France Ferry & Campsite info (use Search function) mod warning post 1

webpal

Latest groupschemes code is out for Eurocamp: 18RISC01

24 Mar - 14 Mar | 10% for 3-10 nights | 15% for 11-21 nights

15 Apr - 30 Jun | 25% for 3-10 nights | 30% for 11-21 nights

01 Jul - 20 Jul | 20% for 3-10 nights | 25% for 11-21 nights

21 Jul - 02 Sep | 5% for 3-10 nights | 10% for 11-21 nights

03 Sep onwards | 25% for 3-10 nights | 30% for 11-21 nights

average_runner

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Very well remembered AR and I can get away with it for a once a year 3 or possibly even a 4 week holiday but those damn clients need face to face time on a regular basis so that precludes longer stints away from the office base I'm afraid.

Would love to know what sort of work or skill set would enable longer term work on the road where you don't ever need to get suited and booted and sit in front of clients. I imagine some sort of specialist IT support, medical translation or the kind of project type work you can pick up from https://www.upwork.com on the road as long as you have some saleable skills, a good laptop and internet access.

Ah to dream of sitting outside a campervan on the Iberia penninsula looking out over the Atlantic whilst completing a project and issuing an invoice that would keep the bills paid for another month meandering through Europe

I work in IT as developer, but never be allowed to be 8 weeks out of the office!!!

Tomagotchi

Hi. Has anyone been to either and is able to recommend one over the other?? Kids ages range from 3 to 8 .... travelling July.... Thanks in advance....

ShamoBuc

Been on Clarys plage several times, great site, would highly recommend.

NIMAN

How are you all able to book campsites when flights have even been released yet?

Just wondering?

After our 1st campsite this summer past, we are going to do it again next year, but we can't avail of these early bird deals until we know what flights we'll be on.

Quazzie

NIMAN wrote: »

How are you all able to book campsites when flights have even been released yet?

Just wondering?

After our 1st campsite this summer past, we are going to do it again next year, but we can't avail of these early bird deals until we know what flights we'll be on.

I booked the campsite on vacansoleil, for dates I thought would work. They allow to make changes to your booking including location and dates without charge up until April I think, so if we couldn't get flights to suit then we can change it later. Plus what we did was find out what days the airlines fly to where we are going (i.e Dublin-Barcelona is late on a Friday) and then schedule around that. We know we'll get in late Friday night so we booked the campsite on Saturday and booked a hotel in Barcelona on the Friday night. It's free cancellation on the hotel so if flights are different we'll work around it accordingly.

NIMAN

Thanks, certainly info worth bearing in mind.

Anatom

NIMAN wrote: »

Thanks, certainly info worth bearing in mind.

If you plan on hiring a car when you get there, then you should really book the campsite now - the savings are really important. The deals will almost certainly not still be there (or the place could be booked up!) if you wait until the flights are announced in the New Year.

With a car under you, and of course depending on where you're going, you really should be able to find flights to get you within a couple of hours' drive of wherever the 'site is.

GeneralSherman

I do the same as Quazzie .. make a best guess of dates that flights are on then put down a small deposit with the camping company and hope for the best.

ifElseThen

Tomagotchi wrote: »

Hi. Has anyone been to either and is able to recommend one over the other?? Kids ages range from 3 to 8 .... travelling July.... Thanks in advance....

Haven't been to La Garangeoire but Le Clarys Plage is an excellent site. The best out of the four I've been on with the smallies, we have children similar in age to yours. The pool complex is excellent in Le Clarys and a short hop to the beach if you fancy that. Super U beside the site and a little cluster of shops and restaurants right beside it.

Tomagotchi

ifElseThen wrote: »

Haven't been to La Garangeoire but Le Clarys Plage is an excellent site. The best out of the four I've been on with the smallies, we have children similar in age to yours. The pool complex is excellent in Le Clarys and a short hop to the beach if you fancy that. Super U beside the site and a little cluster of shops and restaurants right beside it.

Thank you! Did your children use the kids clubs?

