Free parking is not the same as a free stay — the electric hookup at this aire near Beausoleil can cost you more than you think.
We stopped here late afternoon, walked into the church next door, and only understood the electric meter after it had already charged us three times. This is what that actually looked like, and what it cost.
Is the parking free at this aire near Beausoleil?
Yes. We reached the aire by 4:30 in the afternoon and pulled in without paying anything for the pitch itself. It sits right beside a village church, close enough that we walked over on foot within a few minutes of parking. The location is the whole point of this stop — you are not driving out to see anything, you are already there.
How does the paid electric hookup actually work
Water and electric are paid, and the machine is not obvious. I didn’t understand the hookup and kept pressing buttons trying to get it to start. Our third daughter told me to stop before I understood why it mattered.
“If you keep doing that you’ll get charged”.
She was right. The card statement later showed three separate charges instead of one. The only upside is that three charges also meant three hours of power, so it wasn’t a total loss — just an expensive way to get there. If you’re using this aire, read the unit before you touch it, and don’t repeat a button press just because nothing seems to happen on the first try.
INFO ・ Aire camping car, near Beausoleil
- Parking: Free
- Electric: €2 per hour
- Water: €2
- What we actually paid for electric: three separate charges (about €6), because of repeated button presses
What did the kids actually do here
We walked into the church — it was open, and nobody stopped us. Our youngest danced Anpanman inside, which is not something you’d expect to be doing in a French village church, but the space was quiet and empty enough that it didn’t feel wrong. There’s no playground or activity area at the aire itself. The church is the activity.
Why stop beside a church at all
Most aires we’ve used are next to a car park, a sports field, or a stretch of road. This one puts you next to a building with actual history, and lets you walk inside it for free, in the same ten minutes it takes to get the van settled. That’s the trade-off worth knowing about before you arrive: you’re not paying for scenery or facilities, you’re paying nothing for a genuine village stop, and then paying separately, awkwardly, for power.
Should you use this aire
We only stayed the one night, so we can’t say how long you’re allowed to stay beyond that, or whether it fills up in high season. What we can say is this: if you want a free overnight next to something worth walking into, and you don’t mind figuring out a coin-and-button electric box on the spot, this works. If you need reliable power without fuss, or you’re not interested in a church stop, look for a paid aire with a clearer hookup system instead. Either way, read the electric meter before you press anything twice.
