Please recommend an area of France with two small kids

[Crabsy]

We live in the south east. Kids will be 2 and 4 and we have 7-10 days around the end of June. We can’t decide between:

a) euro tunnel or ferry (Portsmouth is closest but Dover also ok) and then spending the hols somewhere around Brittany or Somewhere as far up as maybe Honfleur. Pros of this is that we could take our own car so don’t have to worry about car hire/car seats. Cons is that it’s potentially a lot of driving both sides depending on where we go, and the weather in the north is maybe less reliable?

b) flying from Heathrow to somewhere like Nice or Marseille and then hiring a car. I’d thought about somewhere like Le Lavendou. Pros are the better weather, kids will be excited to go on a plane, maybe less driving overall. Cons are that it’s more expensive and have to faff about with car hire and seats.

Any recommendations of where to go? We’d like a quiet villa or chalet somewhere fairly quiet but within walking distance of a few shops or restaurants. We’d like a pool even if it’s shared and also like to be max 15-20 mins drive from beaches. Ideally a lovely quiet town with a few playgrounds, family restaurants and low key beaches around. We aren’t really into big attractions or super busy places.

Thanks in advance!

Forgot to say that youngest is still a bit of a nightmare in the car. They’d like the ferry but I don’t think I can hack an overnight ferry, they sleep badly enough as it is 😂

We had some great holidays in Normandy when our kids were little, including one at May half term running into June. The weather was fantastic - there are no guarantees of course, but it can be without going hundreds of miles further!
We stayed at Eurocamp in Houlgate.

It’s quite a bit further north than Honfleur, but I’d recommend Le Domaine du Val. It was quiet, idyllic and the kids loved it. It’s 15 minutes from the beach and very easy to get to from Calais.

Thanks for both of those recommendations I will take a look. Do you think south France would be too hot for toddlers that time of year?

I would 100% go to Brittany. Check out Saint Briac - it is beautiful !
Or easier you could go to Le Touquet

No it will be lovely in June (25 degree) BUT it could also rain. May / June are unstable in this area and it is more and more the case. I grew up there.

Actually end of June would be fine but it will start to get hot!

North of France we loved le crotoy with little ones. Not far from the ferry or tunnel, lovely little town with plenty of places to eat, ice cream, fresh seafood, bakery etc. It is on the bay and you can walk really far out when the tide is out and find all manner of things in the tidal pools. Other beaches for swimming etc are a short drive.

South of France we've stayed at both Lac de Carcans and Beaulieu sur Dordogne Hutttopia sites. Carcans is on a big lake a couple of km from the Atlantic Coast. Lake is brilliant for little ones to swim and has a sandy beach. I recommend hiring bikes easy cycle in to the restaurants and shops one way and to the ocean the other way. Beaulieu is another lovely town and the site is really quiet, has a pool and it's right on the river which you can swim in too. Loads to do in the area.

Benodet is lovely.

Look at point st gilles site or around that area.

Perfect with small kids

Normandy has beautiful beaches, but if you want as close to a guarantee of good weather as you can in Europe and less driving i would suggest the vendee. It's got a microclimate. I've driven with mine from young.

It's about a 5.5 hour drive from Le Havre, we do the overnight ferry there.

This is Camping La Vallee, the Eurocamp site at Houlgate (other operators use it too),
It’s about 2km to the beach, pretty flat, a reasonable walk (with a buggy ) and Houlgate itself is a lovely seaside town.

www.eurocamp.co.uk/campsites/normandy/nr014-la-vallee/ataglance.html

Thanks so much please keep it coming!

We loved Benodet with a 2yo and stayed in the Eurocamp there. Direct flight to Quimper from London City, then a very short drive.

Wissant is lovely. Close to Calais but fabulous beaches.

There's a eurocamp site at Guînes near Calais which also has a Logis de France hôtel. It's near to thé Azincourt museum and not too far from Nausicaa at the northern end of Boulogne sur Mer.
For villas, have a look on amivac.com, select private pool option and any others you want with your dates and see what comes up. There's also gites.fr. Both these are quite a bit cheaper than gîtes de France.

go on the ferry.in your own car. Then take it down through le man towards loire and tours. Its sl beautiful. We took eurocamp overnight stays on the way. It was fantastic. And such gorgeous region.

Another vote for La Vallee at Houlgate. Smallish site, swimming pools, including one for toddlers, walking distance of the town centre and a lovely beach.

Houlgate is about 45 minutes drive from Cae. (Brittany ferries) You can also get DFDS to Dieppe.

Caen

Another vote for Benodet.

I love Marseilles and surrounding areas… Cassis, Aix etc. I don’t know coast enough to advise though. I do find it quite pricey, but you’d be better off there than the Nice end.

How about inland a bit? The southern alps are great. Lots to do and lakes are warm?

Mandelieu la Napoule - close to Cannes but has lovely beaches with coves and mountains. The castle is worth a visit

Normandy is risky weather wise. I'd go to the Loire, we had some great holidays there with young children, definitely warmer and lots to do

We had a fabulous holiday at Dol de Bretagne Eurocamp in Brittany when DC were small. It's not exactly quiet but it is very family friendly. You can stay in lodges, treehouses or caravans. There are three swimming pools - one with waves, one with slides and a lazy river, and a basic pool for lengths. There's pony riding, pedalos, bike hire, a mini zipwire, on site pizzeria and mini market.
Nearby is the fabulous Mont St Michel – fascinating for a day trip – also beaches, and a sweet town with nice restaurants and a good food market selling Normandy sausages and crepes and galettes which DC loved trying as well as really good cheeses and other local produce.

I am scarred from many rainy holidays in the north of France as a child so we always go further south. We have flown to Montpellier many times - including when our kids were young like yours - and been to some beautiful places in the Languedoc area. The Camargue area is amazing - the beaches are spectacular - the Espiguette in particular, and Aigues Mortes is a cool walled town that looks like a huge castle. It's about 30 mins from the airport which is a bonus. Also cheaper than Marsaille/Nice/Cote d'Azur - although agree with PP that is beautiful there too!

We've stayed at Yelloh Village Petits Carmarguais www.yellohvillage.co.uk/camping/les_petits_camarguais in the Aquabulle area of the site.

When the kids were small we stayed in a family cottage that had a cute kids sized bathroom complete with tiny toilet and a mini bathtub! www.yellohvillage.co.uk/camping/les_petits_camarguais/our_rental_accommodation/9771#content