England to South of France advice
Just wondering if anyone has any advice on travelling from the midlands to south of france in a vw transporter with no air con towing a twin axle bailey with 3 kids under 10 ie where to cross and how also best route and camp sites etc thanks in advance.
Steve
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Hi I'm sure you'll get plenty of suggestions but a bit more info on dates, where you fancy, beaches, scenery, inland, history, you get the picture 😉 will help.
Lots of experienced folks post on here about 'over there'. I think there are some threads but you need to know the title and the search facility on here isn't great 😢😢
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Depends how much time you have. The quickest route from Calais to the Med is to stick to the Motorway ( l'autoroute du Soleile) Remember you will be paying tolls but it's a quick straightforward journey. When we used the motorways from Calais to Argeles-sur-Mer we only needed one overnight stop.
If you have plenty of time for the journey there are many non motorway routes meandering through the rural countryside and little villages ( very pleasant) My preferred way to see France.
Enjoy your French holiday.
K
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It's not going to be a problem. We took 4 children before air con and motorways were invented.
But "best route" can mean quickest, shortest, prettiest or cheapest route, and it would help to know where in the south of France you are making for.
A tunnel crossing using a stack of Tesco vouchers will always be the cheapest way across the Channel
Have fun!
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I would flag up a warning based on the people you are travelling with. IMHO it is a very long way to go if you are only going to have a couple of weeks for your trip. How many miles per day are you thinking about? It is a trip of perhaps 1000 miles so at say 330 miles per day (which again, IMHO is quite hard going) you may need 2 stops on the way and if only overnighting, it could be wearing on everyone and not relaxing at all (unless you like that sort of thing?) Also within summer/school holidays you will need to make sure you have sites booked especially at your final destination?
For motorway tolls, a SANEF tag may be worth considering (deal via Club or otherwise)
Obviously your choice and with more details, further suggestions could be made (there may be other threads with similar requests)
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Hi
Do you want a beach holiday. If not would recommend Domaine de Massereau Sommières. We had a brilliant family holiday beautiful site. Access from campsite straight onto cycle path. You would reach it with one stopover south of Dijon. Pitches are huge. We had a pitch towards end of the site and had a 7.4m van + a 7m tent on the same plot overlooking cycle track. You won’t be disappointed. The staff are great.
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Assuming, as you have 3 children under 10, that you will be going in the school holidays I endorse Deleted User User's comments. Our experience is similar to his; 40 years ago we used to go to the south of France but always gave ourselves 3 weeks as this would give us 2 weeks there. It used to take us 2 and a bit days to get there from Calais. We would travel to Dover on day one stay near the port and get an early morning ferry - we now prefer to spend our first night in France rather than UK. It will be very very busy on the coast in the south of France in July and August (and also the shoulder months), so will the Vendee and Britanny but maybe less so. Why not - Day one to Portsmouth, afternoon ferry (?) to Caen and first night In France. Day 2 travel to destination which may take a night stop, a couple of weeks at destination, then return getting morning ferry from Caen. At all costs try to avoid travelling on Sat/Suns in Jul or Aug - a Sunday ferry out might be a good idea.
You will need to book ferry and destination site asap, also maybe Riva Bella in Ouisterham; any other enroute sites should be ok so long as you stop by 4pm. Don't forget the various insurances (recovery, medical) EHIC etc. Don't worry about lack aircon we managed for years without it and don't have it in caravan.
Have a great trip
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When we lived in the Midlands we always needed three days from home to the Med. but didn't go via Dover.
Day 1. Home to Portsmouth (200 miles) for the 1445 ferry to Caen and an overnight campsite near the ferry port on arrival.
Day 2. Caen to somewhere around Limoges (300 miles) and an overnight campsite in that area.