Tomagotchi

ShamoBuc wrote: »

Been on Clarys plage several times, great site, would highly recommend.

Thank you! Did your kids use the kids clubs ?

Tomagotchi

I'm looking at Ferrys with irish ferries!

alowe

Tomagotchi wrote: »

Hi. Has anyone been to either and is able to recommend one over the other?? Kids ages range from 3 to 8 .... travelling July.... Thanks in advance....

We're heading back to La Garangeoire for the 3rd time next year. We head in early June though. All the campsites facilities are open, and I know of a friend who went to sequoia park for a week in June before heading back to La Garangeoire, and while he said he couldn't fault the site, it was very much geared to be opened in July for people. I met another couple this year who were there the previous year, booked a site in brittany this year and moved to la garangeoire after 3 days as they thought it was just much better than where they were.

I think the staff help make the site. They are so friendly, and there's also a few irish students who work in the kids club and bar. The pools are always heated, although I would said they're basic enough with just 3 slides - but enough to keep ours entertained. They have a lagoon with sand and the water only goes to your thighs, so not worried about the kids in it. The bar area is very safe too, in that its a large garden with bouncy castle, but the kids can't run out without having to pass through the bar, so once you sit near the bar, you can see them. My kids are 9,7,4 and the safety of the campsite is of huge importance to me - and on this campsite, I just feel like its really safe. (now its not that other sites aren't, this one just feels really, really safe.)

mikesavo2003

Hi

Looking of recommendations for Holidays for August 2018. Looking at campsite or similar with Mobile Home / Bungalow for 2 x Adults and 2 x Kids (11 and 4).
Dont drive on holidays so looking for all to be in close proximity to campsite. Looking for loads for kids to do i.e. :

Football Pitches
Playgrounds
Evening Entertainment
Pool with Slides etc

All recomendations greatly appreciated looking to spend approx €2500 incl flights for 12 nights ish.

Thanks

NIMAN

We just did Cypsela this summer, kids were 3,5,7.
Its in Costa Brava. Flew into Girona. Its about 30mins by taxi from airport.

It would fit your requirements.
Great pools, decent entertainment, hourly bus to local beach, football pitch.
Excellent supermarket on site with bakery.

We didn't hire a car.

Tomagotchi

Thanks Alowe!

ShamoBuc

Tomagotchi wrote: »

Thank you! Did your kids use the kids clubs ?

They did 2 of the years I was there, it was grand, nothing special but they enjoyed it.

mikerd4

Right it looks like France by ferry is on again for next year.

We had planned to stop in Rennes again for one night just to break the journey up on the way back. We really liked Rennes last year but out of interest does anyone have any other suggestions worth a stop off. Rennes is handy as its only 2 hrs from Roscoff and is a pretty decent spot aswell.

Open to suggestions for somewhere else to stay over. Its a family of 4 two kids (8/10), so a pool is always nice and something to see or do (hence why a city like Rennes is handy) and somewhere to eat etc

Claroc

Anyone been to Le Littoral campsite in Vendee? Thinking of going in early June with Yelloh!, would love some feedback from people who have stayed there before.
Thanks

josip

mikerd4 wrote: »

Right it looks like France by ferry is on again for next year.

We had planned to stop in Rennes again for one night just to break the journey up on the way back. We really liked Rennes last year but out of interest does anyone have any other suggestions worth a stop off. Rennes is handy as its only 2 hrs from Roscoff and is a pretty decent spot aswell.

