France this summer

[Iamnotaloggrip]

Hello,

I'm hoping to go to France in the summer but am totally overwhelmed by the options and could do with advice from seasoned Francophiles please.

I was looking at the Vendee region but am very open to others. We'd like to take the car so I was looking at ferries from Portsmouth - but the overnight one we'd need to use for a Saturday-Saturday booking already has no cabins left. So what's best to do - are Sunday-Sunday bookings anywhere available? Ideally I'd be in a cottage but am open to a chalet/cabin on a site (DP will NOT camp in a tent without facilities so that option's not open to us).

So does anyone have recommendations for good sites they've stayed at, or lovely cottages with flexible owners...? And is Portsmouth the best way to get across? We're in Yorkshire so a fair trek to either there or Dover. Is the Vendee the best place to head for? Or are there lovely places in Normandy/Brittany with removes another long drive on the other side?

All advice very welcome please!

Have you checked ferries to Caen, Le Havre, St Malo and Cherbourg, as well as from Newhaven to Dieppe?
No need to drive all the way to the Vendee. Brittany has some gorgeous sandy beaches (Carnac Plage, Camaret-sur-mer, Nevez, Quiberon Plage) and equally gorgeous towns and villages to explore (Benodet, Locranan, Dinan, Dinard, Quimper…)
Airbnbs are generally quite flexible with changeover days.

For sites in Brittany that have mobile homes with bathrooms (plus a swimming pool on site etc etc) take a look at Groupe Romanee, Sandaya, Yelloh camping. We have certainly done Sunday to Sunday before, although possibly for a pitch rather than a chalet.

La Rochelle, is a lovely, vibrant city, lots of historic buildings, a buzzing port area full of restaurants. Our favourite place to stay is on the Ile de Re. Lots of camp sites and chalets, lovely small towns with a great vibe, good restaurants, good beaches, oyster bars, ice cream and lots of cycle tracks with loads of bike rental shops of you don't take your own.

Honestly if you're only doing a week, stick to Brittany or Normandy. Once you have driven down from Yorkshire, spent 12 hours on a ferry, the last thing you'll want is another 5 hours drive. You can do St Malo route or Caen and drive a couple of hours max and find loads of brilliant sites. Do a search on here and you'll find great recommendations. We always stay on a campsite in a holiday home/lodge or something

Yelloh village in Les Sables d'Olonne is lovely. We stayed in a deluxe cottage.

Well, i'd go further South if you want the weather & and more than just 1 week, Brittany can be a bit like SW England in regard to the weather & parts Southern Brittany is mega busy.
Poitou Charente or Vendee as you suggested is a better bet, go inland if you want something a bit quieter, depends if you re bring the kids... some beautiful places in and around that region.

Poole is just down the coast from Portsmouth for a ferry..

Never had a problem with flexible dates with Booking.com or Vrbo, you could also look at Brittany ferries and their holiday packages.

Thanks all. Unfortunately we can only do the one week because of DP's work, would love to have longer. Will have a look at your suggestions - hadn't even realised we could go from Poole so will definitely check that out!

We use the tunnel. It’s very fast but obviously more driving the other end. Agree with île de Ré (expensive though) and that area, La Rochelle etc. Île d’Oleron is another one to look at. Vendée itself is not the most interesting bit of France but weather is more reliable. Brittany weather can be hit and miss; you can get a wet week but it’s a charming region.
if you don’t need or want a big campsite look at Gites de France, vrbo and Airbnb for homes. Flexibility will definitely depend where you are going. Cant imagine Île de Ré is flexible - we went Sat to Sat - many places in the South are not that flexible either as it’s very busy!

We stayed in a lovely gite with a pool in Britanny last year near Dinan. The coast nearby has nice beaches. It's not too far to drive from Calais and you can take the tunnel. The longer ferry crossings seem very expensive.

We've also stayed at Huttopia campsites in a cabane when the kids were younger. Nice laid back vibe. The Loire is a nice region. Any further south and you will need an overnight stop.

I've heard good things about Lake Annecy but lots of accommodation will be booked up by now probably.

About 4/5hrs drive to the Vendee region from Poole/Cherbourg route, with a 4.5hr crossing time.

We've done an airbnb in Poole, to get a early ferry to France before.

We stayed here Gites la vallee