning. We’re in day two and we’re in the city of Reams and behind me is the famous Cathedral del NRAAM I think it’s called. If you’ve watched any of my videos in the past, you’ll know how terrible my pronunciation is. This Gothic fuel, I think it might be an Esco World Heritage site. Don’t quote me on it. And this town itself is in the heart of the Champagne region. So just on the outskirts of town, you’ve got a number of the big champagne houses. Ver Cleico, Pomminy, a few others. Now, continuing with the World War II themeing from yesterday. If you’re into history, what you should know about Reams is it’s actually where Germany was made to surrender World War II. They actually signed the document here and you can visit the museum. It’s about half a mile from the town center. So, if you’re into history and you want to explore some more World War II stuff, definitely head there. This morning, we’ve completed two out of two of our pano chocolate mission. I don’t know how long we’re going to keep eating pano chocolates for our breakfast, but I’m happy to continue with that. Now, what I will say is if you are planning on parking here in your camper van or motor home, you’re going to have to park pretty much on the outskirts. We’ve walked about 1.2k in. Parking in and around these cities is pretty difficult if you’re in a larger motor home. So, that’s just something to bear in mind. Now, today we’re going to go on a mini tour of this Champagne region and there’s one thing we need to do in Re and that’s buy some of the rose biscuits. Now, these are native to this part of France and you’re meant to eat them. They’re like pink wafer type biscuits that you’re meant to eat whilst you drink the champagne. We’re going to head on a little mini Champagne region tour today. Hopefully be sampling champagne. I don’t know much about it, but maybe by the end of the day we will. So, yeah, let’s go. [Music] Our next stop was Verse and its iconic lighthouse. a place to learn about champagne, but more importantly, a place to taste some champagne. So, we’ve just been and done the little museum tour. Now, when you come to one of the champagne houses, if you want to go to one of the bigger, more famous, wellknown ones such as Mo and Shandon, then book it in advance cuz we’ve tried to book to come today, yesterday, and it was sold out. So, instead, we’re doing our own little bit park tour. So, we’ve opted to buy a champagne at the shop for the lighthouse place. uh the first one of the day. I’ll be honest, it’s a little bit sharp. Um but that could be to do with the acidity in the pino noir in the area. I haven’t got a clue what I’m on about. It tastes like fizzy wine. Smells like fizzy wine. It looks like fizzy wine. It must be fizzy wine. So, the plan is this. We’re going to have this and then we’re going to move on into Epan, which is the main place of champagne apparently. And the avenue, the Champaga, is where all the famous champagne houses are either side. And apparently there’s up to 200,000 bottles of champagne in the cellar in the bolts below the street. So yeah, cheers saloo. So we’ve made the drive to Epan. Now we’re taking the class levels down a little bit. We stopped at a motor home service bay. Now they have these in various places across France. It’s a great idea. You can fill your water up. You can empty your black and gray waste. Pay a small fee to use it. I mean, it’s free to empty your waste. To fill up your water is like €3 for 100 L, which I think is brilliant, especially if you’re doing offgriding. So, yeah, we’re going to empty some waste and then we’re going to head into town and drink some more champagne. So, there we go. Rough with a smooth. [Music] So, don’t worry if you weren’t able to book on one of the famous Salatours. you’re still able to try some champagne at these big champagne houses by visiting their bar or their courtyard. So, we’ve come to Moa and Shandon and we’re going to do a free champagne taste test. €48 for free glasses. The first one was the Imperial one, which is their most popular and I would give it 8 and a half out of 10. I don’t know what I’m ranking on because this is the first glass of champagne I’ve ever drank. No, it’s not. Okay, the second. Next up, we’ve got this one, which is the the rosé. So, they add a bit more of the pino noir grape to it to give it the color. And then the last one is the demise. This is the sweet one. Apparently, there’s 45 g of sugar in it. Nectar. Nectar imperial. Sorry to any experts. Quite funny. We’re just sat on a little terrace overlooking the avenue, the champagne. And