Day 3. Limoges to the coast in the Narbonne area (300 miles)
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All very good advice from the posts above so won't repeat that the only thing that I would say is that on some sites (not all) twin axles are no made welcome. Some sites will only take them if pre-booked and some sites will charge more (considerably more) for them. So maybe it would be best to think about where you are going to be stopping and check ahead of time to see if it would be an issue or not, oh and get it in writing (email) if I was you. Don't want to put you off just be aware, would hate for it to be a disaster with 3 children in tow.
Agree with Deleted User User about Cote D'Azure, much prefer the Marsellian plage or Valras plage. However the West coast of France in the summer months will take a lot of beating.
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If you are determined to go to the South of France then definitely the shortest route is tunnel to Calais then Autoroute through Reims, Lyon, Marseille. You will pay tolls and you can check the cost on ViaMichelin (approx. 50% extra for caravans).
We never booked in school holidays but if you want to stay on the Med. coast then it is essential in the holiday period.
I would set off early, cross the channel that afternoon then travel for a couple of hours, maybe book for that night to give you peace of mind. Second night somewhere around Chalons sur Saône (plenty of sites around Sennecy-le-grand or Tournus on the N road parallel to the motorway and no need to book) then you can reach the coast the following day. Three long days which I did many times when younger but not now.
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Use this website to find distances and tolls http://www.autoroutes.fr/en/routes.htm. Return toll to Frejus near Cannes is around £260 and about 1500` so you do need time to make it worthwhile. Three days is comfortable but we did used to do in two when at work thats from Calais. Depends which part you are referring to whether you turn left or right near Montpellier, Traffic can be horrendous on weekends towards the end of July and again coming back around the third weekend of August, between these periods its nose to tail along the Cote d`Azur. Prior to the middle of July and from the last week of August its reasonable. Its along drive for a young family!
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For what its worth .....
A friend of mine set off from Leeds, in his solo Freelander with a roof box etc etc, to drive the 950 miles to a 10 day Peak Season Static Caravan holiday in southern Provence, Southern France. Similar to you he had three kids under 10 and he planned for a three day journey each way so a 16 day trip. At Doncaster, after just 30 miles of the first day's drive, his eldest started asking "are we nearly there yet Dad ?".
He returned and vowed to never repeat such a distance & journey with his young kids ever ever again. He also said the kids mainly enjoyed the swimming pool and play areas which might as well have been in Doncaster as the weather was too hot in Provence for young kids anyway. As far as any trips out and about, the kids just wanted to get back to the site.
I feel if you choose a suitable site to suit your family group you'll have a really great time wherever geographically you go. Kids happy = Parents happy.
If your really keen on France, then starting from the Midlands I'd be looking at a first day drive to port / Tunnel - channel crossing - then drive to site. One overnight maybe if your keen to push into say Brittany or Western coast.
Another friend now only uses the Tunnel with his kids as he saves a fortune self catering food on his motorhome rather than £60+ each way in the ferry cafeteria, oh and the shops.
No Air con. Can get stinking hot if you dont pitch in full shade. Even then on a full shade pitch 50 metres from the sea we got 42 degrees in the caravan. 2 electric fans and we just about managed - sleeping outside was common for many.
Do do please give this forum some future feedback on what you decide, where you went and how it all turned out !
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Hi Steve, you’ve already been given some good advice though clearly some opinions will conflict and for good reason
Crossing: the tunnel is fast and good value (Tesco Tokens as someone has said) but the ferry can be a break in the journey and affords an opportunity for all to stretch legs. We used to have a slap up meal on the return evening crossing which the children really loved.
Perhaps the South is a bit of a stretch, we reckoned 250 Miles a day was comfortable so you migh want to plan your destination more on that aspect.
The West coast, Royan, la Tranche, are quite doable in a couple of days and have great sites, good beaches without the cost and crowds of the South and with as many sunshine hours as the South
Provence is beautiful but can be hot, hot, hot.
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I don’t know if this has already been mentioned, and I don’t know if this is common, but when I went to Royan, it was quite (very) hot, so much so that my fridge had no chance of coping. It meant having to buy certain things on a daily basis. Frozen food was out of the question.
