In-depth guide · CampingSpirit
From Clermont-Ferrand via the Chaîne des Puys, the Sancy and the Cantal massif to Le Puy-en-Velay: around 480 kilometres on narrow departmental roads, where cheese farms, maar lakes and the Pas de Peyrol set the rhythm of the day.
The spirit of the route
In the Auvergne you drive over extinct fires. Beyond Clermont the puys line up like green molehills, the Puy de Dôme towers above them all, and on clear days you can see from its summit as far as the Sancy. Further south the land grows higher and emptier: basalt organ pipes, pastures with russet Salers cattle, stone huts with lauze roofs where cheese was once made all summer long. From your sliding door you look out over a dark maar lake, over banks of mist above the Cézallier, or over the green glacial bowl around the Puy Mary. It smells of hay, wet basalt and cowshed, and in the evening you hear nothing but bells. This route thrives on short stages, early starts at the Grand Sites and chats at the farm gate when the Saint-Nectaire is just coming up from the cellar. The weather changes fast – even in July you need a jacket up here.
Stage-by-stage plan
1Stage 1: Clermont-Ferrand to Orcines (Puy de Dôme) (approx. 40 km)
- The drive
- From the city up through the slopes of Royat or along the D941 to Orcines, to the lower station of the Panoramique des Dômes; optionally on to Vulcania near Saint-Ours-les-Roches and the Lemptégy volcano next door, then back to Orcines. A short but steep climb out of the Clermont basin, then wide roads across the plateau of the Chaîne des Puys. A good hour of pure driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Puy de Dôme (1,465 m): the summit road is closed to private vehicles – you go up on the Panoramique des Dômes rack railway or on foot along the Chemin des Muletiers from the Col de Ceyssat (just under 400 m of climbing, about an hour). At the top are the remains of the Gallo-Roman temple of Mercury and the view over the Chaîne des Puys – Limagne Fault UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption Cathedral in Clermont, built entirely of black Volvic lava stone, and the Romanesque basilica of Notre-Dame-du-Port in the old town.
- Optional: Vulcania (a theme park on volcanism) and Lemptégy, a cinder cone cut open by quarrying, with guided tours – both open seasonally, check opening times in advance.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Aire de service d’Orcines on the Route de Limoges, close to the Panoramique lower station: a generous municipal area for about 50 motorhomes with service facilities. If you would rather start on a campsite: Huttopia Royat above Royat (electric hook-up, sanitary facilities, service point, seasonal) or Camping Le Chanset in Ceyrat, both with bus connections to Clermont.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The large, free car park at the Panoramique lower station has a few spaces for motorhomes (shared with coaches) – for a day visit, not an overnight spot. The Puy de Dôme is a Site classé and a Grand Site de France; camping-style behaviour is not tolerated there or at the often overcrowded Col de Ceyssat car park. Use the aire in Orcines.
- Insider tip for campers
- The Métropole of Clermont has a low-emission zone (ZFE) covering its 21 municipalities; recent driving bans mainly affected commercial vehicles and lorries without a Crit’Air rating. Stick on your Crit’Air sticker before the trip anyway and check the current situation on the Métropole’s website – additional restrictions apply during smog episodes. Leave the motorhome in Royat or Orcines and take the bus or tram: the old town is narrow and steep, and car parks have height restrictions.
2Stage 2: Orcines to Le Mont-Dore (approx. 50 km)
- The drive
- Across the plateau of the Puys and down through Rochefort-Montagne into the Sioule valley to Orcival, then uphill to the Lac de Guéry and over the Col de Guéry into the Dordogne valley to Le Mont-Dore. The Orcival – Guéry section is winding and narrow with gradients, and the road through Orcival is tight. Around 1.5 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Basilica of Notre-Dame d’Orcival, one of the great Romanesque churches of the Auvergne, with an enthroned Madonna; the village clusters around the choir with its lauze roofs.
- Lac de Guéry at around 1,250 m, the highest lake in the Auvergne – take the lakeside path in the morning as the mist lifts.
- View from the Col de Guéry of the phonolite rocks Roche Tuilière and Roche Sanadoire, with the glacial valley between them.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: In Le Mont-Dore you will find Camping municipal Les Crouzets and the neighbouring Aire de camping-car des Crouzets close to the town centre, plus Camping L’Esquiladou a little outside. Quieter, beside a small lake above La Bourboule: the Camping-Car Park in Murat-le-Quaire (electric hook-up, service point, access with the operator’s card).