I think there’s a chap here who’s obviously drank a little bit too much being carried out. So yeah, the bubbles must be doing the job for him. What’s going on? Obviously, someone’s had a bit too much champagne. So, we’ve moved on to our next champagne courtyard. Don’t know if that’s what you’d call it, but it feels like a very sophisticated British pub crawl. There’s no beer involved, but there’s a lot of champagne and there’s multiple places you can stop at uh along the way. So, we’ve already had three, four glasses today. Would this be number five? So, yeah, make sure you park close because you won’t be driving once you’ve been on this bar crawl of champagne places. So, after our little bar crawl of champagne locations, we’ve come into the main square. Come for something to eat. Unfortunately, the only thing we can seem to find, believe it or not, is French restaurants, which would normally be great, but Jazz is vegetarian. They don’t cater too much for veggies. So, we’ve ended in this place called Her Restaurant, which is an Indian restaurant. Funnily enough, it was full with English people. And I’d go as far as saying hands down the worst Indian food I’ve ever had in my life. And I’ve had some shockers. So, yeah, if you come to Epan, uh, just avoid the Indian place. try some French cuisine because that was shocking. Anyway, we’re going to head back to the van and uh call it a night. We’ll pick it up tomorrow. We’re heading out to the east to the Alzas region. So, yeah, we’re going to be heading towards Strasburg uh and places like that before we head to the Jurora and then the Alps. But yeah, hopefully we won’t be after that Indian. Um but yeah, we’ll see you tomorrow. Good morning. Day three and we’re still in Epony and we’re on the beautiful car park of Caraphor Carfor. I don’t know how you pronounce it. Um, now there is a nice municipal campsite here that you can stay at if you’re in a camper van, motor home, caravan, that kind of thing. It’s just a short walk into the town with some great facilities. Unfortunately, it doesn’t open for us until next week. So, obviously, we’ve had to stay somewhere else. Not the most glamorous location, but it does the job. Now, today with the weather not being so great, we’ve changed our plans a little bit. We’re heading out to the Alzas region which is right on the border with Germany. And tonight we’ve opted to stay in a campsite pretty much along the way. Um just so Jazz can have a shower and few other bits and bobs. So today we’re not going to be visiting too much. We’re going to have a stop along the way to break up the journey. Bit more of an admin day. Really boring. So I probably won’t include much footage from today. However, if you do decide to head to the Alzas region from Epan, the Champagne region, places you might want to stop along the way include Nancy, which actually has one of the most beautiful, one of the largest squares anywhere in France. And you’ve got the town of Mets. But yeah, I’m going to stop waffling. We’re going to get in the car. We’re going to start driving. We’ve got probably a 2-hour 30 drive today to get to our campsite. [Music] [Music] We made a quick stop on the way toward Gem and things started to turn just a little bit silly. Going to go watch. Oh my god. Have you been to Nambos before? Go on. Oh, you’ve only got two more to go. So down. She just got whacked. Oh, Jimmy. [Music] So, we’re pitched up at our first campsite here in France. Uh, a few things to note. It cost us about €21. You have to pay extra for GM, uh, which was like €4. Got electricity. We’re on a grass pitch. The toilets and shower box are interesting. And I think this is the same throughout most of France and Europe. There’s a bit of a unisex thing going on with the toilets. The toilets, as Jazz has already experienced in a couple of places, don’t have toilet roll. There isn’t a toilet seat, but they look really clean. The showers look good. So, especially for the ladies watching, um you might want to pack some, you know, some spare toilet roll, toilet wipes, that kind of thing. We are very close to the border of Germany here. So, we’re in the Alzas region. We’re about an hour from Strasburg, which is where we’re going to be exploring tomorrow. And you can really start to see the German influence on the architecture of the buildings as we were driving here. A little old Hansel and Gretle type cottages with wood beams and all that cool stuff. But we’ll be exploring a lot more of that tomorrow. For the rest of the day, we are just going to do some boring stuff presume. Jazz, are