Northern France

[Pop4me]

Hi, we're looking at driving to Northern France for a holiday this year, we have been 5 kids and a 1 year old dog so it's going to be a squeeze in the car so I was hoping to find somewhere around an hour from Calais.

Any recommendations of locations perhaps within 30 mins of a water park for the teens?

Any best places to look at for hiring a villa with pool too?

I've never been to Northern France on a family holiday - we always went further south for a better chance of good weather.

However, it looks as though water parks are generally on holiday parks with accommodation, like Center Parks and mobile home/camping sites There seems to be ond possibility - it might be worth looking at Aquaclub de Belle Dune at Fort-Mahon-Plage.

The weather in Northern France is no better than weather in the UK. Sometimes it’s worse. Properties with a pool are few and far between, and even if you do find somewhere it’s a risk with the weather. You certainly don’t get villas in Northern France.

Oh really 🫣 that screws my plan then! Didn't want to be stuck in a car with the kids all day, will have to look at how long it would take to go to the South of France

You do get villas where you get golf courses. There are some near Le Touquet, for instance

Try Vrbo, Expedia, Hometogo, Gites de France

Have a look at Roompot.com and head into Belgium or south of NL. Zeeland for example has lovely beaches. You might not get a private pool, but they have beach houses and some of the resorts have pools and lots of facilities for kids. They do some quite big properties, some directly on the beach. End of August can be cheaper as the dutch kids go back to school.

Le Touquet-Paris-Plage is lovely OP and you’ll find a water centre there. Nice beach, sand-dunes for the kids to scramble around on, town that comes to life in the evening and in summer, nice beach bars. You’ve got some great countryside just a stone’s throw from Le Touquet as well - and beautiful rural villages in La Vallee De La Course - check
out Montreuil Sur Mer which is a medieval walled town, the setting of Les Miserables! Beautiful strolls around the ramparts. I live near there so know the area well - lots to see and do.

Great, thank you! Will do a google of it now

If you can travel to the Le Mans or Tours area the weather will be a lot better

Belle Dune, a Pierre et Vacances holiday complex just beyond Boulogne. Pool complex indoors with lake and activities on site and at the beach at Port Mahon. There is also a theme park with water rides nearby,

Le Touquet has a lovely long family friendly Sandy beach. You can drive from there to places like Montreuil sur mer ( old fortified town), Le Portel for seafood meals.

If you travel Newhaven to Dieppe you'll be 90 minutes from Deauville with a long sandy beach.
Trouville is lovely too and has a huge municipal swimming pool.

The weather is usually lovely in July and August.

South Brittany is lovely, places like Pouldu have a lovely beach but not too touristy, Quimper has lovely old typical french houses, with patisseries etc. If you travel via Brittany Ferries they do offer, villa plus travel inclusive. Or if you find a place but travel with Brittany Ferries then I can give you a code for 10% off the travel. Just pm me.

Where are you based? Might be better to get the ferry to eg Caen or Dieppe or something.

The weather starts to improve once you hit the south of Brittany. The Loire Valley's usually pretty hot in summer. There are loads and loads of resorts with nice beaches and nice campsites all down the Atlantic Coast.

You don't need to go all the way south but at least the bottom of the Vendee, we've got a static near La Rochelle and it's generally melting or pissing with rain in summer. No rhyme or reason to it.

Another vote for Le Touquet, very family friendly (nice shops and a great market too)! There was a thread last week and the OP was looking for advice on places within easy reach of Caen if you get the ferry there instead. It's a much longer ferry journey though, but might be worth seeking out the thread

Where in the uk are you travelling from ?