Message Forums

I would say your best option for a relaxing holiday abroad with some sun is definitely to take the van! When our 3 children were young we went to the Camping de l'Etang at Brissac-Quincé, just south of Angers in the Loire valley, for several years (reviewed on here).We all loved it and the weather was great - occasional rain but mostly sun. It's just a short drive off the dual carriageway through the town/village outskirts with narrowish roads but no problem and the pitches are huge with decent access roads. Not sure how much the fees are now though - it never was the cheapest of sites, but we got the best deal booking ferry + site through the Camping and Caravanning Club.

if you are going abroad for the first time  are you happy to travel hundreds of miles or just a couple hundred or so?    are you happy to do a long day's drive or would you feel better doing just  5 or so hours?    anwers to these questions will determine how far south/west you can get in a reasonable amount of time.    lots of pwople say just drive and get there , meaning a long haul for some and fear and trepidation for others.  You need to be comfortable with what you are going to do   and remember you will have to repeat it to get back home again!!       

so check your miles and times first - use google maps it's easy to use   then decide and go for it    remember it is your choice and not just what others tell you

if you overdo it the first time   you will not want to repeat the 'fun' the next time and you future hols may suffer because you bit off more than you could chew

Vendee from me too.  Not too far to drive, better weather than the north coast and really nice beaches.  This area is geared up for tourists on holiday, but in french style not British, so think long clean beaches, proms with plenty of places to eat at all budgets and plenty of day trips out too if wanted.  The zoos tend to be a lot better than the English ones and are usually cheaper too and there are plenty of small water parks.  You don't get the scenary of other areas but it is really family friendly, which is what you want with little ones.  

Depending on the age of your children, you may want to pay slightly more for a bigger campsite as that could very well lead to you spending less on off campsite entertainments, plus once they make friends that is all they ever really want!

If children are younger than the smaller campsites work out just as well. 

There are many campsites in this area so think about the things you really must have, eg walk to beach, pool etc ? and the things you can live without and go from there.

It can help to have a look through the eurocamp/key camp brochures jsut to get an idea too