** Thinking of holidaying on France ~ any recommendations please?**

[badkarma]

Hi, as I said, myself, Dh and 2 kids (aged 5.6 and 2.6 then) are thinking of going to France next summer for a week. My sister, her dh, and their 3 kids (10, 8.6 and 7). We wouldn't live together, but do our own things through the day and meet up at night for something to eat. I think we'd prefer to go self catering and stay in either a caravan or a small apartment.

Has anyone been before and could tell me whereabouts in France would be good for children all these ages and for parents too... Only Dh has ever been to France before and says we would enjoy it. Not sure about how to get there, is there an option of boat and car? Leaving from NI.

Just left a message on another holiday thread. we went to Brittany last year with Canvas and stayed in a mobile home. Great camp, beautiful area would go back again and again

Oh great!! Will look out for it!! Do you have a link to the Canvas site or the holiday site you stayed on?

here We stayed at Carnac

Like Medulla says, ounds like going with someone like Canvas Holidays might suit you - mobiile homes, travel works out pretty cheap, loads to do for kids on the bigger sites.

As to where, loads of parts of France have tons to offer, weather more reliable in the south if going slightly off season. Much more travelling though - not ideal with kids. Maybe big sites like La Sirene - Argeles might suit you if you want beachy hol.

canvas

Thanks very much!! Both of you I have added that to my faves and will take time later to have a browse through it, will email the link to my sister too

Have a look at www.gites-de-france.fr

I'd agree with medulla, a mobile home is good with kids, we've been with canvas, also keycamp and eurocamp, go for the best deal as they all go to the same sites and the accommodation is pretty much the same. I would go for a site with kids clubs, a decent swimming pool complex with water slides etc. Keycamp were doing free tumbletots at some sites in Brittany this year.

Brittany is popular with irish families as you can get the ferry from Rosslare or Cork to Roscoff in Brittany then fairly short drive to south coast of Brittany, the weather is pretty reliable. I wouldn't bother driving a long way south unless you love the heat. We've found that we tend to spend whole days chilling out at the campsite, swimming, kids clubs, barbeques & other activities. Might venture out to the supermarket or the beach or some tourist attraction, but IME the children would rather hang out on the campsite with their bikes and new friends and you can have a sneaky snooze on your sunlounger . If you want to know anything else just ask, as you can tell i love these holidays!!

Thanks Foxtrot and Lapsedrunner, Foxtrot, I will be bugging you with questions from now until we book! lol

We have been for the last 5 years to Berny riviere its about 1hr north paris so really handy if you want to do sight seeing in paris, also for disney. Site has brilliant childrens pool with rocky mountain slide thing in middle. Has big slides, jakuzzi, Beauty salon, two big lakes one with canoes etc.

We have stayed with keycamp, french life, euro sites and another can't remember now, but it is a lovely site. No where near coast though.

Hi, I can almost guarantee that when you try this kind of a holiday with kids you won't ever look back. We have been bitten by the French bug for almost 10 years now. La Sirene was mentioned earlier & that is the site that we go to most regularly. Excellent facilities & organisation, fab location & great kids clubs. We usually go with www.frenchmobilehomes.com which are privately owned mobiles & you can save a fortune. You should be able to get a flight from NI to either Perpignan, Girona or Barcelona & the campsite is only a short drive from them, Barcelona being the longest at about 2.5 hrs, the others are under an hour. Have a look at the site anyway, the bigger mobile is what we stay in & it's really lovely, with a large deck outside. Best of luck.

Hi, I would say a lot depends on how warm you like it. Last year and the year before, we went to the La Rochelle area, which was great weather (in August), upper twenties temperatures, mostly sun, a little cloud. This year we went to Brittany, the first week was OK, but not as much sun, the second week it never got above 21 degrees, and was also quite windy, so we were sat on the beach wearing jumpers.

We go every year with French Life (cps you can use your Tesco vouchers to pay for it with them!!) but most companies are much the same. We usually go to Brittany or the Vendee. Had a fantastic hol a few years ago in baden (Brittany - gulf of Morbihan) , amazing pols etc on site and it was the best!! Big hill though! This year we went to St jean de Monts and stayed in camping Acapulco which again was fab! Can walk to beach, supermarket, small village centre with shops and restauarants. Pool fab and restauarnt/takeaway good. Kids loved kids club. Been to other sites but these are our faves!
We love the overnight ferry to St Malo but it's expensive

we stayed in the loire valley a couple of years ago through a company called bargaingites . they have some fab places all over France and are very cheap in comparison to many of the other websites we found. Our gite was 16th century with its own pool, for £400 per week (3 bedrooms). Well worth checking out their site (if my link works, which it probably won't)