France quiet coastal site NO STATIC CARAVANS

dizzylizzy222
dizzylizzy222 Forum Participant Posts: 3

Hi everyone, we are new Motorhomers, having had three trips away this year so far in the UK, I am now getting a bit braver and planning a trip to France in mid September.

I am trying to find a smallish site , by the coast within a max 5 hour drive south of Roscoff..... but everything I have come across in the Caravan Club brochure, when checking reviews on Trip Advisor, they all seem to have static caravans as well .... not what I am seeking!!.......I can't bear rigid lines of static vans......(.tents/caravans /motorhomes ...not a problem!!)

Would need electric hookup. plus shower block and preferably Internet, as we rely on an Ipad for some evening entertainment as no TV yet!

Also would I need to book , or would I be likely to find something  at that time of year (10th to 17th Sept) if we we just turned up on spec??

If anyone has any helpful suggestions it would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Comments

  • eurortraveller
    eurortraveller Club Member Posts: 6,830 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2017 #2

    Perhaps somewhere like Camping Keraluic at Pont l'Abbe, about two hours from Roscoff, open until 15 October, English spoken because the owners are Dutch, 25 pitches, photos on the website......but is 3 miles from the sea too far?  

    But there are loads of others in other places  - they just aren't in the Club's glossy book-in-advance brochure. In mid September you can tour freely at will.

  • ValDa
    ValDa Forum Participant Posts: 3,004
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    edited May 2017 #3

    There are many hundreds of sites around the coasts of France.  Most of them will have statics, but soome won't, but to be perfectly honest you may not find them as offensive as you think.  Because sites in France tend to be more divided up, touring plots are often in a different area to statics they are often not as obvious as there are in this country.  I wouldn't make up my mind until I had seen what else a site had to offer.  If you absolutely don't want statics, then you could do what other motorhomers do and use an Airea - but some people don't like rows and rows of motorhomes and prefer campsites even with the odd static caravan, chalet, or other accommodation scattered about.

    It might be worth while looking at the ACSI Card website - just because it's an easy way to look at a lot of different campsites on one website.  You can use the search by map or the Advanced Search to look for sites which meet your criteria, then have a look at the details of each site, then perhaps look at the site's own website to see if they offer statics if it's not already obvious.

    You won't need to book - in September you may well find yourselves with few neighbours, and possibly even being the only people on site!    The beauty of this is that you don't even need to decide in advance - just pick an area you fancy, and try the first site in that area which fits your bill, if you don't like it move on elsewhere.

    We have arrived at a site we thought we would love, only to find it not to our taste at all, and we simply carried on driving a bit further and found a site we've been back to many times since.

  • eurortraveller
    eurortraveller Club Member Posts: 6,830 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2017 #4

    And there are the municipal sites too - and they are not in the Club's glossy brochure nor on the ACSI list.

    One campsite in the dunes right on the beach is the municipal site at Locmariaquer - Camping la Falaise -  which is just over 3 hours from Roscoff. It''s big, with 300 pitches and full of families in July, but by September there will be only  a few visitors left. Unusually that site is open till mid October, although many municipal sites close a month earlier than that. 

    I like Locmariaquer village, and every time I go to the cafe on the quay the young lady brings me a bottle of local cider to drink from a little pottery bowl, a kilo of mussels, and more chips than I can eat. 

  • ValDa
    ValDa Forum Participant Posts: 3,004
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    edited May 2017 #5

    Eurotraveller has beaten me to it.  I was just browsing the Camping Municipals website to see if there was anything that seemed to fit your requirements.  Take a look at the website and see what you can find.  You can zoom right in on the sites, with a satellite view, so you can see exactly where the site is situated.

    Here is the site Eurotraveller refers to - La Falaise

  • eurortraveller
    eurortraveller Club Member Posts: 6,830 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2017 #6

    Another municipal site which is waterside, right on the harbour by the boats (but it's river estuary rather than open sea) is Camping Le Patis at La Roche Bernard.

    Motorhome owners like it because there is a choice of a separate  Motorhome parking area by the entrance or a full sized hedged pitch, and it's within walking distance of shops,cafes and bars without taking a vehicle off site. It's under 4 hours from Roscoff and once again open until mid October. And if John, the Irish manager is still there there's no language problem. 

    And if you get as far as that you might as well continue the tour and  go on another hour to the smart, up to date, city site at Nantes - with the modern tramway at the gate to go into town. Try lunch at La Cigale restaurant. 

  • hitchglitch
    hitchglitch Forum Participant Posts: 3,007
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    edited May 2017 #7

    Ile de Re (near La Rochelle) is a nice island and popular with several on this forum. Just over five hours and many small sites to choose from. We had a fabulous week in September once at a small site at Sainte  Marie de Re but you need to have the Club's European touring book and check closing dates.

  • hitchglitch
    hitchglitch Forum Participant Posts: 3,007
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    edited May 2017 #8

    I meant "the Clubs Touring France" book.

  • VolvoV70
    VolvoV70 Forum Participant Posts: 78
    edited May 2017 #9

    You might like to think about Camping L'Ocean at Chatelaillion Plage on the west coast just a little south of La Rochelle and about 5 hours from Roscoff. There are no statics, no swimming pool but there is a large swimming lake which is very pleasant. The site closes this year on 23 September and in our experience will be very quiet in that month. It is an ACSI site (19 euros)

    The town is a very attractive low-key seaside resort and there is a very large Carrefour supermarket just to the north at Angoulins - for the all-important wine supplies!! La Rochelle, Ile de Re, Ile d'Oleron, Fouras, Rochefort and many others are nearby for an interesting day trip.

    However, as a motorhomer you may not want to travel far on days out but the town is very pleasant for a wander and the beach is easily in walking distant. If you take bikes, there is a cycle track all the way to La Rochelle

  • allanandjean
    allanandjean Club Member Posts: 2,401 ✭✭✭✭
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    edited May 2017 #10

    Sticking with the theme- how about Camping Municipal du Fond de la Baie at Locquirec which is right on the beach, only 30 miles from Roscoff and app 15-20 mins walk into the village.

    In regard to the 'rigid lines' that you mention most sites are a little bit more imaginative with the layouts and tend to make far greater use of trees and shrubs which makes even sites with lots of statics seem smaller and more natural.

  • dizzylizzy222
    dizzylizzy222 Forum Participant Posts: 3
    edited May 2017 #11

    HI , as this was my first ever post, I wasn't sure quite what to expect!!

    I must say that I have been pleasantly surprised by the prompt responses 😊  I will be taking a look at several of the sites mentioned as they sound like what we are looking for.

    Thanks to all who responded 

  • Pippah45
    Pippah45 Forum Participant Posts: 2,452
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    edited May 2017 #12

    As has been said you won't find statics as all over the uk coastline.  Many of them seem to be second homes much loved and lived in particularly at weekends but during the week sites are much quieter.  Having said that I may look at some of the suggestions myself.  smile