ANYONE BEEN CAMPING IN FRANCE ?

A group of us are thinking of camping next year in France, Could anyone recommend a site please ? Also Would it be better to go over by ferry boat or take the channel rail ?

I go most years and have done since I was young. Are you thinking of taking your own equipment or hiring a tent or caravan? Wth regards the site it depends what's important to you on your holiday.....quiet, plenty for kids to do etc.

Area wise Brittany is nice but you cant guarantee the weather as opposed to driving the extra couple of hours to the Vendee area where, whilst not guaranteed, the weather is far more likely to be what you are looking for. I came back the end of Jly from a 10 day trip and it was between 26 and 32* everyday

Went down to the South of France many years ago, 10 of us drove down in a hired safari landrover, stayed in a place called St. Laurent Du Var in a campsite right opposite the beach (don't know if it's still there) but when we were there it had a cracking bar on site, we took our own tents, not far from nice, a ten minute drive along the coast from there took us over the border into Spain, all the shops and bars had prices marked up in Pesetas and Francs. On our way back we stayed in a campsite in Switzerland cracking site in Lake Lucerne, really great holiday, hope this helps

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Eu ... u_Var.html

France is too posh for camping. Dont tell people in Paris you have been holidaying in a tent or they'll get very snooty.

I don't think this is the site but there are a few down there

http://www.franceloc.co.uk/campsite-fra ... wgodJkEAtA

Yes we will be taking our own tents ,so its just a nice place were looking for and of course the Sun . Has to be good for kids .

Can recommend the following from personal experience, both are excellent especially with kids although not that far South so weather could be iffy.

Both easy reach from Cherbourg via Ferry from Poole, around 1 hour for the former and 3 hours for the latter but better weather and beaches nearby

http://www.camping-castels.co.uk/?id=25 ... tAod034ATw

http://www.campingquinquis.com/en

Could you also let me know what the prices are like per Night please ,as I have to tell the others in the group cheers Guys

I'm at a French site at the moment, Camping Peyrelade a few hours drive from Toulouse in the Gorges du Tarn. Very child friendly, not many Brits, mainly french & Dutch. They have pre erected tents, or pitches for your own. Also mobile homes. it was arranged via a French company called Flower Holidays. Very peaceful.

Yes they all speak a funny language. Avoid.

I've used Yelloh a couple of times. Excellent value great child friendly sites all over France.
http://www.yellohvillage.co.uk

Recommended. There are different options, take your own tent or use one one site or even chalets.

Just got back from a Yelloh village site in La palmyre, spent 14 nights there and had a great time. Paid about £680 for the pitch with electric hook up for 2 adults and 1 child. My brother paid about £850 with 3 children. Site had direct access to the beach and the kids made loads of friends which left us plenty of time to enjoy the numerous amounts of local wine. Also been to the vendee which is very similar. If you can do without the beach the Dordogne is stunning and very hot with plenty to do, especially if you enjoy canoeing etc

Just got back from a Yelloh village site in La palmyre, spent 14 nights there and had a great time. Paid about £680 for the pitch with electric hook up for 2 adults and 1 child. My brother paid about £850 with 3 children. Site had direct access to the beach and the kids made loads of friends which left us plenty of time to enjoy the numerous amounts of local wine. Also been to the vendee which is very similar. If you can do without the beach the Dordogne is stunning and very hot with plenty to do, especially if you enjoy canoeing etc

Been going to France for the last 10 years. Loads of good sites but I would suggest going a bit further south to say the Vendee for a better chance of good weather. Having said that I have just returned from Normandy and Brittany and we had 2 weeks sunshine. I always use this website ( http://www.camping-castels.co.uk/campin ... ergements1 ) to search out sites as they always have plenty of reviews. As to whether to use the ferries or Channel tunnel it really depends on where you are travelling. Many of the motorways in France have tolls as well. If you are going to the Vendee or further south I would use one of the longer sailings from the south coast the cheapest of which is Newhaven Dieppe. If you are happy to stay in the north this is an excellent site for kids and only 30 miles from St Malo ferry port
http://www.camping-castels.co.uk/campin ... ergements1

Just got back from a Gite on the Normandy/ Brittany border. The weather was excellent, but is basically like Cornwall, so although you should be lucky this time of year. Gites can work out quite good value but tend to be in quiet out of the way places so you would probably need a car.

When (much) younger, I backpacked around France with a mixture of buses and trains. Good way to see the country, as virtually every town has a municipal camp site.

Eating out is quite expensive, by the way, but supermarket prices are similar to here, with various alcohol sources a little cheaper. The French have a low tolerance to public drunkeness so watch yourselves!

Thank you so much guys for all your helpful Info really do appreciate all your help

I've used Yelloh a couple of times. Excellent value great child friendly sites all over France.
http://www.yellohvillage.co.uk

Recommended. There are different options, take your own tent or use one one site or even chalets.

I'll vouch for the Yelloh sites too. I've stayed in a couple with the family and they've been great.

Usually have decent pools, sports facilities and a small bar but not too big and noisy.

The thing about France is that there are 100's of great places. I usually head down the Atlantic Coast. Basically from La Rochelle down to Biarritz there are loads of great sites. Lots of the surfing resorts like lacanau, carcan, hossegor, carbreton all the way down to Spain. You will find the municipal or state run ones are also very good, 10 times better than any here, all in nice pine forest near the beach, cycle paths and villages etc...can't go wrong.

Just noticed I posted the wrong link for campsite searches and reviews. It is http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/sites/count ... ion=France