Message Forums

We just cant decide where to go....vendee, ardeche,dordogne? We are on a tight budget and so looking for good special offers which vacansoleil are doing well at the moment. We have 3 children aged 3 and two 9 year olds. Been to the vendee last year and loved it but cant decide if we ought to go somewhere different. just seen a campsite called le pommier in the ardeche area and it looks amazing, very large but amazing with a good special offer. We are looking at 2 or 3 weeks in august. Any help or advice would be welcomed.

Alan is right about the cost of the tolls, but it is possible to do most journeys without paying much out in tolls.  We've been down to the Ardeche several times almost toll-free.  We cross-country from St Quentin (we tend to pay some tolls to get there because the very northernmost section is a bit of a nightmare!) down to Troyes, then Dijon where we have our first overnight stop.  From there it's possible to do the Ardeche in another day, but we tend to stay overnight elsewhere.  Again we stick to toll-free roads, and perhaps stay somewhere around Tournon so that we can be on-site at a good time the next day.  We perhaps pay a couple of Euros in toll to get on the autoroute north of Lyon, go through Lyon that way, and then come off again at Vienne and cross the river to the N road on the west bank of the Rhone.

That way we can also save money on the costs of fuel by buying at a supermarket instead of at more expensive service stations on the autoroute. 

The Ardeche is a lovely area with lots to do - and you're still near enough to visit a Mediterranean beach if you wish.  Just a perhaps, that your children are still quite small to enjoy a lot of what it has to offer.   Le Pommier is easy to find, on the N102 from Le Teil (near to Montelimar).  It looks to have a lovely pool complex which can be seen from the road as you pass, and some exciting things going on for children.

You can find lots of 'free' things to do in/around the Ardeche, mostly involving messing around in the river (which is why it's perhaps better for older children).  We used to spend many an hour with those cheap polystyrene bodyboards, floating down river, climbing out and paddling back up again.  Vogue would be the nearest place to access the river Ardeche, but there is (or was) free parking there and a large pebble and sand 'beach' which is quite popular, but you're near enough to get there early.  The Pont d'Arc is a must, too, again with free parking and beaches to the north and south, then a bit further away the Pont du Gard which is a must see, even though you do have to pay for parking.  You're near enough to drive to Nimes, and see the Roman Amphitheatre, and other roman remains.  Aubenas has a great (local) market and there are many many other things to do and see which won't break the budget.

It's a very different area to the Vendee, but when my sons were small was our favourite area in France.