French Atlantic islands

[lovepizza]

Staying at Ile de Noirmoutier next month, then moving on to Ile de Rey and possibly Ile d'Oleron. Anyone done similar? Is it worth heading south or will Ile de Rey be the piece de resistence and anything else just isn't worth the peage for?
Plus, any recommendations for small campsites on Ile de Rey? Pref with a pool...

I don't know about the Ile de Re but Noirmoutier is beautiful when the sun shines. Absolutely stunning.

Sorry, can't help about campsites but it is 'Ile de Re'...

No it is Ile de Ré The accent is very important.

a bit tricky to do the accent with an English keyboard though.....

Ile d'Oleron is lovely. We haven't actually camped there, but have cycled around and spent days there

thanks for the tips (and the spelling advice). It seems each one has its' merits. Maybe we'll do a week on each one of them and report back.... got 4 weeks to fill so have got time to pootle about! (PS 4th week will probably be Les Sables d'Olonne so we get some mainland balance!)

We stayed at La Grainetiere on the Ile de Re last summer and we're going back this year because it was so lovely. Great, relatively small campsite, perfect pool with kids things and hot tub for grown ups. Good site shop for basics and good croissants for breakfast, snack bar and bike hire. Also not that expensive compared to some, but all more expensive than any other sites we've stayed at. Lovely island, would recommend.

We camped on Ile d'Oleron 2 summers ago. It was very nice - great cycling and beaches and good for watersports.

Really crowded in terms of driving around the island when we were there in early August, but that is the busiest fortnight of the year.

If you want some mainland balance why not head inland a little. The area round Fontenay le comte is nice as is the Mervent Forest.

the ile de Re is lovely. Great cycling, lovely pace of life and some fantastic chic seaside village. We camped at Interlude in high season - very busy as you'd expect but still really good. It is where a lot of Parisians go for the summer and there are direct trains from there. I'd avoid driving once you get there and hire / take bikes. The roads are crowded and slow but there are cycle paths everywhere.

have never been to Oleron but have been told that its no where near as nice as the IdR

We stayed on Ile D'Oleron last year at a Camping Indigo site. Had a lovely time, beaches nearby were excellent. We could get to 1 of them on a little open train. Campsite was lovely, clean toilets and showers and a good mix of English, French and Dutch people.

Going inland from there a bit we stayed at a place called Chinon which was amazing. Had a castle that had an outside lift to get to, dc said it was like Willy Wonka! We stayed at a municipal site there. Would certainly recommend that for a stopover.

We stayed at camping Indigo too. Pools quite small and very crowded in early August but otherwise we liked it.

Ile de Re was truly wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stayed at Les Varennes at La Bois Plage en Re. fantastic family campsite - small and quiet. (May not be as quiet in high summer) Small play area next to small bar (cheapest wine in ALL of France!) great for evenings chillin in the sun. Communal BBq areas, for real charcoal. The local markets are a feast for the senses - seeing is believing at the fish stall.

Noirmoutier was beautiful, especially beaches in north east of island. Almost better than the beaches on Ile de Re. Aquarium worth a visit, and butterfly park.

Les Sables d'Olonne was great too. Stayed at La Dune des Sables, just outside the town. You can cycle there in 10 mins or so. The main town beach was amazing.

And finally, La Rochelle - what a place. the sense of history made the hairs on the back of my neck tingle. Wish we had more time there. My 3 year old loved the tour de St Nicholas.
The whole area is SOOOO geared up for cyclists - its fantastic