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): According to motorhome-stopover guides, Orcival has a small aire – for a stop or a night; check location and conditions on site. At the Lac de Guéry the rule is: parking by day is fine, but no tables, chairs or levelling wedges. The lakeshore lies within the Parc naturel régional des Volcans d’Auvergne; the park itself does not impose a blanket ban, but the municipalities regulate overnight stays by arrêté – heed the signs.
- Insider tip for campers
- Orcival has no petrol station and Le Mont-Dore only a few; fill up beforehand at a supermarket station on the edge of Clermont. Note that many pumps only accept chip-and-PIN cards, and foreign cards are not always accepted. In Le Mont-Dore the streets in the spa quarter are narrow and partly one-way – head straight for the car parks on the edge of town.
3Stage 3: Le Mont-Dore to Saint-Nectaire (approx. 35 km)
- The drive
- First to the lower station of the Sancy cable car at the end of the valley, then along the D996 and over the Col de la Croix-Morand (just over 1,400 m) down to Lac Chambon, past Murol to Saint-Nectaire. The more direct and scenically spectacular D36 over the Col de la Croix-Saint-Robert is narrow, closed in winter and hard going for large motorhomes. About an hour of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Puy de Sancy (1,886 m), the highest peak in the Massif Central: a cable car takes you almost to the ridge, then steps and a path lead to the summit, with views of the Monts Dore, the Chaîne des Puys and as far as the Cantal.
- Château de Murol, a basalt castle above Lac Chambon, with a view of the Dent du Marais.
- The Romanesque church of Saint-Nectaire high above the village, and below it the cheese cellars where Saint-Nectaire AOP matures on rye straw.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Saint-Nectaire has an aire in the Camping-Car Park network with electric hook-up and service facilities; at Lac Chambon there are the Camping-Car Park aire at Chambon-sur-Lac, the motorhome pitches of the Domaine du Lac Chambon and several campsites such as La Ribeyre in Jassat near Murol (electric hook-up, sanitary facilities, bathing lake nearby, seasonal).
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The Vallée de Chaudefour above Chambon-sur-Lac is a Réserve naturelle: tents and overnight stays are not permitted there, and dogs only under the reserve’s rules. For a farm visit: networks such as France Passion arrange overnight stays with producers, in this area also at farms that make Saint-Nectaire fermier – membership and prior arrangement only, one night, no camping-style behaviour.
- Insider tip for campers
- Buy Saint-Nectaire fermier (green, oval casein label) directly at the farm if you can; many producers show the cheesemaking and the cellars in the morning. The cable car on the Sancy does not run in storms – check the weather forecast for the summit; the large car park at the bottom has room even for long motorhomes.
4Stage 4: Saint-Nectaire to Besse and Lac Pavin (approx. 30 km)
- The drive
- Via Murol and the valley of the Couze Chambon up to Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise, then on to Lac Pavin and Super-Besse. Well-built, winding mountain roads, with very narrow lanes in Besse itself. Just under an hour of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Lac Pavin: a perfectly round maar lake, about 90 m deep and formed some 7,000 years ago; a circular path takes just under an hour, and you can climb the Puy de Montchal for a view into the crater.
- Medieval old town of Besse with its clock tower, basalt arcades and the Rue de la Boucherie.
- Lac Chauvet, a second, quieter maar lake away from the main road.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Besse takes motorhomes on pitches at Camping Bois de Gravière on the edge of town (electric hook-up, service point; seasonal, closed in autumn until the Christmas holidays), and in Super-Besse there is the Aire de service et d’accueil de La Biche with service facilities. For overnight stays, these are the designated places in Besse and at the Pavin.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Besse regulates motorhome parking by arrêté municipal: parking by day in the municipal car parks and at Lac Pavin is possible, but without tables, chairs and levelling wedges; for overnight stays use the two places mentioned and heed the signs on site. Staying more than seven days in the same place is generally prohibited in France.
- Insider tip for campers
- The old town of Besse has short-stay parking zones and is unsuitable for motorhomes – park at the signposted places on the edge of town. Besse holds the procession of the Black Madonna twice a year: on 2 July up to the chapel of Notre-Dame de Vassivière, and around 21 September back down to the village – roads and car parks are full then.