you going to wash your hair? There we go. Jazz are going to wash your hair. Jeremy, you going to wash your hair? Who knows? And we’ll continue exploring more exciting parts of France, not just this pretty bog standard campsite tomorrow. So yeah, we’ll pick it up then. Now, before we head to Strasburg and the unmissable Alzas region in France, I’m just going to pinch 30 seconds of your time to share my new Road Trip France guide book with you. So, Roadtrip France contains everything you need for an unforgettable France adventure. It’s perfect for camper van, motor home, caravan, car, or even motorbike users. It has all of the vehicle requirements and legal stuff to get you into France. Plus, it’s packed full of itineraries, airs, campsites, and hotels. Each must-sea location comes with a QR code and what three words reference to make navigation simple. Plus, there’s room in the back to plan your very own road trip. Now, all of my guide books are written in a downto-earth, easy to follow and relatable style. Now, that’s a style that you guys seem to love. In fact, in May 2025, my NC500 guide book became the bestselling travel guide book anywhere in the UK. Plus, all of my guide books have received thousands of five-star reviews. Just go and take a look on my website or Amazon. So yeah, go and grab Road Trip France now by scanning the QR code on the screen or visiting my website robbbys.com where you’ll get free delivery plus free access to our France Google map. This is an exclusive if you order direct through my website. Thanks for listening. Now let’s get back into the video. [Music] Our next stop was the city of Strasburg, the largest city in the Grand Es region of France. And it’s also located in the historic Alzas region. Now, it sits near the border with Germany and features some charming architecture, quaint little town houses, and plenty to explore, including its huge cathedral, which was actually once the world’s tallest building. Now, as you can see, the weather was pretty shocking. So, we decided to take a ride on Laetan. You can find these all over France, little trains, and if you’re short on time, for €7 each, they are actually an excellent way to discover a new location. Once we’d had our fill of Strasburg, we got back in the van and ventured out to Chatau Duh Hokunigbore for a look at this mighty medieval site located on a rocky spur overlooking the upper Ryan plane very close to the German border. [Music] [Music] [Music] So, we’re continuing to explore the Route Devan, which is the wine route here in the Alzas region. We started this morning in Stratsburg. We’ve just visited that castle and now we’re in a quaint little town called Revier. I think I pronounced it right and it’s arguably most picture perfect quaint German influenced town. Um, you’ll probably find anywhere in France. It’s got 16th century architecture. Wood beams, half wooden houses. It’s like something out of a Disney film. Disney meets Ansel and Gretle, but it’s famous for its reasoning wine and the place is surrounded by vineyards. Yeah, this place is just nothing short of magical. Quick apologies about the mic quality. There was a loose connection on my camera, but from there we made our way to Kmar to continue our Alzas exploration. So today’s final stop is going to be here, the town of Kmar. And behind me, this is called Beti Venice, which translates to little Venice. And there’s a number of little canals that flow past these beautiful halfwood houses that are just typical of this part of the Alzas region. And we’re on the route the van, which is obviously the road I’ve been referring to all day. It’s quite different to a couple of the places we’ve been today just in that it’s so busy. Obviously a main tourist area, but it’s still equally beautiful. And I just want to add one thing. The reason I haven’t been vlogging much on this trip so far is my throat is absolutely uh knackered. Another thing to note is that I’m unfortunately wearing Crocs and socks. Don’t know how it’s happened, but the French do not appreciate it. I am getting some rotten looks. It could be cuz I’m English. It could be the Crocs and socks. Could be both. But yeah, I’ve left Jazz and Jim at the van. They’re parked up. I’ve just come from a little wonder around this town center. I mean, there’s no question if you’re in this part of France, you’ve just got to come and visit these places because they’re so fairy taleesque. So beautiful. And I’m getting lots of funny looks. A because I’m vlogging, B because I’m English, and C cuz I got Crocs on. I’m going to put