continental campsites and speedos

[severnofnine]

right... we have so far been uk based campers but we think we might hea to the continent this year..... mainly hoping we might actually see some sunshine.

However looking at campsites it seems most pools in france insist on speedos in the pool. I'm not bothered by this but DH is a bit huffy about it. DM lives in brittany and we've been there a lot so fancy somewhere else can anyone suggest a good website to find a campsite - small and low key rather than kids clubs iyswim. Is there ANYWHERE that doesnt insist on speedos??????

TIA

oh and is it speedos for all boys ( including toddlers??) we are all ginger so I normally put the boys in all in one suits and hats when in the pool... would that be allowed???

Yes I have found them very strict, foot washg etc. daniel craig style trunks are ok, doesnt have to be budgie smugglers. easier to swim in too apparently. ds and dh wear them for swimming always now.

they don't have much chlorine so the water is to be kept clean by showering, not wearing outdoor clothes such as board shorts. All in ones would be ok if they don't wear them as clothes.

hmmmmmmmmmm... bugger. may well be isle of wight then
( starts to feels slightly ridiculous at planning holiday based on type of mens swimwear!)

Don't know about speedos but this is a nice campsite in Brittany

www.camping-des-abers.com

We went there pre-kids and it seemed pretty family friendly without having to have kids clubs. There is a bit of entertainment but we steered away from this very successfully, being miserable bastards (and preferring to sit outside our tent drinking wine).

And the beach is FAB

I haven't done a study but would imagine that the smaller sites with mainly continental clientele are more likely to have the budgie smuggler rule. The big sites which are more popular with the Brits will have become aware that the average British male would rather swim naked than in speedos and have adjusted their policy accordingly. My Dh initially refused to even consider skin tight swim pants but after several french camping holidays now seemingly quite enjoys it. I haven't been brave enough to ask why.

Maybe point out to your Dh that, as a woman, ALL swimwear for you is tight and figure hugging and you don't get huffy about it. I personally don't parade around the swimming pool in my size 14 tankini - I swim in it and pop a towel/shorts/skirt on over the top as soon as I'm out - no reason he couldn't do the same (except for the skirt bit maybe?!)

Toddlers would be fine in the all in one swim suits. The rule is intended to keep the pool clean - they basicaly don't want shorts that could have been worn all day, might be dusty and dirty etc in the swimming pool.

I do, however, draw the line at Italian sites which require a swimming hat.

Good luck!

It was one of the funniest bits of our holidays - seeing DP and DSS squirming in their budgie smugglers! We had to go out and buy some especially
Can't be that bad - once you're in the water it's not as if anyone is looking is it?

may have to chip away at it a bit.

DH has body confidence issues at the moment.... has put on a few stone just as I've lost a few.

problem is I cant see how we can afford to go abroad if we dont drive and use our tent... holidays for the 5 of us in summer holidays are £3k ish otherwise.... and that is ALOT of money.... so campsite it must be
thanks wadadlis that site looks great... but unfortunately a bit too close to my mums house for comfort iyswim

La garangeoire didn't enforce the budgie smuggler law when we went in 09.

Budgie smugglers pretty much across the board we found, although I think you can sometimes get away with it depending on how strict they are with enforcing. You don't really want to take the chance though so should at least have some with you.

When we went last year, DH wasn't too keen on proper speedos so we went to Decathlon and bought some cheap boxer-style ones - you can get them almost as long as cycling shorts IIRC but he went for the mid-thigh length and they looked fine.

As for the all in ones for children, they should be fine. DD wore these and even baby wetsuits for the unheated pools and we had no problems. As said above, what they are concerned about is that swimwear should be clearly intended for the pool and not something you would spend the day in.

Go to Majorca, non of this nonsense there

When we went last summer, we were quite prepared with budgie snugglers for the blokes - I was quite disappointed that the rule was not enforced (had been looking forward to seeing DH squished in to his!). The rule was written in the documentation, but not enforced. So if you don't mind a VERY long drive, you could look here

You are right in the fact that many campsites state in their literature that speedo type swimwear should be worn however many do not enforce it. I would suggest you take a look through the information on the individual sites to see what they recommend however i can say for sure that when we visited Les Mouettes in Brittany they did not care what type of swimwear was worn. We have been twice to this site and not once was it brought up.
Hope it helps.

We have been stopped from using an all-in-one for DS at a French public pool. He was 12mo at the time, and the speedo rule was enforced for all ages.