Struggling to tempt myself with many of the options that come to mind.
We had a great time last year driving to a quieter part of Annecy, but we had a few days longer to make it worthwhile.
Only got a week this time.
We usually camp, so struggling to imagine what we'd do if we flew to Spain/etc in terms of accommodation.
Requirements:
1 week
2 boys (8 and 12)
Under £800 all in (maybe £1000 if it's really tempting).
Likes:
Nature
Wild swimming
Camping
Good weather 😉
Dislikes:
People
Holiday parks
Busy beaches
Midges
Rain (if camping)
Any ideas?
there are alot of offers at PGL at the moment off to arran in august Mr Mrs and 2 girls 12/18 £1018 all in inc activities. they have a centre close to Ardeche meets your likes might not meet your dislikes fully. Your boys would be good ages mine are getting too old now still good value overall.
We usually camp, so struggling to imagine what we'd do if we flew to Spain/etc in terms of accommodation.
There's more to Spain than giant white hotels on the beach! Pick an area and try searching for "Casa Rural". Transport might be an issue though.
Go wild camping or campsites that are nearly wild. Try North Cornwall?
There are some great municipal camp sites in NE France Picardie/Champagne-Ardenne
Drivable from much of the UK in a day - we do it OK from the NE
Loads of stuff to do and see
I've never had the confidence in northern France, but have rarely been to the far eastern parts.
I'll investigate. A full day's drive each way would be acceptable (it was 2 to get down to Annecy).
I'm a bit lost with Spain - only been on a long weekend to Barcelona. Any pointers to places?
Cornwall is on our list (along with Anglesey and Gower peninsula). They don't really excite me though.
Hang on - [b][u]EAST![/u][/b]
I've never enjoyed the north eastern parts of french countryside.
Troyes town centre wasn't too bad, but I've always struggled to find stop-overs on the way down.
You mean struggled to find places close to the A26?
There's some great towns to explore with loads of history, ancient and modern - if that's your thing
Compiègne
Soissions
Reims
Amiens
Arras
Black Forest, Germany. Lake Titisee to be specific:
[url= http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g198541-d190958-Reviews-Lake_Titisee-Titisee_Neustadt_Baden_Wurttemberg.html ]Lake Titisee[/url]
We stayed here:
[url= http://www.bankenhof.de ]Bankenhof[/url]
It's a one day drive from the UK. Lake swimming, hill walking and a huge indoor water park a few miles away. Our kids loved it. Titisee itself is busy but the campsite is the other side of the lake. You can cycle to the town on a dedicated walking/cycle track. Loads of typical xc forestry track cycling too.
Reims and Amiens didn't do a lot for me - maybe because I was on the way back from the Alps/Provence and it was a bit of an anticlimax.
Looking at the Wild Swimming France book and the Cool Camping book, there's not a single location in the north-east. The one we stayed at in Troyes wasn't very natural either - just campervans parked in hedged laybys. It was quaintish, but not natural.
I know some cool little camp sites in Pembrokeshire that are little more than fields with toilets and a tap.. would tick most boxes except guaranteed weather
Thanks dknwhy - I've forwarded Lake Titisee to my wife. Looks like it might offer a similar holiday to Annecy, but closer.
Lake Titisee is nice - you would enjoy that I guess given your likes
It's a very long drive for a day though unless you're in the southern UK - especially with kids.
It's a very long drive for a day though unless you're in the southern UK
Yes, that's what I thought too. It would probably be a 3am start to get there early evening. The boys were pretty good last year though (with talking books and DSs).
Maybe a National Trust working holiday?
For £750, you could volunteer to come and do my garden. You could camp on tbe lawn, and we'd throw in use of the facilities and tbe trampoline.
Checking flights, it looks like if I were to fly to Spain we'd be looking at £800 just on flights to Malaga, so that's out of the window.
Having been to Annecy as well, I think you'd like it there. We live in south London. A 6am depart gets us there late afternoon. If you want a stopover, this place in Arlon is good.
[url= http://www.campingofficielarlon.be ]Arlon[/url]
Thanks dknwhy
We were a bit worried that Annecy would be too busy and touristy, but we found a good campsite on the water's edge and the boys just went in the water 3 or 4 times a day which gave us a nice break.
There were beautiful walks from the campsite too. Normally we tour around, but it was nice to just 'be' for a change.
Campsite was here:
http://www.lelaccamping.com/En/Gallery.html
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/ @45.82972,6.219163,714m/data=!3m1!1e3
I remember cycling past that site a few times. Looks nice.
We stayed at a huge site near Doussard - Camping Europa I think. Was expensive but had a pool complex so the kids were happy.
If you end up going to Titisee, let me know and I'll give you the heads up on a few places.
lol MoreCashThanDash
If you garden happens to be somewhere amazing - maybe it's a bargain!