the camera away and uh have a little wander around. Absolutely beautiful place, town of Kmar. The following day, we made the drive to the city of Besson near the border with Switzerland and not far from the Jura Mountains. Now, its main attraction is the stunning UNESCO World Heritage Citadel, which offers magnificent views over the city. It’s also home to a slightly tired looking zoo come animal attraction, which was honestly quite bizarre and a little bit underwhelming, but you know, you can’t have it all. After we’d explored Besson, we made our way towards the Jura Mountains with a brief laundry stop. And by the way, you can find these Revolution laundry machines right across France. They’re usually found at supermarkets. Just always make sure you’ve got some coins in case the contactless machine doesn’t work, which happened once or twice on our trip through France. So, after what has been a relatively uneventful day today, there’s been a lot of traveling, adding, washing, going to the shop. We find ourselves in this beautiful gorge. You can see the limestone crest behind me and it’s vast forest. And we’re here to experience the very first waterfall of this trip. Now, all of you that watch this channel regularly will know that I’m a sucker for a waterfall. And we’re here at S Lison. I think I’ve said it right, which is supposedly a really magical waterfall. Great thing is we’re just at the car park and the falls are a 4-minute walk just up there. Really achievable, really attainable. I’m excited to see what France has to offer in the waterfall department. As you can tell, my throat isn’t still quite there, so I haven’t been vlogging much. You’ll hear voiceovers here and everywhere to make up for it, but yeah, first waterfall. Let’s go and check it out. [Music] for the first waterfall on this France trip. That did not disappoint. It’s absolutely magnificent. The sheer power, the sheer volume, and how beautiful the blue water looks. It splits into different cascades over this mossy type rock. If it was a warmer day, that would be an ideal place to swim. Uh but yeah, very, very impressed. I’m just trying to make my way up now. I saw a few people up there. There’s a bit of a grotto, a bit of a cave um from which the river drops. Wow. I am uh very impressed. [Music] So, we’ve parked for the night in this beautiful little camp air just around the corner from the waterfall. And in the background, you might be able to hear the bells of the cows. Um, couple of young lads and a collie rounding up these cows, moving them from one field to the next, literally next door to where we’re camping. And we’re in this beautiful valley with the iconic limestone cliffs. The sun is just slowly setting and yeah, what a beautiful place to uh stay the night. And on that note, we’re going to leave it. We’re going to head more into the Jurora, which I’ll probably mentioned earlier in the video is almost the baby version of the Alps. Uh we’re going to be visiting more waterfalls, seeing some more beautiful scenery like this as we head towards the Alps later in part one of this video. So, yeah, it’s going to be an exciting one. I think this trip’s growing and growing as the days get on. Hopefully, my voice recovers. But, uh yeah, call it a night there and we’ll pick it up tomorrow. Good morning. Uh this morning we’ve been making a beautiful drive through this Jura countryside with sweeping hills, lush forests. There’s kites flying in the sky. The weather’s trying to be nice. So all in all, it’s been a beautiful drive and we’ve come to a place called Chatau Duchalon, which is a little commune on this hill overlooking some nice scenery. We’re here specifically to obtain one of the local delicacies. Yes, it’s wine. Again, there seems to be a lot of wine on this trip. In particular, we’re looking for van, which is a yellow wine that’s specifically made here in the Jura. Now, the characteristics, I believe it has to be matured for over 6 years, and it’s obviously um a type of white grape. They use a blend potentially. So, we’re in this place to try and find it. We did pass through a beautiful town called Salins deans. I think it translates to the salt bath. And of course, in the village in the town there, there is a salt bath that you can go and visit. Anyway, we’re going to try and find this wine. We’re going to try and find a baguette cuz I’m getting hungry. Uh, what you mean aren’t cutting it in the morning on these drives. So yeah, let’s go and take a look. [Music] We’ve just made it back to the van after our little jaunt around Shaton Duchalon. Uh