[Req] Motorhome Parking Experiences at European Airports

FrCrilly

[Query In Short: If you have experience of successfully parking and leaving unattended a motorhome at a Ryanair Airport on the continent, I would appreciate details]

Hi All,

I’m presently researching to buy a motorhome, with a particular emphasis on using it on the Continent. Being based in Ireland, I see the ferry and drive both back and forth to be quite a burden on a short holiday timeframe. (eg 4 days travelling for a 2 week holiday).

To minimise this burden, I am researching the prospect of buying the motorhome with a partner with the intention that we swap the motorhome at an airport on the Continent. For example, I could take the motorhome and ferry out, tour towards a distant airport, my partner will fly to that airport, my partner will take over the motorhome, I will fly home (on same plane after a turnaround), my partner will then tour heading back towards the ferry and then ferry home.

To effectively pull this off, I need to be confident that I can park a motorhome at a lot of airports on the Continent. For maximum cost efficiency, I have decided that this approach will be based around cheap Ryanair (back end of nowhere) airports.

I have taken the liberty of emailing all Ryanair Airports from Dublin to the UK/Continent asking if it is possible to park a motorhome (3 Mtrs High, 2.3 Mtrs Wide and 6 to 7 Mtrs Long) within their short term parking facilities for a period of approx 2 hrs. As expected, a lot have not responded. See below results.

I now wish to ask the motorhome forum community if anyone out there has had experience of successfully (or unsuccessfully) parking a motorhome and leaving it unattended at any of the below airports. If yes, I would like to know details (eg where you had to go, what you had to do, who you had to ask).

All pieces of information in relation to this matter will be greatly appreciated, no matter how small. (Also, if you request parking info on any of the below responses, feel free to ask)

Thanks In Advance for all Responses.


Belgium
Brussels-Charleroi, Yes

Croatia
Zadar, "No Response"

Czech Rep
Prague , "No Response"

Denmark
Billund, "No Response"

Finland
Tampere , Yes

France
Biarritz, Yes
Brest, Yes
Carcassonne, Maybe
Grenoble, "No Response"
La Rochelle, "No Response"
Marseille, Yes
Nantes , "No Response"
Nice , No
Paris-Beauvais , Yes
Rodez , "No Response"
Tours , "No Response"

Germany
Berlin-Schönefeld , "No Response"
Hahn , Yes
Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden , Yes
Lübeck , Yes
Memmingen, Yes
Weeze , Yes

Hungary
Budapest, "No Response"

Italy
Bologna, Yes
Milan-Bergamo , "No Response"
Pisa , "No Response"
Rome-Ciampino , No
Trapani , "No Response"
Treviso , Yes

Latvia
Riga , "No Response"

Lithuania
Kaunas , Yes

Netherlands
Eindhoven , Yes

Norway
Oslo-Torp , Yes

Poland
Bydgoszcz, "No Response"
Gdańsk , Maybe
Katowice , "No Response"
Kraków , "No Response"
Łódź, "No Response"
Poznań , "No Response"
Rzeszow , "No Response"
Szczecin , "No Response"
Wroclaw , "No Response"

Portugal
Faro , "No Response"

Slovakia
Bratislava, "No Response"

Spain
Alicante, Yes
Almeria , Yes
Girona , No
Madrid , "No Response"
Malaga , "No Response"
Murcia , Yes
Reus , "No Response"
Santander , "No Response"
Seville , Yes
Valencia , Maybe

Sweden
Stockholm-Skavsta , "No Response"

UK
Aberdeen, "No Response"
Birmingham, Maybe
Bournemouth , "No Response"
Bristol, "No Response"
East Midlands, Maybe
Edinburgh, "No Response"
Glasgow-Prestwick , "No Response"
Leeds/Bradford , Yes
Liverpool , "No Response"
London-Gatwick , Yes
London-Luton , Yes
London-Stansted , "No Response"
Manchester , "No Response"
Newcastle , Yes

Sol_MB

Hi, I parked at Prague a couple of years back. It's very expensive and kinda small, But I manged to get in and out okay. Was a little bit smaller than you though.

Also there is a bit of an indstral estate near by (Walking distance) I wouldn't leave the van unitended but you can probably find somewhere to pull up for a few hours.

zagmund

I like your dedication and enthusiasm, but you may be limiting yourself a little here. Why must it only be an airport car park ? Why not consider dropping the family and bags to the airport, then leaving it in a Lidl or Aldi (or any supermarket, obviously) car park and getting a taxi to the airport. Free parking, what's not to like ? Or, park in some little town that has a direct train link to the airport. Leave the vehicle in the train station, jump on the train, get off in the airport. Pisa has a direct link as far as I know. Branch out from Ryanair and there are plenty of other airports - Munich, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Stockholm for starters. There's probably a good few others, but I can't think of them at the moment.

I know you're probably researching *more* than the cost of flights and availabilty of parking, but I can just picture the scene as you cross with your co-owner in the airport in Xyxlxlxxyyschtensteinhof at 0415 one morning.

