Les Lac Des Reves, Montpellier, Languedoc, France

We've just spent a great 2 weeks at Lac Des Reves with our 5 year old dd. It's a beautiful, clean site, 10 mins drive from the beaches at Carnon and Palavas. The thing that stood out for me was the friendliness of the staff, from Reception, to the Kids Clubs and in the restaurant/takeway. Nothing was too much trouble.

The pool area was fantastic and during the 2 first weeks of July we only had trouble getting a sunbed late one afternoon. They supplied fixed plastic ones for free, but for 2 euros each per day, you could get a more comfortable, adjustable one. Dd loved the waterslides and spent many a happy hour bobbing about in the large kids pool with her friends from the Pirate Club. There is a pool bar but this wasn't always open.

We ate at the restaurant a few times and the food was fine and reasonably priced. The kid's menu was limited to the usual nuggets/burger and chips with a drink/ice cream. But they happily through in a bowl of pasta instead, and the pizzas were lovely. The neighbouring takeaway sold sandwiches/drinks but also pizzas, roast chickens, moules et frites (bring your own pot). We had a good Paella from there one evening.

The playgrounds were all clean and had new equipment. (Smoking not allowed here or buy the pool which will please many!) There's a mini golf course and dd's absolute favourite thing of the holiday - a bungee trampoline (5 euros).

The shop was small but sold most essentials and they bake their own bread all day. There was even a selection of English pies etc in the freezer. There is a huge Auchan 5 mins away, but we just used the 8 a 8 supermarket in Perols, which had a cash machine and a lovely bakers next door.

The Kid's Clubs were very well organised and dd had a good time in the Pirate Club (5-9) - we're still singing the song now! One night a week they practiced for a talent show and everyone was included. The Kid's Club staff also put on the evening shows - what they lack in talent they certainly make up for in enthusiasm! Dirty Dancing was a bit cheesey, but hey there was wine (2 glasses for 2 euros during happy hours!) Sadly we missed the Michael Jackson tribute show. We saw a couple of bands that were quite good too.

Nightlife can be found in Carnon or Palavas. Lattes and Perols are quiet places. A trip into Montpellier is definitely worth it.

All in all we had a fabulous time and would definitely go back. My only "complaint" was the mobile home. We had an Esprit + and whilst clean and new, it was TINY. Hardly any storage space and not enough room in the main bedroom to get dressed even. We booked late this year, but next time I will go for a top of the range home.

Our holiday at Siblu, in the South of France last year was such a blissful experience, that I decided we would return this year too. With the option of visiting a new parc; Siblu have many sites across the whole of France and Italy, I opted for the idyllic sounding, Les Lacs Des Reves, (Translated as The Lake of Dreams.) situated in Montpellier. And to top it off I rightly assumed we would be guarantee the good weather!

Once again we were accommodated in a luxurious mobile home that can sleep up to eight people. This year I took along my parents and my best friend Kate, as well of course my 11-year old son Liam. I must admit I was slightly apprehensive about taking my parents- love them as I do, I had not been on a family holiday with them since I was a teenager and the thought of us all spending an entire week in each others living space was slightly concerning- for us all! But our worries soon vanished as we arrived at the parc – you really do get at sense of calm and relaxation as soon as you drive through the Siblu gates. Imagine you are driving into a ‘stress free zone’ where arguments are forbidden and chilling out with a glass of wine is an order, in fact I think that’s one of the first things we did! And after our epic journey we certainly needed it. My one and only little snag is that I listened to my dad when it came to booking our travel arrangements. He insisted we travel via Euro Star, which when going to Paris is fantastic, but slightly more complicated and unnecessarily long winded when travelling down to the South of France. And with Montpellier airport less than 10 minutes drive away from the parc, flying certainly seems to be the most sensible option.

We collected our rented car from Europcar on arrival at Montpellier station and from then on our journey became much easier. In fact I would say that it is imperative to hire a car as Le Lac des Reves it’s self is situated in the middle of the countryside. Unless of course you don’t mind just lazing by the pool and making the most of the on-site activities and facilities, which I have to say, I could have quite easily done all week long.

Les Lacs Des Reves is about a 15 minute car ride from the centre of Montpellier and there are a vast amount of things to do close by, including adventure parcs, a visit to the Perrier source or perhaps a trip to one of the local beautiful beaches. And if you fancy a trip to the shops then Auchan, one of the well-known supermarkets in France, surrounded by little boutiques, is just five minutes drive away. Now don’t get me wrong a trip to Tescos rarely fills me with joy, but it has to be said that there is a certain je ne sais quoi about French supermarkets that I absolutely love. I think it has to be the wonderful freshness of the food; the smell of warm baguettes, the amazing seafood selection and of course not forgetting the inexpensive wine! And as at Siblu it’s self-catering accommodation, a nearby supermarket is pretty essential, although there is a small supermarket on site. Some of our most memorable holiday moments were eating outside our mobile home on the terrace in the fresh, warm air.

As I said, within the site there are an array of things to do to keep both adults and kids entertained. There are kids clubs every day for all ages – something that Liam took advantage of last year and loved although luckily for him and quite a rare chance meeting, we bumped into the same family that we met last year on the first night we arrived so Liam had playmates for the entire week! No doubt he would have met lots of other kids as Siblu is full of families with children of all ages, and the activities Siblu provide mean that kids get to meet and mingle with ease. Every evening there is some form of entertainment which is usually a show of some kind performed by the Siblu entertainment staff, which is great fun and brings everyone together. Slightly verging on Butlins, but because the shows are mostly in performed in French, much more cultural!

Most of our days were spent by the pool relaxing and enjoying the sunshine, with the odd cocktail from the poolside bar. Normally I like to fit in a few activities around my sunbathing schedule, but as I had come from a pretty full on workload at home, this was just perfect. For evening meals we ate in the onsite restaurant a few times and ventured out into Montpellier for some delicious French food on a couple of occasions too. Montpellier it’s self is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city with plenty of shopping and historique monuments to explore, such as the Saint Pierre Cathedral or the Botanical Garden which was the first one to be founded in France back in 1593. The place to head for is the infamous ‘Place de la comedie’, which is the main focus point of the city and a great place to dine outdoors in the square and watch the world go by.

If like us, you head to the south of France for the wine (amongst other things of course!) you should most definitely head to Chateau de Flaugergues in Montpellier www.flaugergues.com, owned by the Colbert family since 1696. We were luckily given a tour of the Chateau, (which is still used as a family home and yet open to the public to visit) and their beautiful botanical gardens, by the owner himself Henri Colbert and then sampled some of the chateau’s fine wines.

Montpellier is such a beautiful region, with so much to do and see if you desire. Siblu is certainly the kind of place I would have wished to go to as a kid. So weather you are a ten year old looking for poolside entertainment, a stressed out mum looking to unwind or a 20 something looking to explore, then this holiday really does have it all.

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