I went into a wine place and she was making me try these wines and I’ll be honest, they were absolutely disgusting. And the Vanjon, the yellow wine we came here specifically for, was like €50 a bottle. And the wines I tried were just not great. So, I didn’t want to waste 50 quid. So, instead, we went for a little walk to the viewpoint, which is stunning. Uh, stopped for a quick uh coffee in the really quaint little calf. There was a beautiful dog there called Sasha that Gem seemed to get on with. But yeah, if you are in this region of France, it’s definitely worth a little call off here. We’re going to get back in the van now, head to another waterfall, which is only a 15-minute drive. Probably end up having some lunch, little picnic there, and then we’ll continue on this little road trip around the Jura. You know why I find it so funny? We’ve got this giant bottle of Volv struggling. It’s Saturday that every Yeah, if you want to do some workouts in France, just buy a couple of these velvet. €2 this cost from the supermarket. Can’t even get a little bottle of water for like five of these days. Anyway, stop being a tight bastard. I’m going to get in the van. We’re off. [Music] So, we’ve come to our second waterfall of this trip and this magical place behind me is called Bones Le Messi. I think I’ve said it right. And as you can see, it’s just multiple cascades that are almost fairy tale like splitting across different bits of I don’t know what you would call it. Rock, lyan, moss, and it makes for this absolutely bizarre, fascinating place. Makes for a really good photo. Yeah, I don’t know what else to say. It’s amazing. I haven’t seen anything like this before in person. Yeah, mind blown. So, there was a wally in a broly and that would be me. And that’s because the weather has took a bit of a turn for worse. Um, there was also a road closure on the way to this next stop which I’m currently at. So, I’ve come to a place called Belvadier de Fontenuer. I think I’ve said it correctly. Now, this is supposedly a viewpoint across Lac D Shalan, one of the famous turquoisey blue lakes that are found here in the Jura National Park area. Uh, the first lake that we’ve probably had time to explore on this France trip. France is packed with lakes all over. Um, unfortunately the weather isn’t playing ball, but as I’m just approaching the viewpoint now, wow, this is pretty impressive. And the color, despite it being gray and miserable, is absolutely stunning. Wow. Wow. Wow. There are multiple beach areas. Looks like on a warm summer’s day, this would be an absolutely mighty place to come and spend the day. That’s for sure. Even in this miserable weather, it’s enough to put a smile on my face. At least this was definitely worth the drive. So, annoyingly, our campsite for the night is near the start of the trail for the Cascades Du Harrison, which translates to Hedgehog Waterfalls. One of the most impressive set of waterfalls anywhere in France, I’m led to believe. Now, Google Maps has taken us pretty much right to the end of the falls. Um, and there’s a viewpoint with this very spooky sort of steel grate that doesn’t feel very safe. Jazz is looking at the structural integrity of the thing. Doesn’t look safe, but the view over the waterfall is spectacular. Unfortunately, our campsite, although as the crow flies is about two miles. It’s actually 20 km in the car. So, we’re going to have to get back in the van and do the 25minut drive to the campsite, which is frustrating. And then I was going to attempt the hike. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, depending on the weather. Yeah, I’ve kind of ruined the ending already, but hey, ho, thank you Google Maps. So, we’re going to get back in the van, head to the campsite. So, the rain has finally stopped and we’ve pitched up our campsite tonight. So this is the camp in Harrison. Uh we are a few hundred meters from the waterfall trail which has been brilliantly explained to me by the guy who owns runs the campsite. He’s even given me and Jazz a couple of free beers which is really nice of him. I’ve returned the favor actually by doing something really silly. Um you might be able to tell the grass wasn’t like that when we first got here. Uh obviously there’s been a lot of rain. Stupidly enough. I’ve pulled on frontways. I’ve tried to basically reverse to level us out and yeah, the rest is history. Um, I feel awful. I don’t know what I’m going to say or do because it is an absolute mess after he’s been so hospitable giving us a free beer. Um, my own fault. I mean, maybe he should