No clue about France at all but dp fancies holidaying in a gite. Where/how - dp doesn't do ferries...

[DottyDot]

That's about it really - we've not been abroad for 10 years and I'm hoping that maybe next year will be the year we give it a go.

Dp would love to stay in a french gite but I have no clue about France - we'd like somewhere probably near/on the coast and it has to be relatively near an airport as dp doesn't do ferries.

Any help much appreciated!

Would he take the car on the Eurotunnel?

dp's a she and possibly - although it would be me doing the driving and I've never driven abroad before. So, possibly if you told me it's easy peasy driving abroad....

Hopeful bump

Try taking the plane to La Rochelle then hiring a car. Lovely area, great weather.

Look on ownersdirect.co.uk

or simply google gite la rochelle pool (or children or whatever your priorities are)

I would recommend booking directly with an owner rather than taking a booking with an agency. Ask lots of questions and make sure you are happy with the responses before you book.

Normally you would pay 25% up front, if you are asked for more then be wary.

Driving abroad is very easy and you soon get used to it. If you're nervous practice on a supermarket car park on a Sunday evening when it's closed.

If you really don't want to drive then just look for gites near airports. Most of France is gorgeous so you need to decide what sort of holiday you want - beach, mountains, city, countryside, wine area, historic area, and then use one of the direct booking companies such as vrbo.com to search for suitable properties.

I actually do most of the driving in France as DH isn't confident about translating French road signs. There are a lot of websites giving advice about driving on the left.

Thanks - we want a beach-type holiday - have been to lots of Greek islands and Spain/islands in the past but never France - apart from Paris many years ago, so I feel completely ignorant

Will check out those websites and probably need to get to grips with a map of France...

Apologies for making an assumption about your DP

If you want a proper beach holiday with reliable weather, head as far south as you can, either to the Med or the west coast, perhaps even further down past La Rochelle. That said, I should think it's quite hard to find a gite right on the beach, as most resorts tend to have apartments.

The area around Le Lavandou on the Med is accessible via Toulon airport from Stansted. Have a look on HomeAway.co.uk for rentals. But don't tell anyone else!!

Thanks Chippy!

driving in France is fine (outside Paris, which is scary, even as an experienced London driver). The wrong-side is more than outweighed by the lack of traffic. Driving on to the eurotunnel is dead easy too.

You could take the train all the way to the south if France & hire a car locally or use taxis

why can't she 'do' ferries

I second going further South for better weather, also my SIL looked for a place on a british site then rang the place direct and saved 50% by going direct, We always stayed near Nice when I was younger and then drove around the local areas.
My friends parents live in France and the book flights early to visit and it costs less that £30 for flight pp, then they hire a car there.

Dp's emetaphobic, so has a huge fear of other people being sick. Ferries have therefore always been out - and no point saying you rarely see people being ill - that's why it's a phobia!

Thanks for all the advice - will look at south France and flights!

I had never driven abroad until 3 years ago - it is a doddle - just keep telling yourself - "kerb on my side" motorways are easy too. We have just returned from between Bordeaux and La Rochelle - brilliant. We were 30 mins from beaches and near to towns too.

We stayed here www.lalunelake.co.uk/LaLuneLake/Bed_%26_Breakfast.html on the way down to break the journey, and here www.relax-in-france.com/ when we were there (not sure how big a place you are looking for.

Both are highly recommended and have already booked for next year!

Sorry meant to say took Eurotunnel - really easy and have booked that for next year too - £69 each way for the whole car!