Do you know about the regulations governing wild camping

A bivouac refers to a rudimentary, temporary campsite, pitched for a single night, from sunset until sunrise the next morning.
It is generally something that hikers, trekkers, mountaineers or mountain bikers will do as part of their sport.

Conversely, wild camping involves settling down in a single location for several nights, away from the usual camping pitches.
It is therefore more popular with holidaymakers travelling in a vehicle (motor home, camper van, car, etc.) who love nature and have more gear than your regular bivouacking enthusiast

Two very different practices which are nevertheless governed by the same regulations.
To put it simply, bivouacking and wild camping are permitted wherever they are not banned (but, as we shall see, there are still quite a lot of restrictions).

The regulations pertaining to wild camping (and bivouacking) are specified by article R111-32 of decree no. 2015-1783 of 28 December 2015:
"Camping may be practiced freely, away from the roads and public highways, in accordance with the conditions set out in this subsection, with the consent of the person using the land, provided that the owner, where applicable, does not object."

In practice, the rule is that wild camping and bivouacking are unrestricted but, please note, the law has recently added a series of restrictions.
Consequently, it is forbidden to camp:

- In woods, forests and parks, designated as nature reserves, and in sites with a protected status as part of the natural heritage
- On roads and public highways
- On the seashore
- Less than 200 m from a drinking water pipe
- Less than 500 m from a listed or registered historic monument

Please note that local authorities and prefectures can also decide, by decree, to ban camping in public places temporarily or permanently. These rules must be posted on signs in front of the town halls or prefectures.
Obviously, that doesn't leave a lot of space left to pitch your tent.
But it should be noted that, although it is not explicitly stated in the law, this regulation applies to wild camping, first and foremost. In practice, this means that you cannot settle down for several days in these locations, which doesn't seem so unreasonable, after all. If you are thinking of ignoring these restrictions, remember that they are not there to remove your freedoms, but simply to protect the environment, the paths, the forests, and the local population.
So much for the general regulations, but be aware that there are special rules governing the French National Parks and Regional Parks.

There is no shared set of European regulations for wild camping and bivouacking. Each country has its own rules.
As a rule of thumb, just remember that wild camping is generally prohibited (or at least strongly restricted) in most European countries.
However, some of them permit this practice, e.g. Sweden, Norway, Finland (where wild camping is fully authorised) and Scotland (except on some of its islands).

As for bivouacking, the rules in Europe are a little bit more flexible than they are for wild camping.
Once again, the rules for bivouacking are more relaxed in Scandinavia (Sweden, Norway and Finland).
These 3 countries have a right of way called the "Allemannsretten" law (literally "every man's right"), which is an ancient custom that allows everyone to enjoy nature.
In these countries, bivouacs (and wild camping) are allowed under one condition: you must stay more than 150 m from any dwelling and respect the local flora and fauna.
You can also bivouac in national parks.
As for private land, if it is cultivated land, you simply have to ask the permission of the landowner to pitch camp there.

In the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) bivouacking is generally permitted, like certain countries in Eastern Europe: Albania, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia.

As for Western Europe, the rules are stricter and vary depending on the country, or even the region (or locality) and may vary depending on the season.
Take Portugal, for example: wild camping and bivouacking are generally not permitted. However, they are tolerated outside the summer period... as long as you are discreet and do not camp on the beach.

It would be too long and too tedious to list what is permitted and prohibited, country by country.
As you can well imagine, there are many laws and their exceptions, as well as, sometimes, a certain form of tolerance towards wild camping (more rarely) and bivouacking (more often).
The best solution is to make inquiries when preparing your expedition to a particular country, and respect the "good practices" mentioned above, which apply to France, but which are also universally accepted commonsense rules that protect nature, yourself and other people.