have said not to come on this pitch. I don’t know. But yeah, we’re going to leave it on that one today. Find out tomorrow if we get in trouble. Who knows? Uh, I do genuinely feel bad, though. Anyway, first thing tomorrow, I’m planning on doing the waterfall hike. It should take under 2 hours give or take. That’s if I don’t get booted off the campsite before hopefully the weather’s better and we can see some more of this beautiful Jura heading then towards the Alps and Anie. So exciting times. Unfortunately, we woke up to bad weather and more so utter embarrassment at the fact that I destroyed the campsite pitch. Both of those factors meant that I skipped the waterfall hike, something which I’m not proud of. And if you do visit the Jura, I strongly advise you go one step further than I did and actually complete the trail. Anyway, we headed towards Ansie through the magical Jura National Park and made a stop at the impressive Gorge Duir. [Music] After a delicious homemade baguette sandwich type concoction thing, we made the short drive to Ani, described as the Venice of the Alps. We would soon fall in love with the staggeringly beautiful lakeside town packed with narrow canals, charming back streets, and snowcap mountain views. We settled in pretty quickly with a stroll around the town, followed by a nice glass of wine and a homemade Neapolitan style pizza. So, good morning. You join me in Anie. We’re just on the lake here. I’m going to bring you up to date because I had a bit of a shocker the last couple of days. Uh I was recording a little bit yesterday when we arrived here. Realized my microphone wasn’t working and wasn’t on. So, I would have voiced over that bit yesterday, but uh I’m feeling a lot better now. And we’re in this place that I can only describe as like a postcard come to life. Got the huge snowcap mountains in the distance. Beautiful crystal clear turquoise water. And in little under an hour, me, Jazz, and Jem are going to head out on a boat. Uh just to do a 1-hour tour of a lake here in Anie. So, we drove here yesterday from Ljura, which was a magnificent drive to be honest. And we’ve actually opted to stay in a hotel for a couple of nights. We’ve been in the van for like 7 days now. So, pretty much a case of we were both feeling a bit rubbish. Jazz wasn’t feeling too good. So, we’ve opted to spend two nights here in Anie. Uh, right in the center. Actually, we went for some incredible pizza, incredible wine last night. It’s just a beautiful, beautiful place. There’s a farmers market filling the old cobble streets of the town center this morning. I describe places as magical. This is definitely a magical place. [Music] Shortly after our boat trip, we decided to hire a couple of bikes. So, this afternoon, me and Jazz have hired bikes for a couple of hours. We’ve had them in the town and we’re just following the lake for I don’t know how far. One thing I can tell you is that this ride, the cycle paths, the views are just absolutely magnificent. Uh I haven’t ridden a bike for a while and I kind of regret not bringing one on this France trip. So if you are into biking, even if you’re not into biking, you can hire these. It’s cost us like €14 each, 2 hours, which isn’t much to be honest. And uh the experience you get is completely worth it. Just a great way to take in the views and a different perspective really. We’re going to continue because this is bloody brilliant. Really glad we did it. [Music] So, after our boat trip around the lake, we’ve worked up a little bit of a first. Seems it’s a nice day. We thought we’d come and try a local beer. So, cheers. Saloo. [Music] So Anie is known as the Venice of the Alps. And when you come along these little walkways here that link up to lake, you’d be fooled for thinking you were possibly in Venice. Now this bridge behind me is called Bridge Dear I think uh bridge of love. And supposedly if you kiss someone on there then you’ll end up loving them forever. Um we’ve left Jem in the van so we can’t kiss Jen otherwise that would be my choice. Jazz, if you’re watching this, which you probably aren’t, and don’t take what I’ve said to heart, but yeah, in terms of one of the main things to do and see here, it’s definitely up there. As you can see behind me, there’s quite a lot of people up there. Getting a photo uh potentially kissing their loved ones. Who says romance is dead e? Yeah, it’s a beautiful little boulevard flanked on both sides by these trees that sort of just branch over the water. These lovely little rowing boats. Makes for a nice photo. We’re going to return the