France Ferry & Campsite info (use Search function) mod warning post 1

valtra2

Anyone ever stay in le pommier. Cheap flights to lyon

Electric

We stayed here last year and would really recommend it for under 5s.

It's about a 4,5 hour drive from Cherbourg. Google Maps will try send you off the motorway across D roads, with a roundabout every 800metres. Better than I stay on the motorway until Nantes and then head west.

St Brevin is a lovely town (about a 15 minutes walk) and the beach is fab. The campsite is really nice, small and easy to get around and the pool area is really good for small kids. There's lots to do in the area if you wanted to get out and do day trips (Aquarium in Croisic and Popcorn Labyrinth in Pornic).

CuriousCucumber

Just upgraded my accommodation for the Cork to Roscoff ferry from a four berth inside, to a four berth Commodore with priority disembarkation

Excuse me now, as I justify spending €290 on this :D

This is what I see as the benefits:

Will get on the ferry early - need to check-in around 2 to be guaranteed priority disembarkation

Get free food in the Commodore lounge

Kids will be 5 and 3 at the time. Last year, my wife put them to bed around 8, and had to lie in the dark with them. This year, she'll have loads more room to relax in the room when the kids go to sleep

Free breakfast

Last year, it took us almost 3 hours between sitting back into the car, and getting through passport control. Wife and kids almost lost the plot. Should be much quicker this year

Will still deal with the four berth inside on the way home

Fann Linn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123167525#Comment_123167525

Three hours to get out of the port? Was there a strike on as the most I've ever sat from going downstairs to the car deck until getting out on the road was an hour.

CuriousCucumber

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123167544#Comment_123167544

Oh, I dont know. It was our first time taking the ferry last year. Arriving in Cork was very quick. Took no time at all to get through Passport control, but Roscoff was another story altogether. I assumed that was just the norm

Fann Linn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123167658#Comment_123167658

I'd regularly go to France / Spain and in almost 20 years the only time I recall a delay of 3 hours plus was because of a dockers strike in Cherbourg a few years back. Hopefully that's a thing of the past.

CuriousCucumber

All I know is that we were one of the last cars on the ferry, so it took a while to get off the boat, but even then there seemed to be about 3 or 4 queues open for checking passports. It all moved very slow.

This was Roscoff by the way

munchkin_utd

Was there a UK ferry in before you?

I have friends who did landbridge via Newcastle to Holland and they were about 3 hours getting passports checked with all the brits needing to be stamped in and not have overstayed their last visit. Theres no EU passport queue for the ferry like there is at an airport

CuriousCucumber

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123170151#Comment_123170151

I don't know. We landed at 7am, so would be surprised if that was the case.

Just seemed that the Passport check in Roscoff was very slow. Could have just been very unlucky

rex_turner

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123170181#Comment_123170181

We've been going through Roscoff for years and I do think you were very unlucky... But enjoy the extra level of comfort your upgrade brings!

For next time another way to ensure you're on a lower deck and hence quicker disembarkation is to have a roof box - although depends on the height of your car, if it's a lower one you could still end up on a higher deck.

ECO_Mental

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123167525#Comment_123167525

I travelled last September myself and the missus in the Commadore and it was fabulous..it was off peak so got it very reasonably and was well worth it. Sitting on your own balcony having a glass of wine sailing out of Cork harbour and getting your breakfast delivered to your room in the morning was amazing.

We decided not to get the Commadore on the way back for some reason (because you leave late in Roscoff, we though we wouldn't get the benefit) and we booked the nice outside 4 birth and once we got to the cabin it felt like we were in steerage 😪…after getting the taste of the high life the normal cabin was so depressing!!! 😁

As you say another benefit was we were fist off the ship in Roscoff and fly through passport control. There is loads of room for the kids to run around as well but I dont know if thats an advantage or not for you..

Have fun you will enjoy it, the ferry is part of the holiday (one of the best parts!) so dont worry about the added expense …checking in with the concierge makes you feel like a rock star also, asking do you want reservations for dinner and do you want breakfast in your room or not.

We are going to Bilbao early June and coming back via Roscoff and I have the Commadores booked and cant wait.

CuriousCucumber

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123178837#Comment_123178837

Nice one, that all sounds great. Yeah, two young kids, so that definitely helps too.

On the way home, the kids will be going straight to bed, so no extra benefit there, and in the morning, they can explore the boat

fits

Just upgraded our cabin on way out on foot of this thread! Already had it for return journey. We will have a pretty long drive to Dordogne and back so this should soften it somewhat.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123178837#Comment_123178837

I've heard it said that once you travel business class you never want to go back to coach, the same is true for ferries it seems 😂

Fann Linn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123181600#Comment_123181600

When are you heading to Dordogne, I'm heading myself at the end of August but going via Bilbao and will visit San Sebastian for a few days on the way back.

fits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123181670#Comment_123181670

oh don’t say that! I haven’t told my husband I’ve booked it at all. Will leave it as a surprise. Ferry very reasonable for our travel dates. So it’s doable.

fits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182013#Comment_123182013

yep last two weeks of August. It’s our third year in a row to roughly same area. Returning to the campsite we were in two years ago. It’s a small family owned place.