Open to suggestions for somewhere else to stay over. Its a family of 4 two kids (8/10), so a pool is always nice and something to see or do (hence why a city like Rennes is handy) and somewhere to eat etc

We've stopped off in Nantes for Les Machines (free for outdoor Grand Elephant) and in St. Nazaire for the submarine the last 2 times we've driven.

mikerd4

St Nazaire looks interesting. We stayed in Nantes last year and didnt really like it, Les Machines was great though. It wasnt free though

micks_address

Hi folk's,
Looking to fly Ryanair to nante next July and hire a car. Is it cheaper to book car rental via Ryanair or book direct?
Thanks,
Mick

k123456

micks_address wrote: »

Hi folk's,
Looking to fly Ryanair to nante next July and hire a car. Is it cheaper to book car rental via Ryanair or book direct?
Thanks,
Mick

Quiet often it is cheaper with RY

josip

mikerd4 wrote: »

St Nazaire looks interesting. We stayed in Nantes last year and didnt really like it, Les Machines was great though. It wasnt free though

The part inside isn't free and the tours are in French. We thought it was ok.
But if you'd just like to break for an hour or two, you can walk around with the elephant and enjoy getting sprayed by him on a hot day for free.

mikerd4

The elephant was out of action for june when were there so we didnt get to see it in action. My kids got to operate the giant spider though which was really cool

Crank Stain

We went to Le Littoral in June/July last, early June might be quieter.

It’s a great site with great facilities, but it’s not our scene, we heard it was busy but didn’t really understand what busy meant.

There was a high proportion of Irish when we were there, who were in the bar most nights and ate in the on-site restaurant, so It depends on what you want from a campsite holiday really, we like to get up early and do our own thing and then relax on the deck when the kids go down at night, Le Littoral is more lie-ins and late nights with organised entertainment till late. There were kids roaming around the site at all hours too while their parents were at the bar.

Some of the Irish we met didn’t leave the site during their visit, except for tours organised by Le Littoral to local tourist sites, so if you don’t plan to leave the site while you are there, and like your entertainment laid on, then you will like it.

Don’t get me wrong it’s a great site, but we found we had to avoid the bar and on-site entertainment to enjoy the holiday. Every day would have been the same otherwise, kids club, pool, disco, show, bar, when removed from the cycle of on-site entertainment, our 2 kids much preferred the picnics, bike rides and day trips too.

kippy

Crank Stain wrote: »

We went to Le Littoral in June/July last, early June might be quieter.

It’s a great site with great facilities, but it’s not our scene, we heard it was busy but didn’t really understand what busy meant.

There was a high proportion of Irish when we were there, who were in the bar most nights and ate in the on-site restaurant, so It depends on what you want from a campsite holiday really, we like to get up early and do our own thing and then relax on the deck when the kids go down at night, Le Littoral is more lie-ins and late nights with organised entertainment till late. There were kids roaming around the site at all hours too while their parents were at the bar.

Some of the Irish we met didn’t leave the site during their visit, except for tours organised by Le Littoral to local tourist sites, so if you don’t plan to leave the site while you are there, and like your entertainment laid on, then you will like it.

Don’t get me wrong it’s a great site, but we found we had to avoid the bar and on-site entertainment to enjoy the holiday. Every day would have been the same otherwise, kids club, pool, disco, show, bar, when removed from the cycle of on-site entertainment, our 2 kids much preferred the picnics, bike rides and day trips too.

Surely this could describe the majority of popular sites over there?

54and56

kippy wrote: »

Surely this could describe the majority of popular sites over there?

Correct, IMHO anyway. You can dip in and out of the bar, restaurant and entertainment as much or as little as you like. There have been years where our kids didn't click much with other kids so we ended up doing a lot of off site stuff ourselves and other years where they really clicked with other kids onsite (both Irish/English and French/Dutch etc) and we ended up spending a lot more time onsite.

Each to their own I guess but if you want a holiday where you don't want to socialise with other holiday makers at a bar and want to avoid organised entertainment then the type of campsites most of us tend to frequent in France such as Le Bois Masson, Clarys Plage, Le Littoral, Bonne Anse Plage etc etc aren't the place to go.

We rented a gite one year but it wasn't for us as the kids didn't get to make friends or do group activities so we quickly reverted to campsites again.

kfc1

webpal wrote: »

Latest groupschemes code is out for Eurocamp: 18RISC01

Has anyone got this code to work for 2018 or know what campsites are exempt? Tried a couple but Eurocanp site wont accept disount code