5Stage 5: Besse to Salers (approx. 90 km)
- The drive
- Across the lake district and the moors of the Artense to Égliseneuve-d’Entraigues, then via Condat and Riom-ès-Montagnes onto the high plateaus on the northern edge of the Cantal massif and through Anglards-de-Salers to Salers. Long, lonely departmental roads with cattle grids, herds of cows and few passing places. About two hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Maison des Fromages in Égliseneuve-d’Entraigues: an exhibition on the five AOP cheeses of the Auvergne – Saint-Nectaire, Cantal, Salers, Bleu d’Auvergne and Fourme d’Ambert.
- Riom-ès-Montagnes, the main town of gentian root, from which aperitifs are distilled here.
- Salers: a Renaissance town of dark lava stone with the Grande Place, turreted houses and the Esplanade de Barrouze viewpoint above the Maronne valley.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camping municipal Le Mouriol on the northern edge of Salers (electric hook-up, sanitary facilities, seasonal) or the municipality’s designated Accueil camping-cars with water and waste disposal, without electricity. Alternatively the small Camping à la ferme d’Apcher south of the town.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Salers is a protected historic ensemble; overnighting at the roadside or in the car parks on the edge of the old town is not permitted, and camping-style behaviour in the surroundings of Monuments historiques is banned under French law anyway. Use the municipality’s stopover.
- Insider tip for campers
- From Riom-ès-Montagnes to Salers there are hardly any petrol stations – fill up fully beforehand and stock up on water. The old town of Salers is largely closed to vehicles; park at the signposted places on the edge of town. For motorhomes over 3.5 t: the signs with weight limits at village roads and bridges refer to the permitted gross weight, not the actual weight.
6Stage 6: Salers to Murat via the Puy Mary (approx. 45 km)
- The drive
- On the D680 over the Col de Néronne to the Pas de Peyrol (1,588 m), the highest road pass in the Massif Central, then over the Col d’Eylac and the Col de Serre down to Dienne and on to Murat. The approach roads are narrow, two motorhomes cannot pass each other, and crash barriers are missing in places. A good hour of pure driving time, half a day with the climb.
- Highlights & must-sees
- The climb from the Pas de Peyrol to the Puy Mary (1,783 m) on a paved path with steps, about half an hour to 45 minutes – at the top you look into the valleys of the Cantal volcano radiating outwards.
- The Cirque du Falgoux and the valley of the Mars from the Col de Néronne, with burons on the hillside.
- Murat, with basalt organ pipes and the Rocher de Bonnevie, on which a statue of the Virgin stands above the old town.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Aire Murat – Le Stalapos on the edge of Murat, a former campsite now run by the Camping-Car Park network (electric hook-up, service point, access with its card). Quieter is the Camping-Car Park aire in Dienne at the foot of the pass road. West of Murat there is also Camping Le Vallagnon.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The Puy Mary is a Grand Site de France and a Site classé. In summer motorhomes may not park at the Pas de Peyrol during the day, parking on the verges is prohibited in general; motorhomes, coaches and lorries under 9 t are subject to a special traffic scheme with direction of travel and time windows, which changes with the season and is signposted at the approaches. Overnighting at the top is ruled out. From 1 June to 30 September a one-off contribution to the upkeep of the site is charged for parking (a vignette, valid for any number of visits) – check the amount and current rules in advance at puymary.fr.
- Insider tip for campers
- The approach roads to the Pas de Peyrol are closed from 1 November to 1 May, and in spring and autumn also at short notice in snow – current information at puymary.fr. In summer shuttle buses (Navettes Volcan) run up from the valleys: leaving the motorhome down in Dienne or at the Col de Néronne and taking the bus spares you the bottleneck. Going downhill towards Dienne, use a low gear – the descent is long and steep.
7Stage 7: Murat to Allanche (Plateau du Cézallier) (approx. 60 km)
- The drive
- From Murat north onto the high plateau of the Cézallier to Allanche, then a loop across the treeless pastures towards Marcenat and back. Broad pastureland at 1,100 to 1,500 m, narrow roads without a centre line, cattle grids and free-roaming herds. Drive slowly in fog. About 1.5 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Allanche, the cattle-market town of the Cézallier; at the end of May the village celebrates the move to the summer pastures (Fête de l’Estive) with decorated Salers herds.
