Holiday destination ideas less than 5 hours drive from calais

[Reastie]

Would appreciate some ideas on where might be a good holiday destination for dh, dd (will then be 7) and I. We are thinking of doing our first foreign holiday with dd and getting th Euro tunnel to Calais and driving on somewhere.

I've been looking on maps but feeling very confused about where to go. Ideally I'd love to go to the alps and stay near a resort but have a destination a bit off the beaten track. We always stay self catering. I've been oooking around grindlewald as I have great memories of a family holiday there but the drive is too long for me to cope with (I do all the driving) so I'm looking ideally for less than 5 hours drive from Calais which likely rules that out. I was wondering about the Black Forest in Germany but online reviews say it is very busy in summer. We would be going beginning to mid July.

To give you an idea about our likes dd loves typical tourist stuff and dh likes quiet places that aren't hectic or full of people and not spending too much money on tourist attractions! I like beautiful vistas, places that aren't spoilt, trying to get a run or two in on holiday, and keeping everyone else happy.

I'm really stuck, I feel looking at maps there must be so many great options but I don't know the areas well enough. Any guidance for places we could focus our search would be great.

My parents recommended Loire Valley when I asked them a similar question!

Realistically I think the Alps are too far in one go. Maybe head towards Strasbourg/Basel from where you could then easily get to Lake Constance/Austria or about 2 hours to Grindelwald. Alternatively look at the Vendee or Normandy coast.

Thanks. I've looked at Vendee but think it's a bit far to drive. Normandy I'm thinking about but I have no idea on good places to go there. I've been there before on the way to Brittany, stopping off at bayeux and my hazy memories are it's quite similar in vistas to England only with different styles of buildings.

Loire valley I've googled and looks a fair bit about vineyards and wine and dh and I don't drink!

Deauville is very chic and pleasant as are other towns along that stretch of coast and inland. Honfleur is also supposed to be pretty but we didn't get that far. The ww2 sites might be too much for your dc but there is plenty on William the Conqueror - castle, town the invaders set off from, Bayeux etc which might be interesting. If you look at Pierre et Vacances website they have a resort village (Normandy Garden?) which has pools, entertainment and activities onsite and various styles of sc accommodation, not too far from the coast.

Benodet in Brittany is lovely.

Thanks LIZS that's really useful, I'm going to look up those areas. I don't think the holiday park would suit us though as we tend to rent individual rural places rather than on a site with lots of other SC.

Also going to look up benodet, hopefully it won't be too far.

Benodet is lovely and very pretty but the weather is basically British.

You could definitely get to Strasbourg and the Vosges in five hours, and see some of Switzerland. I wouldn't worry about the busyness of the Black Forest too much, although that is way more than five hours. Especially if you're looking at the end of August, which is no longer high season in Germany.

Benodet is too far to drive, I've looked.

Yes, I think the Black Forest was when I was thinking we could break the journey overnight but I don't think that's going to happen.

Vosges look nice. Do you know the area politic? Is it very touristyor are there lots of pretty and unspoilt bits?

It's lovely. You've got Strasbourg and other smaller towns which are very pretty with history to them. You've got great hikes and views. We're planning a proper holiday there when our kids are a bit older but have done short breaks there as adults and loved it. It's also relatively undiscovered by Brits.

My mistake OP, I forgot that we went to St Malo when we went to Benodet.

We stopped in Ghent on our way to the Black Forest. We loved it and have decided to return to Belgium and the Netherlands for a proper holiday.

Yes, there's loads to do around Brussels, although the scenery is less exciting. Some excellent castles and cathedrals, and Waterloo is fascinating. And Bruges is beautiful although that really does get busy.

Try Gerardmer or Xonrupt in the Vosges mountains.

Yes I quite like the idea of Belgium or the Netherlands although Germany or France would be much easier insofar as I speak both languages (to an extremely basic level but better than nothing).

Thing is with the Vosges Mountains, the more I google, the more they just seem just a poor relation to the alps proper although I'm sure they are probably lovely.

Dh is very lazy so wherever we end out we probably won't venture more than half an hours drive away from it so I need to find somewhere rural and feels unspoilt yet with various things to do close by. It feels like an impossible task to keep everyone happy!

Benodet is lovely, or quieter is nearby Cap Coz, with lovely seaside views. The whole area is worth a visit.

There is more to the Loire Valley than vineyards! There are loads of Chateaux (Chenonceau is spectacular) and gardens (Villandry the most obvious) as well as other things to see and do.

A bit livelier is Dijon, which I've always enjoyed visiting, or a bit less distance, Troyes has a beautiful old town, and there seems to be a lot to do there, although we haven't yet had much time to spend there (it's on our list!)

Rather than Brussels, Bruges is beautiful, with plenty to do other than drinking beer!

Sounds as though you might like the Belgian Ardennes, perhaps around Bastogne. French speaking so that would suit you, and not too far to drive.
Before you decide on a destination, key your route into Via Michelin and it will give you a good idea of distance/times /cost of any tolls etc (especially useful in France).

Why not just press on to the Alps if it's where you really love? It's 9/10 hours drive tops to the heart of the Alps so two days' driving.

If you're thinking about Belgium - how about the Ardennes - lovely walks and villages, about 3.5 hours from Calais

And yes, you could drive on to the Alps. It's simple enough to split the journey if it's too much in one go. There are plenty of cheap, or not cheap, hotels just off the motorway where you can rest for a night each way. On our way to the South of France we left London late on Friday afternoon, stayed at a cheap hotel on the outskirts of Reims for a night, just 5 minutes from the motorway, and carried on our way early in the morning. Easy!

I've been doing lots of googling! Found a lovely looking place near Viroinval which is in the province of namur apparently in the ardennes. The house looks great but there doesn't seem to be a huge amount in the immediate vicinity if anyone has any knowledge of this bit?

It's an area full of cave systems, some which have boat trips through them, or prehistory displays.
Namur has a huge citadel to explore or various river trips on the beautiful Meuse available, your DH might like them as very restful!

Why not write to the tourist office in Namur and ask them to send you some information?

Brilliant idea, will do

Have a look at this website - there are loads of places which are in the countryside & mix of cabins/houses/apartments. Not actually used them but heard they are good.

www.landal.com/

Thanks for the link converse but dh hates self catering communities (if that's the right word), we go for individual places rather than somewhere with lots of places to stay. Looks nice though.

Palatinate which is on the German side of the Alsatian border. Lots of castle ruins to visit, medival cities like Speyer, easy to go to Strassbourg or Colmar. Ideal for hiking and cycling.

And lots and lots of vineyards for tasting.

We go this year, actually further to Frankonia for one week and then Palatinate for the second and then straight back to Calais.