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Hi im Pam and have left a few messages on other sites about our trip in June.  were going to a campsite in The Vendee called bois de masson.  were hiring a tent for the week and taking our twins who will be 5 months old at the time...as were a bit strapped for cash now the boys are here we need a cheap holiday... but is it a mistake thinking we can take them away so soon???

i have a few questions.

*our car is big enough for al our stuff and theirs but i have been thinking..shoud i change their carseats? at the minute theyre in carrirers. should i get the fixed in ones that can go rear facing....just worried about having them in the small ones all that time in car and their backs?

*we have a buggy which is great to fold small but can anyone reccomend a sun shade that will totally cover them both..rather than a parasol or something because ive tried those and theyre not that sucessful?

*do the fridges that you plug into your car eat up all your battery coz i think i need one for their milk and stuff but dont want to get stranede in france with a flet battery lol!!

*would it be safe to put an insect net over the top of their travel cot when theyre sleeping??

im sorry i waffle but just want to make sure that its all ok!

If I remember correctly transfering them to rear/forward facing seats was more to do with weight and their ability to hold their heads us well.

I used to use a sun canopie they are more bulky but do fold flat for travel.

I used a insect net all the time over the pram or cot even in this country.

Some thing to look out for is a surf suit I had one for my youngest and it was brilliant for helping keep him safe from the sun when on the beach or swimming pool a lot better than trunks.

Good luck

If you are renting a ready erected tent then it should come with a fridge so if you are just talking about using a coolbox that plugs into your cigarette lighter for the journey only then this wont flatten the battery. The battery is being recharged as you are on the move. It will flatten it if you leave it plugged in without moving so I wouldnt recommend it as your main source of keeping things cool overnight or on the site for a week. It will be fine for the journey there and back though.

Carol

Just a few comments about taking babies to France...

1) French nappy sizes come up smaller in France, even for brands like Huggies and Pampers. French babies must be smaller! But you can get them in any supermarket.

2) French baby food in jars and packets is quite amazingly better than ours.

3) If buying bottled water to use for feeds, look for an indication on the bottle that it`s a low mineral salt variety. Many bottled mineral waters contain high levels of salts that are bad for babies. I forget the exact spelling and words, (my written French is dire, sorry) but it usually says something like "pour nurriture au enfant" or has a small baby logo on the label. You still need to boil it, of course.

4) I can`t recall exactly what brands of baby milk are availible in France, but SMA rings a bell.

My middle daughter was 8 months old when she first went Eurocamping in France. (Bois de Masson too) We didn't have a car 'fridge (prob not invented then anyway!) but you could get SMA in individual cartons so that's what she had for milk.  And we discovered the joys of French babyfood jars, like Val said. At the campsite we hired a playpen for her as she was a very fast crawler and climber.

Our youngest was 3 months old when she first went, she was breastfed but any water she had I just boiled like I would at home. Luckily she slept in the car and only woke up for a feed when we stopped.

Apart from the distance it isn't really any different camping in France from the UK.  Except camping with babies in France makes you lots of friends and willing arms to help wherever you go. French people, in our experience, just love babies and children.   I have lovely memories of shopping in the market in St Jean Du Monts and our 8mth old and her 5yr old sister being made much of at all the stalls and given little gifts of fruit etc. 

You will have a great time, no different taking them away to France than to Devon or Cornwall, except for the sunshine.

Your biggest expense will be the 2 passports. Don't leave it too late to apply, they are so fussy now with photos etc. Still, perhaps you can get away with one photo for both?