Free Camping - German Style - Stellplatz. P
Nov 4, 2014 17:59:05 GMT
Rubbertramp, Etienne Le Croq, and 1 more like this
Post by spirecamper on Nov 4, 2014 17:59:05 GMT
Germany must be one of the best places in Europe for free camping. There are literaly thousands of free parking spaces, dotted around the country. I say parking spaces, because the majority of the spaces are allocated in car parks, often attached to leisure centres/swimming pools. (freizeit centrum- freibad), and quite often, they are located near to town centres, giving easy access to shops and restaurants.
Cologne and Dusseldorf can be reached quite easily using public transport, which are both frequent and relatively cheap.
After 2 pleasant days we headed off in the direction of Mohnesee, our ultimate destination. In Part 2, I will detail the other places we stayed , how to locate stellplatz on the road, and some of the facilities that you might find .
The stellplatz are official places, normally signposted with a mobilehome logo,so there is no problem with being there, in fact the Germans recognise that encouraging people to stay in a town or village, brings in revenue. One important point to mention, is that normally the stellplatz are designated solely for campervans / mobilehomes (Wohnmobile in German).Tents and caravans (wohnwagen) are not permitted to use them, though despite this we did see at least 2 caravans using them.
On our recent visit to Germany, we stayed at 4 Stellplatz, and paid for only 2 nights in Gelsenkirchen, the princely sum of 7 euros per night. Our first stop was just beyond Cologne. in Bergisch Gladbach. Surrounded by woodland, the stellplatz is located on the leisure centre car park, with ample places for 20 units. There are no facilities, other than reduced entrance fees to the swimming pool, so no electric hook up , no water, no waste disposal, so you need to be prepared. However there are shops and restaurants just a 10 minute walk away, a couple of minutes by bike. Cyclists are well catered for and there are numerous cycle paths running past the site.Cologne and Dusseldorf can be reached quite easily using public transport, which are both frequent and relatively cheap.
After 2 pleasant days we headed off in the direction of Mohnesee, our ultimate destination. In Part 2, I will detail the other places we stayed , how to locate stellplatz on the road, and some of the facilities that you might find .