Driving to France - where to stay when we get there?

[SecondhandRose]

Never been to France on holiday before but now we have a dog I would love to take him to France next summer.

My kids are teenagers so we don't need any facilities for them at all but wondered where an interesting part might be to stay with history, things to see etc. Or is all France interesting?

Don't really need beaches.

We do know of a holiday home in Gascony which we could rent. Is this a good holiday area? Sorry to be vague but know nothing of France except Carcassonne is great as I flew there last year.

France is huge. What kind of budget do you have? Gite/mobile home/hotel? How far are you happy to drive?

Gascony is a nice holiday area. Lovely food and wine!

All of France is interesting, has history and things to see. Literally, you could go anywhere and find lovely little towns with castles, old houses, a museum, etc. The entire country is a treasure trove.

Here is an article comparing Gascony with the Dordogne (both very popular areas with British tourists). It might give you some idea of what is on offer. It's a lovely area, btw. You could do a lot worse than go there for your first taste of France.

We've never had a bad holiday in France. We've been to the Charente Maritime and love La Rochelle and Ile de Re. We had a superb holiday in the Lot/Dordogne region near Sarlat. This year, we are driving there for the first time and venturing into the Loire Valley. We have primary age DC and we've always stayed in a gite that shares communal facilities like a pool with a handful of other gites so that the kids can make friends and you can have the chance to socialise with other adults.

To rent a home I don't want to go above £1000 a week for a gite and would like 4 bedrooms which I know is possible as that is how much the one I am thinking of in Gascony costs.

Thanks, keep it coming.

Just got back from Alsace, lovely region, briefly visited Germany (black forest) as well while we were there. Lots to do, lots to see, beautiful little towns, great wine. Have also had fantastic holidays around Dordogne which would be fun with teens, especially if they're active types, canoeing is great and cycling (although hilly!)