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We've 'done' the south of France and travelled into Monaco and while it is 'exotic' thinking you've gone there, unless it is on your must do/bucket list there are other beautiful places in France especially with 3 children under 10 who would probably be really happy with a beach, a camp site with a pool and a pizza takeaway! However, if you want to, go for it, don't let anyone put you off and enjoy. Last year we went to Venice with our van and it was stunning. Good luck.
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Perhaps you could say where in the south of France you are thinking of going as it makes a massive difference, although I agree that two weeks is too short if that’s what you have? If it is the Atlantic side and you are going well South, you may want to consider the overnight ferry to Bilbao.
We went to the south of France last year and were an hour north of Spain. We left Yorkshire at 7am, crossed the tunnel at 1pm and stayed overnight at Camping Saint Nicholas just south of Rouen (lovely site with basic but wonderfully cooked food). Next day stayed south of Bordeaux 2 hours from the destination and could have actually done in a day but I had thought it would be too much and finished the following morning. I found it to be a long slog if I’m honest and this year I’m doimg Devon! However we were gone for a month!
The return was much better and was an illustration of the benefits of splitting the journey more. One day drive to Le Mans, stayed at the castel there for he weekend and drive on to Brugge on the Monday. Stayed for 2 days and then home to Yorkshire which was a days drive
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Hi we have travelled from the Midlands down to the south of France or northern Spain for several years now. We now use the tunnel (which is fab) and aim to arrive in France for circa 9pm. When our children were the same age as your children I had a couple of pillows in the back and a sleeping bag/duvet and they would soon go to sleep once we arrived in France. My husband and I then took it in turns to drive as far as we could through the night, stopping only for fuel and toilet. We would pull over into a services at around 3 or 4am and put the seats down and get some sleep for a couple of hours. We would then continue to drive through to our destination, arriving in the Med around 20 hours after leaving the midlands. I acknowledge that this isn't for everyone but it worked best for us especially when the children were small.
I would recommend trying to book a site although you might now find this difficult during school holidays. Having said that on a couple of occasions we have been to the south of France without having a confirmed booking but we have usually found somewhere pretty good at the second or third attempt - your difficulty might be finding a site which would take a double axle caravan without a reservation.
Your biggest challenge might be driving in the South of France in the middle of summer without air con - have a great time!
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If you're planning on the SW coast - fab beaches south of Bordeaux I would suggest overnight ferry from Portsmouth to St Malo - journey to Portsmouth straightforward and chance to relax. We managed with 1 cabin for 3 adults & 2 kids (6 & 13 (top & tailing). I know living in Dorset it's closer but we lived in Midlands and made these journeys years ago too.
From St Malo is easy journey on National route down to Nantes then autoroute (toll) all the way down to just past Bordeaux. Lots of "Aires' to take breaks or even overnight depending on circumstances (1 or 2 drivers). We've done it in a day no problem. There are plenty of sites to to overnight close to the auto route and some lovely places to explore too.
We've done the tunnel or short ferries but then more driving both sides of the channel and more expensive tolls too. The cost balances out and you get there more relaxed via St Malo.
If you're off to the Med you could do the same route but divert onto other auto routes half way down or just effectively turn left at Bordeaux - lots of lovely places to stop off on the way thro - Agen, Toulouse Carcassonne amongst them , then depending on your preference right for Angeles sur Mer/Collioure (my favourite! ) towards Spain or left for the Nice etc.
We've done all these routes and others but with 3 youngsters that's the route we would take. (We lived over there for several years so know it well)
It's all personal choice of course depending on when you're travelling and your own circumstances & preferences.
Good luck - safe journey and enjoy!
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We never had a problem doing Midlands to Frejus when the kids were small. However we did find it quite a good idea to do the first stretch overnight. This worked well for us as it meant we were travelling when it was cooler, and the kids were asleep in the back of the car and it avoided the 'are we nearly there dad' comments.