bikes now, head back to the van, and then maybe have a little lie on the grass overlooking the lake for half an hour, just soaking in a bit more of this sun. Safe to say, Anie so far is the favorite place that I’ve visited on this France trip. Uh, it’s just so charming, so pictures, so beautiful, and maybe one day I’ll come back here. Hopefully. Good morning. So, this morning we’ve left the hotel, come back to the van, and we’re going to be heading up into Shaman up in the Alps. Now, I’m very excited. It looks very clear today. It’s the first time we’ve been in Anie where we can see right the way up to the mountains. You see all the snow cap peaks properly. Uh the other issue is with going up to Shaman. Let me just show you on my phone. So I’ll probably put a screenshot on the screen, but um yeah, there’s actually a severe avalanche warning. Now we’ve never been up to a ski resort before. I don’t know if this is a norm, but slightly concerning the fact that tomorrow we’re going to go up a guil dumidi, which is the cable car which goes to almost 4,000 m in a place that you would probably suspect an avalanche might happen. Uh so yeah, there’s a risk involved. Anyway, before we head up there, um I’m pretty sad to be leaving Anie. This place is um nothing short of spectacular. If you do come here in your camper van or motor home, there are a number of campsites that you might want to stay at. You can stay at some off-grid places such as this, which is pretty much near the town center uh on the lake. Obviously, it’s hit and miss if you’re able to get a spot in somewhere like this. If you are visiting in July and August, you’re going to have to book a campsite pretty far in advance. Obviously, there’s a lot of French people come here on holiday. So, yeah, if you are planning your own summer holiday to France and you want to come here, definitely book ahead. Now, there’s a more direct route up to Shaman from Anie, which is about 2 hours and 15. Instead, we’re going to take the longer route, which is about 2 hours 30, 2 hours 40, but the drive is meant to be sublime. Some of the views, some of the sweeping verandas and landscapes are meant to be incredible. So, that’s what we’re going to do today. So, I’m actually going to end part one of this trip here, and we’re going to pick up heading up the Alps on the next episode, which is going to be very exciting. There’s a real risk of an avalanche, which is quite a daunting uh proposition. So, I just want to say thank you for watching episode one. It’s probably been a bit all over the shop. Hopefully, we’ve been able to piece it together with some voiceovers and give you enough information. But this trip isn’t about visiting every single corner of France. It would be impossible for me to do that in a year, let alone four or 5 weeks. But hopefully it’s starting to wet the appetite for your very own road trip. Whether you’re here for a couple of weeks, whether you’ve got the luxury of staying here for maybe four, 6 weeks. Um hopefully it’s given you a bit of a taster. And in the next episode, we’re going to be experiencing some of the highlights of France. So, we’ve got the Alps, the South Coast, Gorge De Verdon, loads more coming up. So, if you’ve enjoyed this video, hit the like button, leave a comment below, maybe consider subscribing if you’re new to this channel, and yeah, I’m going to catch you all in episode two. [Music]

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🇫🇷 Welcome to Part 1 of my Ultimate France Road Trip! 🚐
In this episode, I kick off an epic campervan journey through some of the most stunning regions of northeast France. From the historic charm of the Champagne region, through the colourful villages of Alsace, the peaceful landscapes of the Jura, and ending lakeside in beautiful Annecy—this is road-tripping at its best!

Expect scenic drives, hidden gems & plenty of France travel tips. Whether you’re planning your own motorhome trip through France or just love travel content, this series is packed with inspiration, tips, and unforgettable views.

📍 In Part 1, I explore:

The Champagne countryside including Reims, Verzenay & Epernay 🍾
Fairytale towns in Alsace including Strasbourg, Colmar & Riquewihr 🏘️
The quiet beauty of the Jura 🏞️
The crystal-clear lake and mountain views of Annecy 🚣‍♂️
🗺️ Don’t forget to subscribe to catch the full 4-part series as I travel across France in my campervan, visiting the very best spots along the way!

👉 Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/@robbieroams
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