What do you think ? (1 Viewer)

[Granjan]

Our first continental trip with the MH will be in early June we are travelling Portsmouth Bilbao return and are planning to travel via San Sebastian to Carcassonne and then on to the Med side Camargue / Aix-en-provence.

We are taking our electric bikes and our inflatable Kayak and planned a few days touring either side on Aires or French passion but a more settled patch in one place in the middle where we would just really chill.

We would love a site by a beach or rivers where we can swim / kayak and get on our bikes to visit a local harbour / Market.

Any suggestions for good places to stay would be really appreciated please.

Thanks. Janet

 

[hilldweller]

Don't miss Biarritz. A grand old quality place to take the sun. The aire is on the edge of town but you have bikes.

The aire at palavas les flots is excellent.

 

[Granjan]

Thanks Hilldweller,

Anyone any recommendations for good places or sites where we can Kayak need to be near water as its quite heavy to carry!

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[sedge]

Palavas is about, oooh, what would you say Brian? 10 yards, give or take from the beach?

 

[Daedalus]

Our first continental trip with the MH will be in early June we are travelling Portsmouth Bilbao return and are planning to travel via San Sebastian to Carcassonne and then on to the Med side Camargue / Aix-en-provence.

We are taking our electric bikes and our inflatable Kayak and planned a few days touring either side on Aires or French passion but a more settled patch in one place in the middle where we would just really chill.

We would love a site by a beach or rivers where we can swim / kayak and get on our bikes to visit a local harbour / Market.

Any suggestions for good places to stay would be really appreciated please.

Thanks. Janet

Hi

If you're heading for the Camargue, you might like to visit Les Saintes Maries de la Mer, it has two aires, one in the north of the town and the other, much preferred, right on the sea front, only separated from the water by the sea wall. Walk to the top end of the aire and there is direct access to the beach and lovely little man made coves.

The co-ordinates for the entrance of the aire by the sea wall are N43.453530 E4.436696, have a look on Google Earth.

You can, if you're that way inclined, drive through the aire and follow the road/track out into what we used to term 'the wilderness', strictly speaking it's still part of the aire (and the little man will still knock on your door early-ish in the morning for your fee), but it's right by the water for the most part and a lot of people seem to orefer it.

For me, the aire proper is ideal, it's only a short walk into the town or an even shorter bike ride.

If you visit, make sure you attend the 'bull fights' which aren't really, as the idea is for the contestants to remove a rosette from between the bulls horns - brilliant spectacle and the bulls cause much hilarity following the guys over the safety fence causing the contestants to have to escape into the ring until the bulls can be coaxed back into the ring themselves.

I should add that the price of the aire seems to rise each year, it was €9 per night when we last visited 2 years ago. Both have fresh water, grey and black dumps.

The co-ordinates for the other aire (other side of the town) entrance are N43.455304 E4.427511, should you want to take a look at that one. The cost is the same whichever one you choose to stay on.

Daedalus

 

[Granjan]

Palavas is about, oooh, what would you say Brian? 10 yards, give or take from the beach?

10 yards is just about far enough with my back at the moment !

Janet

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[Granjan]

Hi

If you're heading for the Camargue, you might like to visit Les Saintes Maries de la Mer, it has two aires, one in the north of the town and the other, much preferred, right on the sea front, only separated from the water by the sea wall. Walk to the top end of the aire and there is direct access to the beach and lovely little man made coves.

The co-ordinates for the entrance of the aire by the sea wall are N43.453530 E4.436696, have a look on Google Earth.

You can, if you're that way inclined, drive through the aire and follow the road/track out into what we used to term 'the wilderness', strictly speaking it's still part of the aire (and the little man will still knock on your door early-ish in the morning for your fee), but it's right by the water for the most part and a lot of people seem to orefer it.

For me, the aire proper is ideal, it's only a short walk into the town or an even shorter bike ride.

If you visit, make sure you attend the 'bull fights' which aren't really, as the idea is for the contestants to remove a rosette from between the bulls horns - brilliant spectacle and the bulls cause much hilarity following the guys over the safety fence causing the contestants to have to escape into the ring until the bulls can be coaxed back into the ring themselves.

I should add that the price of the aire seems to rise each year, it was €9 per night when we last visited 2 years ago. Both have fresh water, grey and black dumps.

The co-ordinates for the other aire (other side of the town) entrance are N43.455304 E4.427511, should you want to take a look at that one. The cost is the same whichever one you choose to stay on.

Daedalus

That sounds really nice thank you, will zoom in on both of those. Remember seeing a bull run through a french Spanish town many many years ago will look out for that it was certainly good entertainment .

 

[rosalan]

As it will not be out of your way, visit San Sebastian. From the Aire the whole town is covered in cycle tracks which are brilliant. The town, the beach, the shops and old town all have safe cycle tracks. An added bonus is that almost the whole town is on level ground.
The Aire is near the University and was/is not free. You obtain a ticket from a machine including your registration. It is about 1 mile from the beach. Alan

 

[Granjan]

As it will not be out of your way, visit San Sebastian. From the Aire the whole town is covered in cycle tracks which are brilliant. The town, the beach, the shops and old town all have safe cycle tracks. An added bonus is that almost the whole town is on level ground.
The Aire is near the University and was/is not free. You obtain a ticket from a machine including your registration. It is about 1 mile from the beach. Alan

Thanks will definitely be going here stayed a couple of years ago for a couple of nights in a hotel the Pintxos and deli shops were amazing and the beach great too. Didn't know about the cycle tracks tho so thats good to know.

Anyone knows of any campsites proper where we might set up camp with chairs awning and BBQ we would probably prefer to be away from the crowds

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[peter21]

Our first continental trip with the MH will be in early June we are travelling Portsmouth Bilbao return and are planning to travel via San Sebastian to Carcassonne and then on to the Med side Camargue / Aix-en-provence.

