Camping in Paris at Bois De Boulogne Campground.
Ahhh Paris – that amazing, beautiful city by the Seine. Who wouldn’t want to visit it? Maybe you’ve thought about Paris but the hostel & hotel prices have kept you away. Most hostels will run you about 25- 35 Euro a night and if you’re traveling with another person this can add up very fast. But good news – you can camp in Paris and it will only cost about 24 Euro a night for two people!
Camping in Paris – what?? Is that even possible?? Yes my friends, yes it is.
Paris has one campground located at Bois de Boulogne park and it is called Paris Bois de Boulogne Indigo Campsite.
Ok, so this campground bills itself as “camping on the Siene”. Technically that is true but in reality it is a more industrial part of the river so it’s not the beautiful green river banks that you’ve probably imagined. This campground has limited spaces for tents and a lot of spots for RVs. We did not have a reservation and didn’t have a problem getting a tent spot but if you’re planning on going in the summer you should probably book ahead of time.
They have large bathrooms which are kept clean enough. It’s not anywhere you want to spend a lot of time but it’s not dirty either. Just make sure you bring your shower shoes. There is no charge for the showers and there is hot water.
There is internet available but only if you pay to use their computer station which has to be from circa 1992. You can’t plug in your own laptop and the internet isn’t cheap. On top of that we heard from several people that it was extremely slow and sometimes didn’t work. One guy we met was complaining that it cost him 10 Euro just to read one email. So we never used it and instead looked for places in Paris to get work done.
The campground also has a store and a small restaurant so you can grab a quick bite to eat. Also we noticed the campground sold subway passes but we found out they were more expensive than buying them in the subway station so avoid buying these at the campground if you can.
Getting to and from the campground in Paris without a car:
It’s not terribly out of the way (and it is still w/in the city limits) but it’s isn’t as convenient to reach as the campground in Iceland was. I guess you could walk to the city but it would take a LONG time and it would be pointless to waste that much time getting to the city. To reach the campground from the heart of the city you take the yellow metro line to the Porte-Maillot station and then take a bus line 244 to the bus stop in the park. From there it is about a 4 minute walk to the campground. However the last bus is at 10pm. Alternately you can take a shuttle for about 3 Euro that goes directly to the campground. The shuttle picks you up at the same 244 bus stop and it stops running at 12 am. Something to take into consideration is that the walk to the campground from the city bus is very dark. Personally I would not walk it alone at night. However every night there was always a lot of people headed back to their camp sites and we all walked together. If I had to go alone I would take the shuttle that brings you directly into the campground. Also if you miss both buses than a cab from the bus stop will cost you about 15 – 20 Euro. The entire journey will take you about 45 – 60 minutes from the center of Paris to the campground. It really isn’t bad but it is something worth considering because it will prevent you from having any crazy nights out in Paris unless you budget in the taxi ride. We always had leave the city around 9pm and that was a bit of a bummer for me.
This website has excellent Metro and bus maps to help you plan your trip. If you are serious about camping in Paris please contact me and I can give you more tips.
Over all we liked camping here because it was the only way we could see Paris on a budget. Even though this campground didn’t give us the warm fuzzy feeling like the one in Reykjavik did, I would definitely stay here again and I would recommend it to anyone visiting Paris on a budget.
*Please remember all photos on this website are copyrighted and property of BeersandBeans.com, NarikosNest.com & Bethany Salvon. Please do not use them without my permission. If you want to use one of them please contact me to ask first because I do love to share and I would be flattered. Thanks!
(10) awesome folk have had something to say...
Bridgette -
October 29, 2010 at 3:08 pm
Great Article, this is soooo helpful! It is so hard to tell where will be the best location and this really gave me a sense of where it is located! Thanks!
Zablon Mukuba -
November 1, 2010 at 8:43 am
Bois de Boulogne park is a great place to stay on a budget. the only problem is the internet. thanks for the post on how to live cheap in pars
Bethany -
November 1, 2010 at 9:00 am
Thanks for your comment and for checking out my blog! It is definitely the cheapest way to visit paris đŸ™‚ @Zablon Mukuba,
lara dunston -
November 23, 2010 at 2:18 pm
What great advice for budget travellers visiting Paris!
Bethany -
November 23, 2010 at 3:12 pm
Hi Lara,
Thanks for commenting! It really is the cheapest way to see the city. I would do it again in a heartbeat! @lara dunston,
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[…] You can go camping. No, really, you can save heaps of cash by sleeping in a tent… if you are willing to give up on certain luxuries. Actually, I did a bit of camping here on a road trip in Australia, and I loved it! Camping at campsites with showers and kitchens actually cost us half as much money than a hostel bed, and it was a much more earthy experience (waking up to the kookaburras in the morning). Besides here in Australia, I haven’t done much camping when I travel, but a good resource would be Beers and Beans as Beth and Randy have even camped while visiting Paris! […]
Desiree E. -
April 26, 2012 at 12:20 am
ah, had NO idea camping even existed in Paris…good to know!
Kamran -
November 24, 2013 at 3:30 am
being an amateur tourist, please guide, if we have to cary along our own tent or provided by the Bois De Boulogne Campground site ?