Sez you - "So . . . cool car park, eh ? Flights cost only €4 for the whole family, return. Amazing. Now, what did you guys do here for the last week ?"
Sez him - "Well there was the cabbage museum on Monday. That was OK. Then there was the cabbage processing factory on Tuesday, kinda missed out on the interpretation a little as they weren't really geared up for tourists and didn't speak any English. Cabbage farm visit on Wednesday. Haven't seem the wife and kids since then. Think they got on a plane to Barbados. We were parked in the airport, so it was easy for them . . ."

Seriously, I hope you do get to visit as much of Europe as you have talked about, but for gods sake avoid the cabbage museums . . . :P

z

zagmund

Incidentally, I could have sworn that the airport parking in Girona was pretty flat, so I can't see any problem there other than the airport authority not wanting people camping in their carpark. They may have mis-understood your question. Sames goes for Schonefeld - last time I was there (about 2 years ago) there was a big open car park right in front of the terminal where you could park a campervan.

z

NWBertie

sounds like a good plan.....just make sure your insurance covers you for the motorhome being out of the country for prolonged periods??

FrCrilly

Thanks for all responses.

Please see below updated list, based on a second round of emails and information from Motorhome forum users (marked with an *). Please note new information is always welcome, no matter how small or how far into the future.

Thanks in advance for all future responses.

Belgium
Brussels-Charleroi, Yes

Croatia
Zadar, "No Response"

Czech Rep
Prague , Yes

Denmark
Billund, Yes

Finland
Tampere , Yes

France
Biarritz, Yes
Brest, Yes
Carcassonne, Maybe
Grenoble, "No Response"
La Rochelle, "No Response"
Marseille, Yes
Nantes , "No Response"
Nice , No
Paris-Beauvais , Yes
Rodez , "No Response"
Tours , "No Response"

Germany
Berlin-Schönefeld , Maybe*
Hahn , Yes
Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden , Yes
Lübeck , Yes
Memmingen, Yes
Weeze , Yes

Hungary
Budapest, Yes

Italy
Bologna, Yes
Milan-Bergamo , "No Response"
Pisa , "No Response"
Rome-Ciampino , No
Trapani , "No Response"
Treviso , Yes

Latvia
Riga , Yes

Lithuania
Kaunas , Yes

Netherlands
Eindhoven , Yes

Norway
Oslo-Torp , Yes

Poland
Bydgoszcz, "No Response"
Gdańsk , Maybe
Katowice , Yes
Kraków , "No Response"
Łódź, "No Response"
Poznań , "No Response"
Rzeszow , "No Response"
Szczecin , "No Response"
Wroclaw , Yes

Portugal
Faro , Yes*

Slovakia
Bratislava, "No Response"

Spain
Alicante, Yes
Almeria , Yes
Girona , No
Madrid , "No Response"
Malaga , "No Response"
Murcia , Yes
Reus , "No Response"
Santander , Maybe
Seville , Yes
Valencia , Maybe

Sweden
Stockholm-Skavsta , "No Response"

UK
Aberdeen, Yes
Birmingham, Maybe
Bournemouth , "No Response"
Bristol, Yes
East Midlands, Maybe
Edinburgh, Maybe
Glasgow-Prestwick , "No Response"
Leeds/Bradford , Yes
Liverpool , "No Response"
London-Gatwick , Yes*
London-Luton , Yes
London-Stansted , "No Response"
Manchester , "No Response"
Newcastle , Yes

peasant

not to pick holes in your plan, but

How exactly are you planning to swap over during the plane turnaround?

You'll already be checked in and in the departures lounge when your colleague steps off the plane ...never the twain shall meet.

You'd have to leave the keys and parking card at the information desk or something ...

FrCrilly

peasant wrote: »

not to pick holes in your plan, but

How exactly are you planning to swap over during the plane turnaround?

You'll already be checked in and in the departures lounge when your colleague steps off the plane ...never the twain shall meet.

You'd have to leave the keys and parking card at the information desk or something ...

Each partner could have a duplicate set of keys. The parking card could be hidden in the van in a pre rehearsed but not so obvious location. With effective mobile communication (texts and photographs of where to go) and also backup plans (eg inform a landline contact back in Ireland where the van is), I can't see any problems.

nowuckenfurries

With regards to Faro I would say no...

My Father & partner parked their Knaus Suntraveller @ Faro for 2 weeks last year while they returned to Ireland, It was parked in a well lit open area in the carpark & on their return 2 weeks later discivered that it had been broken into.

A lot of stuff was stolen, food, tv, cutlery, reversing camera display (must have though it was a satnav), clothes, cosmetics..... & shower head ?? etc .

It turns out that a "well known" Romanian gipsy gang was in the area & over the 2 weeks they cleaned out the van all while not raising the suspiscions of any airport security :eek:

They forced a small window open, put a kid in who released all the deadbolts on the doors, then they proceeded to rip out the alarm system...and help themselves to anything they wanted

luckily the engine immobiliser still worked or else the whole van would have been taken..

Faro Police have yet still not found the thieves!!