Help me find perfect Vendee beach campsite for my babies, please!!

[Boo100]

We are planning a French camping trip next Summer after a successful trip to Brittany this year. (Excellent nr beautiful Benodet) We are feeling the kids could cope with a slightly longer journey and have selected the Vendee. We really need somewhere on or very close to a beach with facilities for toddlers. Have you been anywhere like this that you could recommend? If so, I would really appreciate your ideas. Hope to book thisweekend and get the early bird offer!!!

THANKS!

I would actually advise you not to consider the Vendee with young children, I am not sure how much the facilites have improved since my children were small but it was the worst holiday we have ever had. It rained incessantly, which apparently is not uncommon as you are on the coast facing the open Atlantic and another friend had the same experience another year. There were no attractions under cover for children in the immediate area and we ended up going home 5 days early as we were so damp, cold and miserable. There was one tumble dryer for a whole campsite filled with families. I would do some careful research before booking anything.

We've just come back from Vendee and had a wonderful holiday although Evenstar is right about the weather. However we had 14 days of sun and were very lucky but I have heard that it can be hit and miss.
St Jean De Monts Zagarella was great. Small but with great pools, a bouncy castle, trampoline, games room, sandpit and big playground. My 4 year oldand 2 year old LOVED it as did dp and I.
We were close to the beach although you would have to drive, but not more than 15 mins. Lots of stuff to do around and about although the museums are a bit dodgy!
We had such a good time that we are booking another holiday for September using Keycamp!

We were in a Villa Nova not a tent! But enough facilties around.

Go a bit further, and I would recommend Les Charmettes on the Charente Maritime. It is driveable in a day and better weather than the Vendee. We went twice when the kids were younger. The Vans are laid out in circles so kids play in the middle area together and we had a large grassy area all aroud ours (all have larger plots than most other sites). The pools are fab for Toddlers.

You have to drive to the beach, but there is miles of it! Lots of other resorts nearby.

The Zoo at La Palmyre is amazing (a conservation place, beautifully laid it with loads of shade that also protects from showers!)

Le gurp, Camping Municipal - Gironde

Tastesoule (swimming pool, cafe, lovely family run). Between Montelivet and Le gurp. Gironde.

camping.tastesoule.free.fr/

Oh yes, I'd echo Milliways - we went to Les Charmettes last month and I recommend it. The dds are 4 and 2 and they could not have had a better time.

The beaches were massive and almost empty; the Zoo was fantastic and there was a little amusement park full of bouncy castles etc. that went down very well too.

If your kids like cycling, roller blading, beach and water sports i think you will ove this place. We have has many amazing and one wet but still enjoyable holiday here. We usually travel down over two days, finding somewhere nice to stop over half way. We drive to Royan and catch the small ferry to Soulac (rottisarie chicken - deli in Soulac is open in the evenings, great food if you don;t want to cook), then onto the capmsite -- which has laways been really welcoming and helpful.

Haven't been for 16 years or so, but we went for three summers on the trot for four weeks each time to the Vendee and it didn't rain once. Although I suppose you could say that about the UK summers too . Just thought I'd mention it....

www.camping-aquitaine.com/campsite-gironde-ang.html

Thank you so much for your thoughts! I am going to look at all your suggestions right now. Thanks again!

we came back two weeks ago and had a mixed bag of weather - one blazing week, two torrential downpours (both overnight) and some mixed suuny/cloudy.

We stayed at La Garangeoire at St-Julien-des-Landes, which is utterly lovely but a good 15min drive from the beach so I wouldn't recommend it for you (dd is 11m and at the sand-eating stage so we had a better time in the pool on site.)

We have been 4 times and never had bad weather. like anywhere you can have good weather and bad.

the beach at Jard sur mere is nice. Good sand, with some rock pools for extra fun and a small cafe kiosk on the beach for coffee/ ice cream. But it isn't as over developed as some of the place on the coast. Each to his/her own but we like quieter places

The town of Jard sur mer is also very nice.

The book to get for things to do in the vendee is the vendee by Angela bird

hi
being nosy as am looking at doing the same thing! have just come back from a sunny week in southern brittany and last year had 3 v wet and windy weeks on the ile de re - the weather really is pot luck...
i really wouldnt recommend the zoo at la palmyre. we made a long trip to go there on recommendations and were really disappointed. compared to zoos here like paignton it was awful. the enclosures were v dated and made us feel v uncomfortable, especially the polar bears-doing lots of repetitive behaviours - horrible!
stick to the beach!
good luck with your search

St Jean de Monts as a kids resort gets my vote. Its 4 hours drive from Caen or Cherbourg and has a fab beach with kids areas and activities on it.

When were you thinking about going? We have been to the Vendee for the last 3 years and had great weather in July and August. Went to Brittany before that and it was definitely cooler there.

How old are your dc? We went to Camping Les Biches in St Hilaire for 2 weeks in June, and it was a great site for then 2.4 yr old dd. They have a good playground on site, and a great pool complex, including an indoor pool which is useful if the weather is inclement. It's a short drive to the beach, so we would often have a morning at the beach and an afternoon at the pool.

we did camping les biches 3 years ago and it was good. Kids were 4 and 2 at the time and I was pregnenat so having the shade under the trees helped. Went with Canvas then but have done Siblu for the last couple of years since they had better mobiles IMHO. The siblu sites at St Jeans are closer to the beach and have an indoor pool with kids pay area(fountain things)

Can def recommend camping Acapulco in St jean de Monts - fab pool whih is ideal for toddlers at one end and olders ones at the other - separated by a little bridge whch dd had to repeatedly walk over! Slides as well!! It's withing wlaking distance of a small beach but the main St jean de monts one is only a few mins drive/cycle away. fab places to go nearby here and and here for example. From Acapulco you can also walk to a local Cham,pion supermarket and some local shops/bars/restauarants but we always ate in campsite restauarant as itwas good and catered for the kids - plus their friends were there!

Another fab site was Camnping mane Guernehue in Brittany - it had the best pool complex ever abd was lovely but you had to drive to beaches.

Also can recommend Camnping Village le PLage at le guilvenic for location as it's right on a beach but th site is more basic than othes and the kids pool isn't great.

Love Breittany, Love the vendee but trying camping in Italy this year!

We're just back from Camping Bel in La Tranche, our 4th year there. DD is 5.5 now and it has been perfect for her so far. The beach is a 5 min walk, and when the tide is in the sea is shallow. When the tide is out the sea is miles away but dd loved walking on the sands looking in the pools for crabs. The site has a small pool and a few evening entertainments, a nice play area near to the bar and town is a 5 min walk away. We hardly used the car (supermarket big shops only), rented bikes and had a wonderful time.