Conseils et astuces
In brief: across our network of unusual campsites, the 2026 camping season is levelling off at national level after a difficult start to the year, but this average hides significant local differences. The most striking point: Gironde has fallen sharply over the last three months, a direct consequence of the summer fires around the Arcachon Basin and Cap Ferret. The official INSEE figures for the season are not due until 19 November 2026: here is what the indicators available today tell us.
According to the monthly Septeo Hospitality barometer, cumulative bookings for the season (October 2025 to end of June 2026) were flat, at 0%, in both volume and revenue compared with the same period last year. That is a genuine recovery: at the end of March, the season was still at -4%.
June 2026 on its own was even positive: +2% in bookings and +5% in revenue compared with June 2025. The average spend for a stay in rental accommodation is €1,033 (+0.8%), and for a bare pitch €326 (-1%).
As for guests, nothing new: camping in France remains very much a French affair (72.4% of stays), with Germany still the leading foreign market (7.9%), ahead of the Netherlands (6.4%) and Belgium (4%).
That national figure of 0% is an average, not a uniform reality. Market data from eSeason (an aggregate of bookings at campsites that are clients of the platform, excluding our own establishment), over the 90 days to 3 September 2026, show a two-speed camping France:
There is no simple reading by coastline: Gironde (Atlantic) is the department under most pressure in this sample, while the Landes, right next door, are growing. The same goes for the Mediterranean: the Hérault is holding up well while the Alpes-Maritimes are slipping. The 2026 season is being decided department by department, and much of the explanation comes down to one word: fire.
The decline in Gironde is no statistical mystery. On 22 July 2026, a fire broke out at Saumos and spread across the forest between the Arcachon Basin and the Cap Ferret peninsula. The toll was heavy: around 42,000 hectares burned on the Gironde side, up to 220,000 people evacuated at the height of the event, including 36,000 on the Cap Ferret peninsula alone. The campsites of Lacanau, evacuated as a precaution, only gradually reopened once the fire was brought under control in early August.
A second, separate outbreak hit Biscarrosse (Landes) on 23 July. Much more limited (around 3,500 hectares) and brought under control within a week, it explains why the Landes did not suffer the same decline as their neighbour in Gironde, despite equally alarming news at the same time.
On the Côte d’Azur, the Var had its own fires this summer: one at Correns and Montfort-sur-Argens in early August (around 1,250 hectares, 1,300 firefighters mobilised), then a lightning-caused outbreak at Ginasservis on 14 August. These areas are incomparable with Gironde, which fits fairly well with the gap observed between the two departments (-6% against -16%). For the Alpes-Maritimes, however, whose decline is the second largest in our sample, we found no climate event of that scale: the gap there remains, for now, unexplained.
Two very practical pieces of advice stand out from these figures. First, if you are considering Gironde or the Arcachon Basin, check availability and the condition of the campsite before booking: some establishments have reopened, while others may have lost accommodation or wooded areas that gave them their charm. Second, the destinations that are growing this year (Landes, Vendée) mechanically have more availability and less price pressure than in previous years, which is a good point for anyone looking for last-minute unusual accommodation. If you are still deciding where to go, our guide to what to see and do in the Ardèche covers a department that has not been affected this season.
An important methodological point: INSEE, the only official and comprehensive source on campsite visits in France, will not publish its third-quarter figures (July, August, September, the heart of the season) until 19 November 2026. Everything circulating before that date, including in this article, is based on early industry indicators (bookings, not actual visits). They are useful for taking the pulse of the season, but not for drawing a definitive conclusion. We will come back to the subject as soon as the INSEE figures are published.
Neither particularly good nor particularly bad at national level: the season total is stable compared with 2025 (0% change), after a more difficult start to the year. The reality varies greatly from one department to another.
Mainly because of the Saumos fire, which broke out on 22 July 2026, burned around 42,000 hectares between the Arcachon Basin and the Cap Ferret, and led to the evacuation of 220,000 people, including campsites in Lacanau.
INSEE publishes its official campsite visit statistics for the third quarter on 19 November 2026. It is the only source that will cover the whole of the high season.
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