best places to tent camp in Paris

Have you considered signing up on couchsurfing.org and trying to find free accommodation that way?

Honestly, can't say I know of any safe place that is actually inside the city boundaries of Paris, Florence, Sienna or Rome where you can just pop up a tent. There are definitely campsites outside of the cities, but the question is will you have a car to get back & forth from the campsite to the city (or at least to/from an outlying subway or rail station)? Have you added in all the extra costs you'll be spending in gasoline, parking, etc. if you stay way outside of the city? Sometimes you could use all that money to stay at a cheap place within the city boundaries and save yourself the lengthy commuting time.

What is your daily budget for lodging? If you can afford it, then take a look at hostels, guesthouses, university lodging in dorms offered to travelers during summer months, lodging at monasteries & convents, and even 1 & 2 star budget hotels as sometimes you can find a great deal online (ex. Accor Hotels has chains like Etap, Formule 1 & Ibis that offer pretty good rates and sometimes great online specials).

I know that there is a public campground in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris. Don't know about your other locations.

Bois de Boulogne used to be famous as a prostitute hangout at night. Don't know if this is still the case.

Check this website -- seems totally possible...

http://www.campingparis.fr/indexuk.html

:)

Poll- Has anyone ever seen camping in a tent in Paris that wasn't involved in some kind of protest? My vote- no.

You should compare the price of a camp site to the cost of a hostel bed--European campgrounds tend to have many more amenities than in the US, and it might not be cheaper to camp. But I agree with the first responder--if your budget is so tight you're asking about tent camping in Paris, you should check out couch surfing. Matt Gross of the NY Times has written about it, if you search that paper.

The Web site given by Linda lists prices for tent spaces as well as car camping and bungalows in the Bois du Boulogne. The rate for a tent site in 2009 during high season was 17.20 EUR for either one or two people.

According to the RATP (Paris Transport) site, it would be easy to get to the campground from central Paris. Take Metro line 1 to Porte Maillot and a short ride on bus #244 from there directly to the campground.

I found this website too:

www.campingduboisdeboulogne.fr/indexuk.html

Space for tents too. Nicholas, I salute your sense of adventure. Go for it.

For a few euros more, consider sleeping in a bed with a roof over your head--check out the MIJE hostels in Paris.

Here are reviews of MIJE Paris click here

Free camping in cities is actually like being homeless, likely not safe,, I would save it for the countryside.. I mean, would you camp in New York,,, in Central park?

There is a paid campground, and that would be the only safe option in any large city. It is out a bit, but still doalbe.

What is your budget,, there are other options,. If adventurous it does seem like that couch surfing is a good idea,, even asking to camp in people yards. Good luck.

We stayed in the Florence campgound outside of Piazza Michelangelo and it was incredible. 15 euros per person, hot showers, bakery, patio overlooking Florence and within walking distance of Florence. Plus great restaurants nearby of course. Here is the url http://www.camping.it/english/toscana/michelangelo/

We are going to France and Spain in an RV next month and we can't wait. One tip- don't camp at the sites off of the highway as there are burglaries, but any campsite in any town is usw safe, scenic and cheap.