Campsites in Europe

scottishf

We are looking to go on holiday to europe for 7-10 days. We have 2 kids aged 12 and two 16 and 2 adults.

Looking for somewhere that wont be too much driving from a ferry port, as I have never driven abroad before, but also needs to be cheap and lots to do.

Any suggestions ?

greenface

We have only ever stayed and driven in France and its not too difficult (empty roads are harder than following traffic IMO ha . Look at ports further down the coast like st Malo or Santander even you seem to get more/better camping sites (are you taking your own tent etc or looking for a Euro-camp style all set up on arrival?) We have stayed in a eurocamp called Ty Nadan in Brittany (Quimper) great site lots to do and the kids will love it . Full of activities and a decent pool club/disco too

Miles16v

You are probably best working out the best / easiest channel crossing and seeing where you can go from there. Dover crossings are generally cheaper, but then you cant head south and be by the sea!

I went over from Plymouth to Roscoff in a group of 4 on motorbikes with camping stuff and had a great time. You can really notice the difference in the weather as you get further south. We got as far as we could get in France and then day tripped a couple of days into Spain - you wont want to get that far but I'd recommend considering how far south you think you can get as there is nothing worse than camping in the rain (also depends on when you are planning to go).

We stayed at 5 different campsites, non planned or booked, all very different but generally basic (and cheap - <5e a night each typically), but very pleasant and clean. Depends if you want entertainment etc on site.

I wouldn't worry too much about driving abroad, once you get on a motorway its easy. A sat nav helps, sure you could borrow one with european maps if you've not got one.

Fuel was broadly the same cost in France as in the UK.

scottishf

Thanks for the comments :-)

rjr1

http://www.la-croix-du-vieux-pont.com/uk/index.html - this is a very good campsite if you want a short trip from Calais. When we stayed there the campsite ran coach trips into Paris and Eurodisney which saved you the hassle and stress of parking.

http://www.french-freedom.co.uk/mobile-homes-campsites-france/campsites-vendee-france/campsite-acapulco - If you want a beach holiday this is a good campsite. St Malo is probably your best crossing. Bit further than Brittany but a far better chance of getting good weather.

scrabbles_2

I second the recommendation for Croix de Vieux Pont (Berny Riviere is its name on Eurocamps and the like). It's only a few hours drive, almost all of it autoroute. The coach trips are great and there is plenty for everyone to do on site. You can take your own tent or get a package for a tent / static with any of the usual suspects.

sunshinetours

You really need to be looking at Loire / Vendee /Charente regions to more guarantee some weather in summer months. As above driving is easy in France and if you factor in cost of tolls you can get long distances in no time (81mph speed limit most autoroutes)

If budget permits then maybe a crossing to St Malo or somehwere along that coast and then in only 4 hours or so you can be down by La Rochelle on that coast which has nearly as many sunshine hours pa as St Tropez. We drove it a couple of time from Eurotunnel and even that is an easy drive and around 8/9 hours or so

citykid5

we once stayed at a municipal campsite just outside le touchet, about 20miles from calais.it was in july and was very close to a small local airport.on the secound day of our stay there was a airshow,it was brill sitting outside oyr tent in the hot july sun and being dive bombed by mirage jets.the site was about £10 per night,and was nice and clean and had everything we needed.a few days later we drove anothe 30 or so miles and stopped in concilles.same again municiple site,had a great time,when we or the kids got bored ,moved on a bit further and meet new people

troubrs

We have been to Ty Nadan, Perros Guirec & Domaine Des Ormes in Brittany. Domaine Des Ormes is the biggest & the nearest of the 3 with loads to do, although we preferred Perros Guirec. All have fantastic pools for kids & DDO has loads of activities from horse riding to rock climbing, a circus, shows & a wave pool etc. It's about 350 miles fromcalais.Very close to St Malo, (about 40 minutes) but we prefer to do the tunnel (quicker & we use Tesco points) & drive in France rather than battle the M25 to get to the ports for St Malo. We actually prefer driving in France than in the UK, it's so easy on the motorways, there are tolls but they're not too bad, & the roads are lovely & quiet. All are worth travelling a little bit further for we think ( we take the tunnel at about 6am & can arrive at Domaine Des ormes by 3pm after lots of stops).

DCFC79

Have a look on uk campsite, they have a french secton too despite the name of the site.

DCFC79

sunshinetours wrote: »

If budget permits then maybe a crossing to St Malo or somehwere along that coast and then in only 4 hours or so you can be down by La Rochelle on that coast which has nearly as many sunshine hours pa as St Tropez. We drove it a couple of time from Eurotunnel and even that is an easy drive and around 8/9 hours or so

[STRIKE]You drove frm the tunnel to La Rochelle, i just remeber it taking us longer to get to Bergerac which isn't as far as La Rochelle.[/STRIKE]