Who wants to help plan my French holiday?

[OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea]

There are bits of France I know very well. Due to some family ties no longer being with us I find myself this year looking at the map and whole chunks of country I have never visited.

Please help!

We have 2 weeks. We're going to start with ferry and a night in Arras on the way down to St Martin D'Ardeche.

We want West Coast. I know Maubuisson, Carcan etc very well so not there. But huge Atlantic waves are a must. I must admit I love Maubuisson for being asked to be on the lake or cycle to the ocean but time to go somewhere different. Last year I inflicted my childhood on the dc and we had a brilliant time in the Dordogne/Lot areas and Bordeaux and the coast.

Looking at Noirmoutier or Les Sables d'Olonne I think. Ish. We like quiet, walk to a good patisserie type places. We'll be camping for the first place so will be looking for a gite this time. Only so long the dc can be all shoved in together before killing each other.

And somewhere to stop a couple of nights between the 2 places, maybe Montlucon area?

Then from the coast it'll be back to near Calais to crash for a night and home again

We're in the NE of England so we can't do the whole drive in one really.

I'm sure I'll get some great suggestions.

I really love Île de Ré, and it fits your bill.

Somewhere with good cheese and bread 🤣

Is that helpful enough?

Les sables d'olonne is a good, la baule is another good option - but I'd consider finding a gite inland where you can access plenty eg around the parc naturale de briere. Eg we went canoeing, walking, swan in the lake at saint lymphard. We take the overnight ferry from Portsmouth then it's a shortish drive even avoiding the tolls (tolls aren't common in Brittany)

Charente Maritime is more interesting than Vendee (Les Sables d'Olonne) IMO. Ile de Re is very picturesque but have only been for a day trip myself as we prefer to explore a bit more. La Rochelle is lovely. I like the area around Saintes with access to the coast near Royan. Gites are often very rural so don't always have patisseries etc within walking distance so maybe search for one in a village

Thanks. We're looking to be cycling distance from beach really as the first part of the holiday will be inland.

Food is high on the agenda! Dd keeps championing going back to Maubuisson for the glacier that is there.

Thanks. Another area to consider. Looking for cycling distance from beach really I think but once I've got an area I can start hunting.

La Tremblade at lunch time. (10 km from Royan)
There's a row of what look like wooden shacks along the estuary.
They are sea food restaurants.
The mussels and prawns are fresh and cooked simply.

In Brittany there is a campsite in Paimpont. Beautiful little village.

Carnac is my favourite place, it's on the coast.

Ronce Les Bains, La Palmyre, D'Oleron. La Palmyre is bigger and busier, Ronce is more old school French seaside town.