Every summer during my childhood, we travelled to a different region of France to stay at a Canvas Holidays or Eurocamp site. My parents would get excited at the thought of cathedrals and caves, lakes and chateaux. I’d be most excited by the campsite and our tent with bedrooms and a little fridge. I remember running around the Palais des Papes in Avignon to hasten our return to the swimming pool and new holiday friends.
I’m not alone in reminiscing: according to Eurocamp, 91 per cent of its customers say childhood holidays are a source of cherished memories and nearly three-quarters want to take their kids to the places they visited when young.
When I was 14, my parents split up. I am slightly ashamed to admit that one of the first questions I asked was whether we would still be able to go on holiday together. A few months earlier, I had been allowed, for the first time in my life, to choose the campsite. I wasn’t distracted by details like geography, proximity to vineyards or galleries. No, I had the single-
minded focus to choose a dream holiday: a campsite with water flumes. That holiday never happened. I’d thought it was the end of my French campsite era.
I remembered that campsite-picked-from-a-brochure recently, while sitting by four flumes and an oversized bucket that would fill up and tip over the splashpad every six minutes, soaking everyone in its vicinity.
I was with my own family at the pool complex of Camping La Rive near Biscarrosse, an hour’s drive south-west of Bordeaux. Rather than a tent, we were staying in a Eurocamp cabin, with air conditioning.
Our friends were staying next door, and we took it in turns to barbecue in the evenings, so it felt like a lot less work than at home. It was a 10-minute drive to an excellent E.Leclerc supermarket, where it was a pleasure to stock up on salads, fish and patisseries.
We established a youthful end of the table, where the six children entertained each other – and us – over long dinners. Our youngest, Juno, aged one and a half, loved that five other children, and occasionally the adults, would copy her dance moves. Our older children, Astrid, seven and Xavi, five, were given more freedom to explore adult-free than they have at home, as long as they promised to stay with their friends. They used the time wisely, decorating pinecones and trying to tame birds.
Surrounded by pine forest, the site borders Lake Biscarrosse, where campers practised stand-up paddleboarding (€12/£10 per hour) and kayaking (€15/£12.50 per hour) and hired out giant inflatable hamster wheels (€20/£16.80 for half an hour). With clear waters and yellow sand beach, it was an uncrowded place to lay out towels, play football on the sand and paddle in the shallows. The Atlantic breaks of Biscarrosse Plage are less than 20 minutes’ drive away.
The campsite has excellent facilities: a playground, bouncy castle, decent restaurant, a great indoor-outdoor pool-and-flume complex, plus a friendly, well-stocked small supermarket that lets you take goods on credit.
It also has downsides. This was my third year in a row travelling with the same friends to different Eurocamp sites, and this one felt more cramped, with cabins so close there wasn’t room for a game of pétanque.
With any holiday village, it is worth requesting a cabin or tent on the perimeter. Last year we looked out on to a wildflower meadow; the year before we were in a safari-style tent on a peaceful site by a chateau. This time, we stayed in a classic cabin and learned it is worth paying extra to upgrade to “ultimate”: in September, it is £50 a week more and the seven extra metres of space make all the difference.
Fortunately, we were rarely inside. At breakfast, we would watch brazen sparrows hopping towards our croissants on the balcony. We took the children pony-trekking at the nearby riding school and led them on a half-hour walk through the pine forest. “You’re the pony for your daughter,” said the owner, as I carried my youngest in her sling.
In the seaside resort of Arcachon, I ate oysters with shallot vinegar just a minute from the bay where they are grown. At the outdoor, covered restaurant, the scent of garlic and cooked wine from the moules mariniére mingled with the tang of the sea.
We wandered the morning market and window shopped in smart clothes stores Sandro and B&SH, diving in a well-curated toy store. Our friends, meanwhile, climbed the nearby Dune du Pilat, the tallest sand dune in Europe.
Since having children, I have found holidays are more fun than relaxing. But there were moments during the evenings when I could feel my stresses melting.
I loved spending time with my friends – and watching the children’s friendships deepen over pool games and cabin discos was beautiful. Even better, unlike the holiday friends of my youth, they will get to play again.
The freedom and independence children are able to experience makes French camping holidays so magical – we’ll be returning again next year, though perhaps to a less crowded site. And a swimming pool with flume is a non-negotiable.
Getting there
The writer travelled with easyJet which offers flights to Bordeaux from six UK airports. Fares from £26.99, easyjet.com.
By train, take the Eurostar from St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord (from £39 one way). Transfer to Paris Montparnasse for a train to Arcachon. From there, it is around half an hour’s drive to La Rive, Biscarrosse.
The campsite is around three hours’ drive from Bilbao in Spain, served by Brittany Ferries from Portsmouth.
Avis offers car hire. Register online for the QuickPass service to access self-service Key Kiosks. The Avis Preferred loyalty programme offers 10 per cent off bookings, avis.co.uk.
Staying there
Seven nights at Eurocamp at La Rive, Biscarrosse, Landes, France, in a two-bedroom holiday home (sleeps four to six) from 8 September costs from £192 per party, rising to £966 per party for a week from 27 August, eurocamp.co.ukk
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