½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

Plenty of camp sites availabe in this area
(Marche- around Grottammare and Cupra marittima)
Good standard but as far as I am aware only open in summer.
½ûÂþÌìÌÃs dont have a problem with camping there are lots of
Motor Homes around. Hope you have a great trip.

York, that took me back a bit, next time youìre driving down Beckfield Lane, wave at no.130 for me :)
Majority of the sites seem to be located around the coast line, and, as Fred and Kath comment, only open through summer, however, I know of a few Agritour's who also accomodate caravans, so, it might be a good policy to checkthem on T'Internet.
Excellent way to find out where you want to live by the way, BUT, you do errrm realise that you will fall in love with the whole country and NEED to buy at least six homes.
Good Luck.

Generally caravans are not very popular in this country and those around tend to be kept permanently on camp sites,whilst instead mobile camper vans or mobile homes are defintely more popular.(Only the Dutch tend to be famous for towing caravans round Europe).Yes,it's true most camp sites which accomodate caravans are located along the coasts and are indeed only open for summer months, a lot of towns do not have facilities for the parking of campers and caravans (ie with electric plugs water lines etc) so you have to be careful where you park in order not to get fined etc.Also be careful around big cities peripheral areas often are associated with gypsy camps which are dangerous and advisable to keep away from.a moble home or camper van would be a better solution if possible.

There is a very pretty site(basic but has all amenities) called Il Pineto in Montefalcone Appennino, Southern Le Marche. Its on top of the world and not sure about getting a caravan in - though have seen motorhomes in there. Only open in summer

I can't recall seeing a caravan on the road in Italy, ever. However from spring to autumn there are large numbers of motorhomes on the move and the attitude in Italy seems to be against towing and in favour of rigid-bodied motorhomes. There are plenty of places around that hire out motorhomes.

If you go here:
[url]http://www.abcamp.it/campeggi/campeggi_abruzzo.html[/url]

You will find a clickable map guide to camper sites throughout Italy.

and here:

[url]http://www.abcamp.it/camperservice.html[/url]

A guide to "camper service" which are locations where you can empty the chemical toilet and fill up with fresh water. It's a criminal offence to empty chemical toilets down storm drains so don't get tempted even if you see someone else do this.

There are restrictions on towing a caravan:

Cars towing a caravan or trailer, and caravans over 12 tons, are limited to 70kph (44mph) outside built-up areas and to 80kph (50mph) on autostrade.

Caravans between 3.5 and 12 tons, are limited to 80kph (50mph) outside built-up areas, and to 100 kph (62mph) on autostrade.

For more information see here, but note the site is a bit out of date, for example you need to keep your headlights on at all times on the autostrada and you also need a fire extinguisher, high visibility vest and warning triangle:

[url]http://www.drivingabroad.co.uk/driving_tips_countries/Italy/driving_in_italy.htm[/url]

In particular note the restrictions that apply to having bicycles on a cycle rack. If you're a typical caravanner with a couple of bikes on a rack you'll need to buy a special sign/reflector plate.

More information is available here:

[url]http://www.autostrade.it/en/index.html[/url]

And here is a safety film with information about how to drive in Italy. It's well worth watching, but you need the Flash plugin for your browser.

[url]http://www.infonegocio.com/xeron/bruno/yesno.html[/url]

Thanks for all the replies - they are all extremely useful. We have never had a caravan before so we are dithering between a motor home and a caravan. However we will have our 2 dogs with us and we thought the caravan would allow for more flexibility. We might end up renting a house - but the idea of having the freedom to travel around is rather appealing after spending so many years being tied to one place!

The links are very good and we shall look further it seems the problem could be over winter in southern italy.

Many thanks again and any further thoughts would be gratefully received.

Zillah

Thought for you, a motorhome would definitely be the best bet for you, think about contacting Deepcar Motor Homes in Sheffield, Dirk sells enormous Hymer motor homes, and, if you speak to him nicely, you may even persuade him to buy back after a year or so, so, it works out like a rental agreement so long as you take it back in good condition, and within an agreed mileage.
[url]http://www.dmiuk.com/[/url]

Don't forget the problem of motor insurance for a long trip [see previous threads]

For info - the Caravan and Camping Club do a motor insurance that included 180 days abroad. When I asked about a longer trip time, I was told it would be an extra £1.50 [approx] for each day in excess of the 180 days

Definitely thinking back to a motorhome. I have been on the Deepcar Motors site and that looks interesting. I presume you can get awnings as well for the motorhomes. Our main reason for going for a caravan was to be able to have an awning which would provide shade for our 2 dogs. It is never so simple!

Many thanks for all the replies, they have given us plenty to go at - interesting about the insurance.

[QUOTE=Zillah]Our main reason for going for a caravan was to be able to have an awning which would provide shade for our 2 dogs. It is never so simple![/QUOTE]

Our neighbour in the UK is a Francophile and before he bught a house there he spent years touring. He had a Hymer motorhome which had full length awningsdown both sides of the vehicle. These rolled up into a box fitted to the edge of the roof and could simply be pulled down like the awnings over shop windows.