Need Help with 2-Week Family Road Trip Plan from London to the South of France

[TwoTiaraTroubles]

Hello mums, I’m planning a two-week road trip to the South of France from London and back, traveling by car with my wife and two daughters (aged 5 years and 3 months). We’re planning this trip for August and are looking for kid-friendly destinations that are easy to explore with children. I’ll have a stroller for and a baby carrier for my youngest, while my eldest loves playing on the beach, so we’d like to include family-friendly beaches in the itinerary. I’ve previously done a road trip from London to Spain via France but didn’t stop anywhere in France for sightseeing or staying. I’ve visited Paris before and would prefer to avoid it this time. I haven’t traveled with my first daughter at this early age, as she was born during the peak of COVID. The earliest road trip we did with her was when she was 18 months old—a 10-day road trip in Jordan in December, including hiking in Petra, where I carried her in a baby carrier, and she enjoyed it. Could you suggest places to stay en route, destinations to explore while there, and how many days to spend in each location? Do you think traveling with a 3-month-old will be too challenging? I’ve also heard that the South of France can be very hot in August—any thoughts on that?

I travelled to Brittany in August a few years ago and it was hot, even in the north.
Honestly, I wouldn’t do it with children so young (mine were teens and hated it) but if you have your heart set on it I’d look to travel early or later in the day if possible.
Also avoid French national holidays in August and the start/end of the month when the entire countries travels to/from their holiday destination.

I did very similar when the DC were 5 years and 4 months, except it was October and we went to the Dordogne. It's a perfect age to take a baby on holiday TBH, as it's before they are mobile, and they're nice and light to carry (Although DS2 did get decisively booted out of Lascaux for daring to scream inside a cultural monument 😳).

Your only problem might be the heat- yes, it's entirely possible southern France could reach 40 degrees in August (Although it seems that the bulk of the heatwaves happen more in July, and the weather is more likely to break in the second half of August).

The Loire Valley could make a great stopover- there are loads of attractions for kids alongside all the chateaux, it's flat and you can hire bikes and explore the cycle network (they have those baby trailers, although not sure of the minimum age), it's all generally just very well run and relaxed round there. Might be a bit of a detour to Nantes- but check out Les Machines de l'Ile!

The Auvergne would be on your route, I think- lakes (some of them with safe beaches) and mountains.

Where are you heading in the S.of France?

The French don't tend to go away for the entirety of August any more- the busy period is the last week in July and the first two weeks in August. The end of August can be surprisingly quiet (French schools go back earlier than ours do).

Alternatively, from Calais you could head east and follow the mountains down the Eastern edge of France, from the Vosges to the Alps down to the Cote d'Azur. (We usually cross from Plymouth- Roscoff, so tend to veer west).

We go to the south of France every year for the first 2 weeks of August because DH is French and that’s apparently what all French people do. It’s busy, crowded, hot and very expensive! Not to mention the air quality can be atrocious due to a combination of industry and forest fires. If it wasn’t a martial obligation I’d definitely rethink the timing and choice of destination. The Alps are great in summer, very kid friendly, lots hiking if that’s your thing, cleaner air and not quite so hot. Somewhere like Morzine and/or Annecy would be lovely. Then you could always continue on to the south if you must!

It’ll be super hot. We have to go each summer but it’s always around 35-40 degrees, sometimes a little hotter inland. Not very pleasant unfortunately and often the weather is humid with cloud and thunderstorms at the end of August.

With regard to breaking up the journey, the Loire is a nice route or the area around Beaune or just before you reach Lyon. Neither bear beaches. I can’t remember any specific places that are good for very little ones but most places will have a leisure centre or there are lakes/rivers in the Loire for paddling. Lots of holiday parks like Eurocamp have small kids activities and baby pools but there might be a minimum nights booking.

That’s good to know @crackofdoom thank you

Would you go to Calais or take the ferry to somewhere further south? Personally, I’d go to Caen or Cherbourg. The ferries are really family friendly.
Festyland is a lovely theme park just outside Caen and is perfect for younger children.
Zooparc de Beauval is excellent and has its own onsite accommodation. That would be my first stop after Caen.
Another place we like to break the journey is at Domaine du Moulin Cavier. It’s got large family rooms, an outdoor pool and a play area. What we like most is that it’s very close to Terra Botanica Park, 5 minutes by car. It’s so uncommercial and typically French! Definitely worth at least a two-night stay.

I know this specifically because we often return home right at the end of the holidays, to take advantage of the cheaper ferry prices. It's always spun me out to see how emptied out our favourite campsite in Brittany gets. They lay on lovely activities like bat walks and raft races, and suddenly it all stops about the third week in August! I recall being on a beach on the Atlantic Coast in about the third week of August last year and there was an announcement over the loudspeakers that this was the lifeguards' last day of the season and everybody gave them a round of applause!

Places we have enjoyed with DCs in France:

Carnac in Brittany: standing stones, you can't get close to a lot of them but there was a footpath through some woods which took you directly past a few stones. It was actually quite magical.

Carnac plage is an old school seaside town with ice cream shops and cafes and restaurants where you can eat your fill of breton pancakes.

Carcassonne: the city. Lots to explore and lots of knights on horseback performing various deeds of derring do.

Orange, Arles, St Remy de Provence. Soak up Roman France.

Castles everywhere. Not chateau but proper medieval castles. After much repeated exposure my DCs now have a healthy regard for them. Anything newer than 15th century is viewed as a bit flighty.

Many historic towns have tourist trains. We loved these with small children.

Thank you @MaximusPaddimous @crackofdoom @Forgottenmyphone @GnomeDePlume @JellyAnd for your sharing your experiences. I’m now reconsidering the trip, as many have mentioned it will be extremely hot. My wife and I are accustomed to temperatures in the 40s with humidity, but we don’t want to risk it with a newborn. Are there any other recommendations along the Mediterranean? I’m open to flying to a destination and renting a car there instead of driving from London. I’m looking for places that are warm enough for beaches but not interested in cities.

Northern Spain is often cooler and greener (appreciate that that's not the Mediterranean though). We drove there through France last year, stopping in the Spanish Pyrenees for a while. Absolutely stunning, but our holiday did involve a fair amount of hiking.

But I imagine there's a possibility that anywhere around the Mediterranean could be scorchio in August. Don't discount lakes in the mountains!

I’ve had my fill of Spain and would like to explore other destinations. If I decide to visit the Alps, which route would you recommend? Also, are the lakes suitable for swimming, and would the water be cold?

Austria might be a little cooler with wonderful lakes set up for lots of activities. Zell Am See is a popular one but there are lots of others.