South of France with 4yo and 2yo - where to stay, how to get there, + general tips please

[franch]

No knowledge/experience so particularly looking for:

websites for houses/villas (there'll be 4 adults + 2 kids; possibly also an extra 2 adults + baby)

recommended areas/towns/villages

advice on the drive (from London), stopovers etc.

• general thoughts

Many thanks

Depending on how far south of france you want to go, the Sarlat area of the Dordogne is beautiful and has much to offer all ages. The countryside is stunning and climate really hot, but not quite the intense heat of the very south coast. The rivers are lovely to swim in and there's lots of Kayaking/canoeing in the area in the stunning rocky valleys.
We stayed in a beautiful large villa, near to a gorgeous, busy hill top town, and the house had a pool, table tennis, large garden with swings and 2 large double bedrooms. Will try to find the website as it's in a really good location.

The nearest town was called Limeuil and is where the Vezere and Dordogne rivers merge in a huge confluence. The house was called Les Iris and I'll try to find it.

No - can't find it - it was 5 years ago.
The other nice area I thought of was Carcassone (the castle was used in Robin Hood Prince of Thieves) so you can tell how pretty the area is. There are so many places.
We usually drive over Dover -Calais then drive half way down and stop either in an 'Aire' rest area for a few hours through the night so driver can rest and then carry on. Then, you're not driving through the hottest part of the day adn the roads are quieter. We also stayed overnight near Dijon in a cheap hotel (novotel type thing).

Our villa is about 40 minutes from Carcassonne (where Luciemule mentioned) - it is stunning. Walt Disney based the magical kingdom design on Carcassonne so it is well worth a visit. The villa is large and would easily accomodate all of you (6 adults, 2 children and a baby) in the 4 large bedrooms - 3 doubles, 1 twin and 2 new cots.
Let me know your thoughts!
A x

We (with 5yo DD) are going to South of France this summer. We are staying in a villa, booked via Welcome Cottages online. We are flying to Nice though, not driving. We are staying in the mountains, but about 30 minutes or so from the coast, between Fruges and St Tropez.

Similar area to where we stayed a couple of years ago. That time we only stayed a week though and we stayed on a camp site, in one of the caravan/mobile home things. Actually was quite good, although the van was very hot - there was a heat wave when we were there and it was so warm!

Area is lovely. Fruges is lovely and very family friend. Lots of places to visit in area. There are a couple of big water parks too.

Have you made any progress ? Was the info about my parents' villa of any interest Franch?

Very useful stuff - thanks to you all. aznerak I'll look at that website now

Oooops - am obviously not with it today - your title tells your DCs ages!
If you want more info on what there is to see and do, then just let me know! Don't want to bore you with lots of info if the villa is not for you!

Thanks aznerak, the villa looks lovely. Have forwarded the link to DH

It sounds as though it'd suit you perfectly in terms of size, location etc. It has everything a family needs so do keep me posted.
Hope to be able to help you further with this one!
xxx

Will let you know aznerak - it probably won't be for a while yet anyway, we're just mulling over possibilities at the moment ...

No worries Franch! Just be careful that whatever you decide on, you don't leave it too late and find its fully booked for when you wanted - we've made that mistake before and its SO upsetting!
Good luck and let me know if you want any help with anything. x x

thanks aznerak

You need to look at www.gites-de-france.fr, it's in english, covers virtually all of France and you can book on line. We have used them loads of times, always much cheaper than UK based operators. You can specify a baby friendly gite as part of your search.

ah thank you lapsed

Hi Franch
Have you managed to find anywhere that ticks all the boxes yet???
A x x x

There's a great site for villa/gite rental at: www.holiday-rentals.co.uk

Also at www.frenchconnections.co.uk

Are you dead set on the south of France though? For the last three years, we've been to the Vendée / Charente-Maritime area. It has a climate just like the south of France, but is quieter and nearer. There are some fab beaches and places to see (La Rochelle, Chatellaillon-Plage, Saintes, Cognac, etc). We and our now 3 yr old have really enjoyed it.

We usually travel by ferry, then drive. Leaving the UK from Calais at about 7 or 8 in the morning, we can usually get to our destination by about 6 or 7, with lots of stops on the way for food/toilet/etc. If you don't mind an overnight ferry, you can probably go via the southern England ports and arrive nearer to your ultimate destination.

(Typed all this then realised your original post is from a while ago, so you've probably booked somewhere now!!)

Thanks NoNickname - we're actually thinking ahead for next summer so this is definitely useful

Also look at Tots to France

Hi Franch, long time no hear . Hope you and dds are well.
Was wondering if you still posted on here as I never seem to see you around, and stumbled across this post. We went to South of France last year with dd 9 and ds then 3. We travelled by Eurostar direct to Avignon where we picked up a hire car and drove about 20 or 30 miles to Arles where we stayed. Lovely historic city.
Anyway back to Eurostar...
Advantages over flying, much cheaper (couldn't get any cheap flight deals) and this was even with upgrading to 1st class, more convenient (Waterloo much nearer than airport) and only 30 minute check in.
Advantages over driving, quicker, food and drink bought to your table, 2 parents free to entertain children, don't need to stop for toilets/leg stretching.
I really loved it. The journey btw is 6 hours.

Hope to catch up with you soon!