- Signal du Luguet (around 1,550 m), the highest point of the Cézallier – a short walk across high pastures and moorland, with wide views to the Sancy and the Cantal.
- Ruined and restored burons by the wayside: basalt dairy huts where Cantal and Salers cheese was made all summer until the 20th century.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Aire municipale d’Allanche on the edge of the village with electric hook-up and service facilities, plus the municipal Camping Les Gentianes a little south of the village (seasonal). There is hardly any other infrastructure in the Cézallier – stay here.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The plateau is a Natura 2000 area with moors and ground-nesting birds. The tracks across the pastures are private land and farm tracks – do not drive on them or stay overnight on them, and always close gates. In municipal car parks overnighting is only allowed where no arrêté prohibits it.
- Insider tip for campers
- The Cézallier has hardly any petrol stations or shops: shop and fill up in Murat, and top up water at the aire in Allanche. If herds are standing on the road, switch off the engine and wait – the herders will drive them aside. In fog it is hard to find your bearings on the plateau; offline maps help.
8Stage 8: Allanche to Le Puy-en-Velay (approx. 130 km)
- The drive
- From the Cézallier down into the Alagnon valley to Massiac, briefly north on the toll-free A75 and along the N102 via Brioude and the uplands of Fix-Saint-Geneys (a good 1,100 m) to Le Puy-en-Velay. Winding as far as Massiac, then a wide trunk road. Around two hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Basilica of Saint-Julien in Brioude, the largest Romanesque church in the Auvergne, with coloured stonework and wall paintings.
- Lavaudieu Abbey a few kilometres south-east of Brioude, with the only surviving Romanesque cloister in the Auvergne.
- Le Puy-en-Velay: Notre-Dame Cathedral, the starting point of the Via Podiensis to Santiago, and the chapel of Saint-Michel d’Aiguilhe on a volcanic needle, a good 260 steps up.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camping du Puy-en-Velay on the bank of the Borne below Aiguilhe, within walking distance of the old town (electric hook-up, sanitary facilities, service point, seasonal). Le Puy also has a municipal Aire de camping-car on the edge of the lower town and an aire in Aiguilhe; check location and conditions in a stopover guide.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The old town of Le Puy is narrow, steep and closed or unsuitable for motorhomes; overnighting in the car parks near the centre is not permitted. If you want to stay away from the centre: Polignac, a few kilometres to the north with its castle on the basalt plateau, has a small aire on the edge of the village.
- Insider tip for campers
- Saturday morning is the big market in Le Puy – car parks are scarce then, but you will find Velay lentils (AOP), verveine liqueur and cheese from all over the massif. The N102 over Fix-Saint-Geneys is high and often snowbound in winter; the municipal list of the Haute-Loire prefecture applies to the winter equipment requirement. Gas (LPG) is easier to find in Le Puy and Brioude than in the villages.
Camping practice & local rules
Wild camping & overnight parking
- France distinguishes between “stationnement” and “camping”: a motorhome counts as a vehicle and may park anywhere – including overnight – where parking is allowed, as long as it stands on its wheels. As soon as the awning, table, chairs, levelling wedges or stabilisers are out or grey water is running off, it is camping, and that is subject to its own prohibitions.
- Municipalities restrict this by arrêté municipal: “interdit aux camping-cars” signs, night-parking bans and height barriers at lakes and viewpoints are common in the Auvergne – Besse, for example, only allows motorhomes overnight at two specific places. Anyone who stays in the same place for more than seven days risks proceedings for “stationnement abusif”. Violations can mean a fine and towing.
- Under the Code de l’urbanisme, camping is prohibited, among other places, in Sites classés and inscrits and in the surroundings of Monuments historiques – this applies to the Puy de Dôme and the Chaîne des Puys, the Puy Mary and many old towns and church precincts. The Parc naturel régional des Volcans d’Auvergne does not ban overnight stays across the board, but in the Réserves naturelles (Vallée de Chaudefour, Chastreix-Sancy) strict rules apply to tents and bivouacs.
