| Motorway Parking for Caravans |
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© Copyright
David Sullivan, 2007-2009. |
| Important Announcement! AUGUST 2009 I have decided that I can no longer support this website. It began with a sense of intense irritation a few years ago after a journey home which entailed several motorway stops! The response from other caravanners was very gratifying but unfortunately other commitments are increasingly making inroads into the effort needed to run the site. Therefore I have decided reluctantly to close it off to any new reports and, ultimately, to wind it down. Meanwhile, thank you to everyone who has contributed to the information on the site. I obviously could not have done it without you! UPDATE OCTOBER 2009 I am delighted to say that a safe home has been found for this website. I can't say any more at present but I hope to have more news early in 2010. UPDATE MAY 2010 Preparations are now underway to transfer this site into the care of Haymarket, publishers of Practical Caravan magazine. Haymarket already runs a Site Finder website and this one will be incorporated into it. The format will inevitably change but I'm sure everyone will like what they see. |
| WARNING A reader has written to say he had his caravan stolen at Fleet Services on the M3. It happened despite having an approved design of hitchlock (an Alko), and within a 20-minute window so it would appear the thieves were watching out for a suitable target. I don't wish to imply that Fleet is any worse than other MSAs but it's clear that thieves need a greater deterrent than a single hitchlock, however well designed. Nothing is totally thiefproof so all one can do is persuade them to target someone else instead and I would suggest a wheel clamp in addition to a hitchlock might make them think twice about persevering. |
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| One major grouse with British motorway service areas
that I share with thousands of other caravanners is the shabby way many
of them treat us. In contrast, 99% of all French 'aires' have clear
signing from the entrance right through to the (almost always separate)
parking bays. All too often in the UK, if we're directed anywhere at all
it's into the HGV area.
This has two and sometimes three consequences. Firstly the bays are generally full of (guess what) HGVs. Secondly they're often in a remote part of the service area, away from the facilities. (For that reason, the air often stinks of urine as well but let's not go there!) Thirdly there is sometimes no easy way back to the fuel pumps because only the diesel ones are accessible. All the major operators claim this isn't true but I for one am not convinced (Frankley southbound on the M5 certainly does not have access from the caravan bays to the full fuel services). Even where there is a designated separate parking area for caravanners, there is also a problem caused by HGV drivers who park there either because their own area is full or because the caravan bays are closer to the facilities. Even solo cars are known to occupy caravan-only bays. Such illegal parking seems to be tolerated by the management teams (or by the enforcement companies working on their behalf) but if caravanners park where they shouldn't, they get clamped. What this website has tried to do is to set up a database that will praise the good sites and shame the poor ones. Hopefully it has guided caravanners as to which ones to avoid. Unfortunately, as indicated in the panel above, I am now having to withdraw my support for the site. |
| To find existing information about any service area in
the network, click the motorway number below or click
here
for an alphabetic list.
The links below are in bold if there's a report for a service area
on that road. Service areas that have good reports are coloured green
(yes there are a few!), mixed reports amber,
bad reports red and
any areas for which there's not yet any report are blue.
Please note that these ratings indicate the quality of caravan parking
facilities and are not representative of how good the amenities are. |
| Latest reports: | Gretna Green (A74M) | added 12 Oct 2009 | |
| Exeter (M5) | added 28 July 2009 | ||
| Beaconsfield (M40) - first report | added 28 July 2009 | ||
| Clacket Lane (M25) | added 26 July 2009 |
| Select a road number for reports:- |
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| Links to related websites: | ||
| www.motorwayservices.info/ | General information about motorway service areas | |
| http://clicreports.co.uk | Lots more reports of the good and bad of MSA caravan parking (click the service areas link at the left of the page). | |
| www.frixo.com | Useful advice on current motorway conditions (updated every 3 mins). Also available for pda or mobile phone download for when you're actually travelling (subject to legal use of course!). | |
| http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/13364.aspx | Download the Highways Agency Consultation Policy Document on the future of MSAs. |
| Email me: | ||
| JavaScript must be enabled to email me. | ||
| © Copyright D. Sullivan 2007-2009 |