Looking for suggestions of where to stay in France

[LivingDeadGirlUK]

I'm looking for somewhere to stay in France that is easy to get to Paris for a day trip but not actually in Paris. Would ideally be somewhere with a pool, would love a cottage but there are only the 3 of us. I recently went to Reims for work and thought it was lovely and there are a couple of hotels there with pools but would love some other opinions and suggestions. Reims is only 40 mins on the train from Paris so something like that would be great. We would probably look to ferry/drive.

What do you want to o when you get there? How old and how mobile are the 3 people?
Do you want to be in a village/rural/town?
What's your budget.

Loire valley - Orleans as a base?

Pool is a great idea, but Paris is wetter than London.

If you are only going to go to Paris for one day, you could opt for a longer journey in.

We stay at La Croix du Vieux Pont. It's a eurocamp but you can book direct with them. They have a number of wooden chalets and deckhouses that are very nice.

Well my son (7) wants to see the Eiffel tower, hence the day trip to Paris, but want to go for at least a week to make it worth the drive.

I don't think we want to drive down as far as Orleans, but yeah staying near a town or city that we can travel in to, or even somewhere on the north coast. I'm pretty adventurous just don't want to spend a week in Paris itself.

Looking to go during summer holidays hence the pool, although beach could be good too.

You have plenty to choose from. Normandy has lots of lovely beaches.
I'd probably try to stay in the suburbs of Paris and do two days there, or go to a destination, then have one night in Paris itself, so 2 days.

You've got me thinking I'd like to go. I liked Lille, but I only went for a day.

By suburbs, I mean stay somewhere like Windsor or Richmond if it was for a visit to London. Fontainebleau might fit that criterion.

Yes there are a lot of options, but at the same time lots being booked up for Summer already. Nice to hear you enjoyed Lille, was thinking of doing a long weekend there on the Eurostar at some point.

I was so blown away by the internal trains, like I said 40 mins from Paris to Reims on the super fast. It made me realise we can visit Paris without having to stay there for the whole trip. I've been to Paris before and it was ok but much more enjoyed the other places in France I've been, its only because my son wants to see the Iffle tower I'm going back! I wonder if we should take him to Disney as well on one day.

This looks nice! Thanks for the recommendation, and close for a day trip to Paris as well, Did you find not speaking much French an issue?

Google translate, @LivingDeadGirlUK .

If you were visiting London, and staying in Richmond or Windsor with a 7-yr old, would you go to Chessington? I think so.

I find knowing basic greetings, please and thank you and numbers to 10 gets you a long way in France OP.

You're so welcome. We've stayed there a few times and love it. The whole pool complex is so good for the kids. There's a beach pool too. Sit down restaurant, pizza takeaway, shop. Its in a village where you can eat out and close to a big supermarket. It's really got a lot to offer. Plus as you say, close to Paris (and disney if thats your jam 40mins ish) both a very easy drive.
Me and dc do speak fairly good French but dh speaks only English and it's not a problem there. French people don't mind you trying and mucking it up, it's a very friendly resort.

La Croix du Vieux Pont, Berny Rivière | Paris | Eurocamp
Holiday rentals in 5-star campsite in Picardie | La Croix du Vieux Pont

As I feared its already very booked up!

The weather is much better south of the Loire. The train from Poitiers is 1h20 mins but book as far in advance as possible because it’s cheaper. You’d also be near Futuroscope, Puy de Fou and 1.5h from La Rochelle.

Tours, Fontainebleau, the Loire valley are all in easy reach of Paris on the train

Somewhere like Meaux? It's a town, but quite small and friendly, and is the home of the famous Brie if you like cheese! From there you can easily get to Paris, Disney, or indeed Fontainebleau for the climbing!

I absolutely love Brie and all things cheese!

Troyes is a stunning ancient city and nearby is the parc naturel foret d'orient which are huge lakes with sandy beaches and inflatables etc. probably similar distance to Reims. Or Dijon is also gorgeous but a bit further down.

We also stayed at La Croix du Vieux Pont and would definitely recommend. You can book onto a coach from the site which gives you quite a long day in Paris. Alternatively, you can drive to Soissons and catch a train.

Sorry I know this is an old thread but I was too late to book anything for this year, I've just booked us a static caravan at La Croix du Vieux Pont for next summer and was wondering what the end of stay cleaning fee is for? its an extra £70, if we don't pay it do we have to deep clean the caravan? If any seasoned euro campers can confirm that would be ace, also any tips for preparing for the stay greatly welcome :)

Versailles is an easy train into Paris