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Holidays

Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

Original poster

Chamonix / Annecy

14 replies

onoroff · 24/03/2013 21:04

I was thinking about going to Chamonix for a week and Annecy for a week in August with DD age 6. I thought we could do some bike rides, walking, sightseeing to make a change from the beach. I know it will be busy being August but is it generally a nice holiday for young child please. Would there be enough to do? Also, for a 2 week 2 centre holiday are Chamonix & Annecy too close together and is there an alternative a bit further away that we could combine with instead! Sorry, lots of questions, please advise even if you have only answer to part of it! Thank you!!! Also, last question honestly, any recommendations for accomodation please?

OP posts:
Now40 · 26/03/2013 21:18

Hi, we are doing exactly this at the end of July with 5yo ds. Spent ages trying to decide where to go as we are really not beach people. We have found a chalet for the first week and then a mobile home for the 2nd week Which has a kids club. Will use public transport to get around whilst we are there. Sorry I can't tell you whether it is any good though!

Original poster
onoroff · 28/03/2013 15:19

Hi, thank you for your reply. That is interesting to know that someone else thought it would be a nice holiday too! Can you tell me the mobile home park you have chosen, I have been looking at a few too and it is so hard to decide?! I hope you have a great time.

OP posts:
magimedi · 28/03/2013 17:29

Annecy is lovely! The lake is one of the cleanest in Europe & great for swimming in. Lovely 'beach' type club on the edge of the lake at Talloires.

Can't recommend accomodation as we stay with relatives.

NulliusInBlurba · 28/03/2013 17:54

Don't know much about Annecy, but we had a lovely holiday a few years back in Chamonix. I think it was late July. There was loads to do for kids, but it helps if you like walking in the hills. We took our own bikes on top of the car, but there are plenty of places to hire bikes from too. Not terribly good bike lanes, though.

Some of the best things:

  • A brill 'summer toboggan' - you take a ski lift up the hill and then the toboggan down, it's about a kilometre long.
  • A tree rope course thing, with different levels for different heights, including a low level one for smaller children (although DD2 was a shortish 7yo at the time and took the second level one).
  • An adventure park thing, which would be good for days when the weather is less than perfect. Can't remember the name, but it's very near the centre of town.
  • A great cable car up to 3,800 metres, nearly as high as Mont Blanc, amazing views. We then walked part of the way down. In fact we did that several times to ease the kids into hiking - took a cable car up the hill then walked down to the valley.
  • Not so good: The restaurants in the centre of Chamonix are a real rip-off - avoid at all costs.
  • Take a quaint train to a really cool glacier (sigh, can't remember the name of that one either), and then each summer a cavern is carved out under the glacial ice and you can walk through it, it's lit up with multicoloured lights.

It was one of the best holidays we ever did. I would definitely recommend that in combination with a lakeside Annecy holiday.

SkiBumMum · 28/03/2013 18:02

There are some good restaurants too!! L'Imprevu does the world's best chocolat fondant. I know I've tested them allGrin. Really good value menus. Le Geeko is also v good. We love MBC (micro brewery de Chamonix) too. It is owned by Canadians so does fab wings and nachos along with home brew. V friendly atmosphere and they're fine with kids.

Haven't been in summer for a while but it's a fab town generally.

There is a pool if you take speedos for the men. Climbing and parapente too.

Can't wait til mine are big enough for this holiday!

Now40 · 28/03/2013 18:04

Thanks for that info about Chamonix, getting excited now! There's another thread going about Annecy, we are staying at Camping Europa and booked direct with the site. Hopefully it will all be good!

SkiBumMum · 28/03/2013 18:04

Also, in Chamonix a good area to stay is Rue Mummary as its right by the nursery slope/meadow so you can let children loose v easily. Still close to town. Try Balcones du Savoy for apartments.

Original poster
onoroff · 03/04/2013 20:54

Thank you so much everyone for the replies and top tips, sorry I haven't been back before with thanks, I have been away with no access to computer. I am now fully convinced that this is a good idea so I am going to investigate whether to fly or drive and where to stay. Thanks again for all the great info.

OP posts:
Thewhingingdefective · 06/04/2013 21:30

We are considering this for next year. Good to hear that it is good for kids (our DTs will be 8 so hopefully plenty to do for them), but what about smaller children? I also have DTs who will be 4 when we go. Anything suitable for small ones?

Now40 · 05/08/2013 19:19

We are now back from our holidays with our 5yo ds. We spent 1 week in Chamonix, 1 in Annecy and loved it. We did lots of walking in Chamonix, making good use of the cable cars into the mountains and also the free buses and trains in the valley.

In Annecy, we ended up mainly swimming in the amazing campsite pool and going for a few cycles. The public transport wasn't very convenient and it was just too hot to walk anywhere really.

Would definitely recommend it.

Sixtiesqueen · 06/08/2013 21:03

We went to Annecy/Chamonix one September - we also stayed at Camping Europa which was actually bloody awful (though had a lovely pool). The manager was really rude!

I thought Annecy was gorgeous but the beaches weren't too useful around the lake (they weren't sandy). I pictured us cycling everywhere and actually we had to drive to Sevrier to hire bikes. Apart from that, it was gorgeous and though the weather was a bit iffy, we drove to Chambery and Lyon and up to Yvoire.

The glacier in Chamonix is called the Mer de Glace. You can get a little train up to it. ALso I'd recommend the cable car up the Aiguille de Midi - that was amazing!

Sixtiesqueen · 06/08/2013 21:04

(I agree the pool at that campsite is really nice though!)

Original poster
onoroff · 05/09/2013 22:08

Hi, we are back now too so thought i would leave feedback for others. This was the best holiday ever. We had a week near chamonix where we did most of the things nulius recommended..we went up mountain trains and went hiking, also went to ice caves which was amazing, did tree swinging zip wires which was great fun although slightly scary! Fab swimming pool in megeve. Everywhere was beautiful with summer flowers abounding. Second week in annecy we did more tree swinging, hired bikes, went on peddalos on the lake & visited some amazing places, annecy itself being the most beautiful. If you like an active holiday & your kids are into that kind of thing I would highly recommend it. Thank you to those of you, especially nulius, who gave us tips on what to do, a holiday i will never forget.

OP posts:
flipchart · 08/09/2013 08:13

I have only just seen your thread.
Up to this summer (when I went to Iceland and that is my new favourite holiday) Chamonix was my best ever!

Just me and my two boys went and we loved it!

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