- Legal and relaxed: the many municipal aires de camping-car in the Auvergne (often cheap, sometimes free), campsites, the aires of the Camping-Car Park network with its own access card, and networks such as France Passion for overnight stays with producers, including cheese farms. Useful apps: park4night, Campercontact, Camping-Car Infos.
Waste disposal & supplies
- Service points (“borne”, “aire de services”) come from manufacturers such as Euro-Relais, Flot Bleu, Raclet or AireServices; you pay with coins, tokens from the Mairie or the bakery, by card or via an app. Many municipal aires in small villages are free.
- Drain grey water through the ground grating and empty the cassette only at the station (“WC chimique”) – never into drains or on car parks; illegal dumping is a main reason for new motorhome bans.
- Drinking water: taps marked “eau potable” are drinking water, “eau non potable” are not. Many service points in the mountains are switched off in winter (frost protection), usually from November to March.
- Gas: German exchange cylinders are not exchanged; French cylinders (Butagaz, Primagaz, Antargaz) need their own regulators. Refillable cylinders and gas tanks are filled at LPG pumps, usually with the Dish adapter; at some stations ACME fits. LPG is available mainly in Clermont, Issoire, Brioude and Le Puy, hardly at all in the mountains.
Vehicle size & traffic rules
- Speed limits: motorhomes up to 3.5 t as for cars – motorway 130 km/h (110 in rain), dual carriageway expressway 110 (100 in rain), otherwise 80 km/h outside built-up areas; Cantal and Puy-de-Dôme have reintroduced 90 km/h on many signposted sections of departmental roads – the signs are what counts. Over 3.5 t: motorway 110, expressway 100, rural road 80 km/h, even where cars may do 90. Combinations with a permitted gross train weight over 3.5 t are also subject to lower limits, on the motorway partly lower still – heed the signs and vehicle documents.
- Vehicles over 3.5 t (including motorhomes) must carry “Angles morts” blind-spot stickers on the sides and rear; without them the fine is €135. Bans on through traffic that state a weight limit apply according to the permitted gross weight.
- Crit’Air: for driving in low-emission zones, foreign vehicles also need the sticker, which should be ordered only via the official website certificat-air.gouv.fr. Clermont Auvergne Métropole has a ZFE covering all 21 municipalities; driving bans recently mainly affected unrated light commercial vehicles and lorries, additional restrictions apply during smog, and how motorhomes over 3.5 t are classified should be clarified in advance. The nationwide abolition of the ZFE passed by Parliament was struck down by the Conseil constitutionnel on 21 May 2026 – check the rules on the Métropole’s website before travelling.
- Tolls: the A75 through the Auvergne is toll-free, the A71 and A89 are toll roads. The toll class depends on height and weight (many motorhomes up to 3.5 t in class 2, heavier ones in class 3); télépéage boxes work at all French toll points.
- Winter equipment: under the Loi Montagne, in the designated municipalities of the départements Puy-de-Dôme, Cantal and Haute-Loire, winter tyres (3PMSF) must be fitted, or snow chains or snow socks carried on board, from 1 November to 31 March. The Pas de Peyrol and Croix-Saint-Robert passes are closed completely in winter.
- Blood alcohol limit 0.5 (novice drivers 0.2); phones held to the ear and any kind of headphones or headset at the wheel are prohibited. Keep a high-visibility vest within reach of the driver (recommended for all occupants) and carry a warning triangle. A load on a rear carrier must not cover the lights and number plate – otherwise an additional light board with number plate is required.
CampingSpirit packing & preparation checklist
- Crit’Air sticker, ordered in good time via the official website – delivery abroad takes a while, and Clermont can impose driving restrictions at short notice during smog.
- “Angles morts” stickers, three of them, if the motorhome weighs over 3.5 t.
- Snow chains or snow socks for the Loi Montagne period – and because the Sancy and the Cantal passes can get snow at short notice in spring and autumn.
- Dish and ACME adapters for LPG pumps, plus two full cylinders on entering the country.
- Windproof and rainproof clothing, hat and head torch: on the Puy de Dôme, the Sancy and the Cézallier fog often rolls in unexpectedly, and temperatures are in single figures even in summer.
- Cool bag with ice packs for raw-milk cheese from the farm – that way Saint-Nectaire and Salers travel well even on warm days.
As of 2026-09. Closures, fees and booking rules change: check official sources before you go.
