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Original poster

is it possible to go camping in the South of France with no car?

30 replies

imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 20:45

We don't drive you see. And we'd love to go on a camping holiday in the South of France. But I'm worried about how we'd get there and how we'd get about once we were there.

Any tips or experiences? Or good sites people have experienced?

(we don't have a huge budget)

OP posts:
mrsruffallo · 14/01/2008 20:50

I don't have advice -I'm sorry but I do have the same question! Will be watching this thread

inamuckingfuddle · 14/01/2008 20:52

You could get a train to avignon, from Calais, then local trains/buses to villages like frejus where most things are walkable

inamuckingfuddle · 14/01/2008 20:56

trains

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 21:03

how could I find out about camp sites in one of those villages? Any idea of cost, roughly, and if we'd need to take anything in particular with us?

(we've never been camping before!)

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inamuckingfuddle · 14/01/2008 21:05

you'd be best going with someone like canvas holidays or others, where the tent and equipment is set up for you. You will need bedding and towels though.

mrsruffallo · 14/01/2008 21:06

imaginary friend, I looked into keycamp but it was quite expensive to be picked up/ dropped off-maybe they have a site near Calais?
It's a pain not driving sometimes isn't it?

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 22:17

It's a real pain to be unable to drive. In so many ways!

I've just been looking through the canvas holidays site but I think the travel would be impossible for us there and it's much more pricey than I'd hoped.

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LyraSilvertongue · 14/01/2008 22:20

We spent a week on a campsite near Antibes last year with no car. We flew to Nice and the owners of the mobile home picked us up from the airport. I'll try and find the link...

Dinosaur · 14/01/2008 22:22

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

LyraSilvertongue · 14/01/2008 22:22

Here;s the site Sunhat France. The owners, Jeff and Liz, are really friendly. it's a nice small quiet site but walkable to Biot beach.

Milliways · 14/01/2008 22:26

I was looking at a campsite in Italy, and found this company that runs coaches there.

We have also stayed here and there were people on that site with no car, who flew to Perpignon. There is a tourist train that runs around the local campsites to the town, and a courtesy bus to the beach.

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 23:01

It seems it's going to be around the £1000 mark for the week then?

I'm a bit confused as to just where to choose actually as some places seem easier to get to than others and then I'm unsure how easy it will be to manage without a car when there - i.e. will we be able to get to a shop for self-catering foods etc.

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Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 23:11

Lyra, I like the look of your link and it's so reasonably priced. Can you tell me any more about what the location was like? Would it be ok with a 5-year-old for a week? Enough to do? Are the buses and trains that they promise as good as they suggest?

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LyraSilvertongue · 14/01/2008 23:28

DS1 was 5 when we went and he loved it. The site is quite small but there's a pool, with a baby pool for the little ones, and an on-site (quite expensive) shop and restaurant/bar. There's also a playground. The beach is a good 20 minute walk but there are buses (1 euro each way). The owners will take you to the hypermarket and pick you up (for a fee). They can also provide barbecues ad bedding. We enjoyed our week there.
Near the beach there's also Antibesland, a theme park with rides, and a marine park.

LyraSilvertongue · 14/01/2008 23:29

About a 20-min walk in the other direction is Biot, a beautiful ancient village with lovely restaurants and shops. You can also catch a bus there.

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 14/01/2008 23:32

Thanks. I'm going to be annoying and keep asking questions if you don't mind?

So how did you mostly spend your week? On the beach or at the site? Did you take the train out to Monaco and the other places mentioned on the site?

Of the pools, was the baby pool deep enough to swim in? And was the adult pool too deep for a small child? Dd is quite a good swimmer but she needs to be able to put her feet on the ground of the pool.

The shop on site would be ok for getting basic food supplies? If the owners didn't take you to the hypermarket would you be stuffed?

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LyraSilvertongue · 15/01/2008 09:07

We spent our week mostly off the site, at the beach most days, a couple of days in Biot, others at the pool (or pool in the morning, town in the afternoon/evening etc)
The onsite shop has all the basics plus fresh baguettes and pastries every morning. It is quite expensive though so you'd probably want to go to another supermarket at some point to stock up, but they have everything you need. There is another supermarket within walking distance but we didn't go there because we went to the hypermarket.
The baby pool was waist height iirc on my 5-year-old. The big pool is quite deep but dc went in both.
The train from Biot goes all along the coast so you could have days out in Antibes, Cannes, St Tropez, Nice, Monaco. We spent a very nice day in Monte Carlo.
Let me know if there's anything else you need to know

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 15/01/2008 11:17

Thanks Lyra, I showed the site to dp last night and he was very keen. I think we might go for it.

OP posts:
Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 15/01/2008 11:18

Oh yes, weather. Was it good? We'd be going in August.

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LyraSilvertongue · 15/01/2008 11:26

30 degrees+ most days. Hope you like it hot!
We were there for two weeks (second week in Antibes) and we only had one day of bad weather, and that was just overcast. If you go for it, I hope you have a fab time.

LyraSilvertongue · 15/01/2008 11:27

When I get a chance I'll put some of our holiday pics on my profile. I'll let you know when it's done.

LyraSilvertongue · 15/01/2008 12:40

We went last two weeks of august.
Pics are now on my profile.

Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 15/01/2008 14:19

Thanks, you've been a brilliant help!

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Original poster
imaginaryfriend · 15/01/2008 14:21

The photos look great. And your boys very cute.

Would it be somewhere you'd recommend? Somewhere you'd go again?

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LyraSilvertongue · 15/01/2008 14:50

I'd recommend it because it's good value for money. The beach is pebbly though, which isn't to everyone's liking. I'd never camped abroad before so I've nothing to compare it with but we had a lovely week there.