We would often start from home at about 6pm, drive down to Dover (missing much of the rush hour traffic), straight on the ferry and then drive through the night. (Pulling over for an hour's sleep if necessary. We would get at least as far as Chalon-en-Champagne, and often much further. However, we tended to take the next part of the journey fairly easily, at least stopping for a few days at somewhere like Camping Me Bregoux, at Aubignan, nr Carpentras (great for visiting Mt Ventoux), before pushing on to Frejus.
Just make sure that if you drive through the night, you are able to cope with it. Don't overstreach yourself if you are prone to getting tired.
To this day, even now there are only the two of us, we still do the first stretch over night. The tunnel/ ferry is cheaper anyway! Old habits die hard! 😆
David
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We always use the late ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe, 4 hrs. You can have a cabin or take your sleeping bags on deck and sleep on the floor as most of us do!! The route down to Orleans then Clermont Ferrand then over the Millau bridge is much cheaper than the route de soleil down to Marseilles area, and much less busy. Look for a campsite in Langudoc Roussillon, there's plenty to choose from, you're still on the Med if that's what you want, but there's lots of choice a bit inland.
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Every year the family and I (With kids similar age) pull our Swift Challenger with our VW Transporter to the South of France. 400 miles in the UK, Dover to Calais to keep the cost sensible and then push on south. I've done this in one go on a number of occasions but would not recommend to all as it really is tiring. However, it's remarkable how quickly you recover when you are all set up with a beer in your hand in 30 degrees temperature. One stop en-route (just north of Lyon) is sensible. Try and avoid Route D Anglais on a Saturday as all of the German's, Belgians and Dutch join it circa Lyon and the traffic jams can completely bugger your plans. My advice is, make sure you vehicle is mechanically up to it and then go for it !!!! Don't be put off by the less adventurous out there.. Good luck
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Not quite so bad. A twin axle caravan is charged at the same rate as a single, so provided it's under 3 metres high the toll using motorways from Calais to the Med at Agde is €107.50 . But that's bad enough .
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Currently 165e Calais to Nice if you use toll roads, we keep ours to just under 50e by using a mix of autoroute/Millau Bridge and non toll roads over three days on the continent itself, crossing to Caen. (usually start off around 9am arriving at next sit 3-4pm)
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Perhaps depends if you mean South of France as in Biarritz, or as in St Tropez? But, for what it is worth, travelling from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in a MoHo (never exceeding 60mph), it is possible to do Biarritz area with three overnight stops. I should add, we do not have children travelling with us (we are 70+ years old). We rarely use toll roads. there is good toll free road south to Biarritz area. If heading for Langadoc, we would use either (toll free, except Millau Bridge) A75, if heading for Provence, we would use N7 along Rhone Valley. It is of course much more enjoyable to take your time, but, if you have limited holiday time, then needs must. Some details on our route here.
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Have been holidaying in France for many years Ferries vary from DFDS dirty rough poor staff attitude cold food (we didnt like them!) to the well oiled Brittany ferries. All depends where you want to end up.We favour the club offers so travel out of Portsmouth Sunday afternoon stop at Ranville 5mins from ouistreham port then up and away via Caen ring road and motorways and then an overnight stop after about 280 miles on to the lot region via a roads to site set up open the redwine and chillin' by 5pm! The vast majority of Municipal sites are clean and very adequate for travelling take a mix of hook up leads reversed polarity ready just in case .then you see the "real" France.
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Hi. I have nothing to add about the routes and journey times as they have pretty much been covered. However, as a mum to 3 children who were taken all over France I do know about the chorus of "are we there yet?". I used to start early and buy 3 bags - something like a school shoe bag/p.e. kit. I would then slowly fill these with bits and pieces to keep the kids occupied. In those days Hawkins Bazaar were always brilliant but you have many more choices on the internet today. Pens, crayons, sticker books, mini toy cars or soldiers etc. They always looked forward to the goody bag as the real start of the holiday. Many years later my daughter did a season working for Eurocamp at Biarritz. At her interview she was able to point out 15 regions she had visited! Good luck. Hope you make some wonderful memories.
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