We are taking our electric bikes and our inflatable Kayak and planned a few days touring either side on Aires or French passion but a more settled patch in one place in the middle where we would just really chill.

We would love a site by a beach or rivers where we can swim / kayak and get on our bikes to visit a local harbour / Market.

Any suggestions for good places to stay would be really appreciated please.

Thanks. Janet

Agree with Stes Maries suggestion. We were there a couple of weeks ago...lovely. Have a look at the Saint Louis post on our blog (type Saint Louis into the search box currently next to Van Gogh) if you want some pictures of the beachside 'aire' and the local cycling.

 

[Granjan]

Thanks Peter had a busy day today so only just caught up, love the Blog just the sort of thing we are looking for will def head that way, don't think we are booking anything now ... just going and hoping its not too busy on the Aires. guess it will be quieter inland if coast really busy.

 

[peter21]

booking

No..we never book anything in France and have never (touch wood) had a problem. Different I think if you go in high season. Once or twice an aire has been full and we have just moved elsewhere; there's plenty of choice.

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[FIDGET]

Hi, we stopped at these 2 aires, nice lakeside aires.

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AIRE AT GASTES,
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Aire: GASTES

ADDRESS:NEXT TO LAKE, AVE DU LAC
TEL: 05 58 09 75 03 FAX: 05 58 09 73 23
EMAIL: gastes-mairie@wanadoo.fr
TYPE OF AIRE: MUNICIPAL

FACILITIES: WATER /GREY DRAIN/BLACK DRAIN/ TOILETS
LOCATION: SEMI-RURAL/ LAKESIDE NO. OF SPACES: 50

PRICES/ RATES:
PARKING: 6.5€/ NIGHT SERVICES: FREE
OPENING TIMES: 15/03 -- 15/11
GPS COORDS: N44.32844 W01.15337
DIRECTIONS: Exit N10 @ Jcn 17 & take D43 WEST & then D652 to GASTES. At roundabout take 1st exit into AVE.DU LAC & follow to LAKE & AIRE.
SITE DESCRIPTION: Next to a large lake with parking spaces on grass in a large open area, access via a tarmac track. Trees provide shade in places and the Aire is about ½ km from the village centre. A simple Artisanal service point & drainage grid but quite practical plus a small WC.
REVIEW
CAMPING CAR MAGAZINE REVIEWED & RECOMMENDED 02/07: Quiet & a good nights sleep is guaranteed on this pleasant aire, next to a lake & a forest. Parking is on grass with easy to access services. Fishing is possible in the lake & good walks in the forest.
2007 The Aire is very quiet, next to a lake with a small beach about 50m away. A very clean spot shaded by trees. A council employee calls each evening to collect the fee for the night. Well located & easy to find.
2011 "A communal aire open all year offering 50 spaces, ideally located between the lake, the village & the forest." CAMPING-CAR MAGAZINE RECOMMENDED
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GASTES


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SANGUINET,
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Aire: SANGUINET

ADDRESS:BARDETS AREA, AVE DE LOSA
TEL:Link Removed05 58 82 11 82 FAX: 05 58 78 66 34
EMAIL: officedutourisme@sanguinet.fr
TYPE OF AIRE: MUNICIPAL

FACILITIES: WATER /GREY DRAIN/BLACK DRAIN
LOCATION: URBAN NO. OF SPACES: 15

PRICES/ RATES:
PARKING: 8€ / NIGHT 01/06-15/09 FREE REST OF YEAR SERVICES: INCL
OPENING TIMES: ALL YEAR
GPS COORDS: N44.48556 W01.08450
DIRECTIONS: From BORDEAUX take A63 /A660 SOUTH & exit @ Jcn 1 onto D216 to SANGUINET. Turn RIGHT @ PLACE DE LA MAIRIE into AVE DE LOSA & follow road for 1km around lake to AIRE.
SITE DESCRIPTION: Surrounded by a pine forest & close to a large lake (100m) where boating & swimming are possible, this Aire is sited alongside Ave de Losa with parking on grass & some shade from the mature trees. Shops & town centre are about 1km away. The artisanal service point is quite old & really could do with replacing (& only has one tap).
REVIEW
2007 Nice location but we thought this Aire was quite old & dirty. Has 15 spaces for motorhomes and a perfectly functional borne. The ground was covered with bark chippings, which wasn't a great idea as they quickly end up inside the van. Ground gets quite muddy in wet weather.
2007 Aire was quite pleasant, clean & practical but probably awkward for long vehicles. No parking is allowed outside the aire -- the municipal police keep a close watch on it.
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SANGUINET MAP
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[hilldweller]

Palavas is about, oooh, what would you say Brian? 10 yards, give or take from the beach?

https://maps.google.co.uk/?ll=43.531662,3.92253&spn=0.002291,0.003275&t=h&z=19

Cheap and has a shower block.

 

[FIDGET]

Hi granjan, Sorry forgot to mention , the Dune de Pyla well worth a visit.
Dune du Pilat.
Route d'Arcachon à Biscarrosse, 33260 La Teste-de-Buch, France


44.585152, -1.208624
It's a over 100 mtr high sand dune , fantastic view from the top (bit of a climb up the steps, but comeing down you can almost ski down the side great fun.
:sin: Terry:sin:

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[Granjan]

They look really nice ..... maybe we will kayak down the sand dunes!

Many thanks for all posts, its quite scary not really knowing what to expect when we get there. Just booked the ferry to Denmark today for 3 weeks in August...
Caravan club £705 return with sea view cabin and breakfast so there will be more questions coming!

:thumb: