Anyone have experience with camping (with tent) in Northern Italy?
I plan to do a 2 week motorcycle tour in July/August.
I know that wild camping is allowed in the Alps above the tree line, and in Italy they have something called "sosta", but I think that is more for motor homes.
Most campsites I have looked at have a few nights minimum stay, but I just need to camp overnight. I have also looked at Agri Turismo, but not many options there if you want to pitch a tent.
I am also wondering if I will need to book in advance, as this is peak season. Ideally I would ride until I am tired, and then find a place to pitch a tent. Finally, I am a bit worried about sleeping in a tent for security reasons, and also it can get pretty hot in Italy in July/August.
We’ve been camping in a tent in Ticino in late July / early August (on a campground), and yes, tents do indeed become VERY hot inside (especially during the day). Once the sun goes down, they’re usually quite comfortable inside though, temperature-wise, unless it’s an unusually hot night. Whatever tent you bring, I do suggest making sure that it has some decent ventilation and screened windows to keep the bugs out and also be sure that it is indeed waterproof in case it rains. (The last time we went camping, we were surprised by a sudden rainstorm in the middle of the night, which had not been predicted and so no one was expecting it. But thankfully our tent held up well in it).
There are a lot of campgrounds in Ticino (which I know is still Switzerland, but… ). That surprises me if none of them will allow only a one-nights stay. But they do sometimes have special pitches reserved just for small tents and short trips.
Yes, campgrounds can become booked up very quickly for that time of year, as that’s when kids are out of school and a lot of people are on holiday, so I do suggest booking in advance if you can.
Also, I suggest bringing a decent mattress because the ground is quite hard and difficult to sleep on if you’re only using a thin mattress. My husband learned that the hard way when he thought it was a good idea to just bring one of those little mattresses that auto-inflates, via a valve that you turn, and is only a few centimeters thick. He spent the entire trip with a sore back. If you’re like me and need coffee in the morning, I have one of these that works okay-ish, though it does take about 10 minutes to heat up water or food, and something with a small gas canister would work better:
If you are in the Ticino area, I do strongly suggest checking out the Ponte dei Salti if you’re into beautiful places with turquoise, crystal clear (albeit very cold) water to swim in. It’s honestly one of the coolest places I’ve ever been (no pun intended – the water is VERY cold, but that just makes it all the more adventurous ):