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I love the Ardeche, but it's definitely not a cycling area except for those lycra clad, head down, serious cyclists!  Go, but don't expect to be able to cycle very far without your battery bike!

I've recommended Les Ranchisses (Camping Cheque site) on another post here, but there are lots of other lovely sites in the Ardeche area.  Les Ranchisses is 'uphill all the way from the Ardeche' - not a steep, but a long upward winding valley!   But having got there the restaurant is lovely, the local village has a great market, and it's near enough all the major attractions of the Ardeche Gorges, the Beaume and the Chassezac.  The Camping Cheque site at Privas is similarly surrounded by hills, as are most of the other sites.  Perhaps the exception is Indigo Moulin (Camping Cheques again) - which is on the Rhone Valley side of the Ardeche, and perhaps a bit flatter countryside. 

Agree with Val, Rhone Valley end is much quiter but just as nice. The Indigo Moulin is a fine little site in a lively little village, St.Martin. See reviews. We had a fantastic 10 days in the area last August.

Up the valley Vallon Pont D'Arc is a bit of a honeypot in high season but well worth a visit. The roads and river can be hell on earth in July and August. You'll be ok in May/June though.

Have fun

Steve

Having done many years down on the Cote d Azur, since 1962!, we decided it was time for a change, so back in 2009, we went to the Southern Ardeche for the first time, we use a tent, so go July, to get the best of the weather, and found the Ardeche to be perfect for us.

Main benifits for us was, hardly any Brits, and much cheaper than the Cote d Azur for day to day living, not to mention saving a good chunk on the Autoroutes, as that last 200 miles down to the Med past Montelimar, can be pricy, let alone saving some 400 miles on the overall total travelling for the holiday.

We liked it so much, we returned to the same campsite for 2010, missed going this year due to family stuff, but we are booked on the same campsite and pitch, for 2012, this time for 16 nights.

We did see a good number of cylists, but these were mostly tourers, and hard core roadies!.

My advice is ditch the bikes, and try a canoe!.

Hi sjr66.

             As for the Ardeche, we have only pitched at Domaine de Gil, for a fortnight in July, 2009 and 2010.

But last year we did visit 6 other campsites in the area, as listed below.

Le Grillou at Rosieres

Le Ch'ti at Planzolles (English owners)

Les Platanes near Rosieres

La Clapas at Salavas

La Goule near Vagnas

Le Saint Michael at Goudargues

And to be fair all were fine, and I would not hessitate in camping at any of them, fact is they were all 3 Star, but did not quite tick all our box's like what Domaine de Gil does, although all were slightly less costly than Domaine de Gil which is a 4 Star campsite, so I gues that extra Star does come at a cost.

As for the Cote d Azur, well we have pitched at more campsites in that area, than I care to remember, although Camping de La Brague at Biot, near Antibes, does hold many special memories for me, from my teenage years, and I made many returns therafter.

A cheap as chips campsite, yards from the pebble beach, even my Son now 26, went there back in May 2008, shortly after he came out of the Army, he went via Easyjet from Liverpool , and a 1Euro bus ride from Nice Airport to the campsite gates, with his tent and kit, in his back pack, he had a terrific 10 days of R&R.