Germany is well worth a try for a year. Certainly different to France. We also found English spoken less in Germany than you would find in France, but that may have just been because there were not that many from the UK in the area.
I would also agree with the Moselle recommendation - less than 5 hours from Calais and a very nice region. I can recommend Landal Warsberg in Saarbug, and it ticks a lot of your boxes. Good indoor pool area on site and a huge outdoor public pool in the town. There is a toboggan run on the site and a cable car takes you into the town. The site is situated at the top of vineyard slopes for great views, and there is some great walking on paths on these slopes as well. Also within walking distance is a small bird park. Convenient to Trier and Merzig (both 30 mins), Luxembourg City and Bernkastel-Kues (both 1 hour).
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
Camping Landal Warsberg is frequently recommended, but my choice is Camping Waldfrieden on the other side of town. This is quite an informal site with very friendly and helpful owners. It's a bit of a walk into town, but the shortest route takes you past a more convenient site, Camping Leukbachtal. This site has recently had a section levelled for motorhomes. Both sites are convenient for the new shopping centre with large REWE and Aldi supermarkets.
------------- Two drifters off to see the world.
I'm tired of reality, so I'm off to look for a good fantasy.
Quote: Originally posted by Capt Lightning on 29/11/2016
We're packing our bags, and in a few days we're off to Germany to see the Christmas markets. We're having a two centre break in Koblenz and Mainz, so we'll be visiting both the Mosel and Rhine towns. I'll let you know how it went in a couple of weeks time.
In my working life I've been luck enough to live/work in a number of countries. The first place was in Mainz, and I've always enjoyed returning to it. This gave us the ability to explore the Rhine and Mosel areas, and I agree that Bernkastel-Kues is well worth a visit (although the campsite has been prone to flooding)
One place I've never visited is Bitburg, otherwise I can 'second' all of DiPhil's comments. One notable omission from the food list is pork. The Germans seem to love pork, and my treat when I visit is 'Schweinhaxe' with Sauerkraut.
I'll also re-iterate my liking of the Saar area, from Saarburg (beautiful small town) to Saarlouis.
Hi Did not quote Pork as an earlier poster said there was nothing but Pork in Germany which I was saying was not true. We love the Pork and Veal Dishes.
Quote: Originally posted by Benski on 30/11/2016
Thanks for all the posts - all food for thought! I am now sold on Germany and am ready to dip a toe into the water!
It will be currywursts, beer and frites instead of moules, vino and frites for us next year!
I am sure you will love it. Germany is a beautiful friendly and clean country.
Any more help please ask I am always about.
I'm going to take a closer look at all the suggested campsites and choose the one that ticks the most boxes. We need good pool, places to visit and scenery.