Fann Linn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182028#Comment_123182028

Very good. Our first time to the Dordogne, really looking forward to it.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182018#Comment_123182018

Oh I was very tempted to book one of the Club class suites with IF this year, travelling August so I just couldn't make the numbers work

Especially after I "had to" extend the trip to 10 nights because of the ferry dates 😂

mr_edge_to_you

Just booked our campsite last night. Yikes the prices have jumped massively!

We were looking for something new after 3 visits to Le Pin Parasol. My wife and I would happily go back but I think the kids need something different. They're another bit older so booked back in closer in to Jean Des Monts. We stayed there before when they were smaller.

beggars_bush

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182038#Comment_123182038

the Dordogne is fabulous. go see the the underground caves in Rouffignac. there is an electric train down into the cave. you get so close to real prehistoric art on the cave ceilings. amazing.

Brilliant castle at Castelnaud-la-Chapelle with working trebuchets that the kids will love and daily shows (in french).

some lovely riverside beaches/terraces that are beautiful to swim in - Le pont de Vicq is a favourite with the lovely bridge and bring a picnic

ECO_Mental

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182038#Comment_123182038

Can echo other posters here the Dordogne was one of my favorite spots in France. Loads and loads to see and do, canoeing on the Dordogne, all the prehistoric cave art, lovely towns and villages, food (confit duck!) etc etc.

We went about 10 years ago and there still were a couple of caves that you were allowed into (they still might be) but very restricted on numbers. Got the Fam up a 6am to que in one cave (they werent happy on their holidays!) as they only allowed about 50 people in all day but it was amazing to see it in real life. We were there so early we got to see a cave they only allow 12 people into every day…. They were building Lascaux IV when we were there its a 1-1 scale replica of the orginal Lascaux cave and its supposed to be amazing as well.

When we were there it was 40 degs but we planned those really hot days to go on cave visits so it took the edge off.

Have fun, its a long drive down but its worth it need to spend 3 weeks if driving down that far

Dont forget this place…Marqueyssac Gardens

fits

We stayed in castelnaud la chapelle last year. We didn’t get to see the shows in the castle or canoeing as one of my sons is disabled and he wasn’t up for any of these outings. He was only seven. haven’t made it to the caves yet either. we love the food and the scenery and the river swimming though. And it feels green and spacious and not too busy

He has matured a lot since so hopefully we can manage more this year. Spending two weeks in the one site not far from Bergerac.

We are going to try Puy du Fou on the way back to ferry also. It could be a complete disaster if he gets overwhelmed but we won’t know if we don’t try.

fits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123186760#Comment_123186760

that looks like an Ai image!

17togo

What's the rosslare-bilbao sailing like? We've went a couple of times to cherbourg but thinking about possibly going to bilbao and crossing into France. I presume the ferry is well equipped to keep everyone entertained for the longer journey?! We'll have 3 kids with us, 13,11,9.

Also any recommendations for a site bear the beach. It's a nightmare trying to find a suitable site, you think you've found one and then read reviews! 🙄

Apologies if it's all been covered on here, I'm using my mobile and the epileptic fits the sites has is making it difficult to go back through it all.

josip

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123227461#Comment_123227461

Don't read the reviews 🙂. You can't please all of the people all of the time. And the unhappy people will be most likely to jump online and leave negative reviews. So rather than sifting through all of the reviews, just use the number of bad reviews to discard the worst of the sites and go with one you like from the rest.

webpal

or put them up here, folks on this forum have covered a lot of sites over the years.

17togo

Yeah probably right I suppose.

We had been looking at Domaine d'Inly in Brittany. Has anyone been?

But we've kinda shifted our thinking to the bilbao idea now, but just trying to dmfind somewhere that suits the brittany sailings.

Fann Linn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123227461#Comment_123227461

With regards to the ferry crossing itself, I've done it twice before and will be doing it again this year. It's always been just myself and the wife and in the past it was the freight ship so things to do were pretty Spartan and scarce.

It's 31 hours approx, leaving midnight on Friday/Saturday and getting into Bilbao around 8.00 am Sunday morning. I bring a few books or download some magazines and the wife brings her knitting or embroidery. The Saturday all day in my opinion will be the killer for the kids, however saying that, they've their 'cruise ferry ' on the run so I'm sure the entertainment, clowns, face painters will be on board. Plus on the Saturday, the further south you go the better the opportunity for viewing whales, dolphins etc.

We've never actually stayed in northern Spain, but there is apparently a lovely site not too far from Santander run by Eurocamp on the Emerald Coast.

If bringing kids however make sure you bring plenty of sweets, drinks etc for them as I'm sure it would be costly if you were running to the bar or cafe all day.

Enjoy.

17togo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123228169#Comment_123228169

Thanks. The whale spotting sounds great. Yeah it's the Salamanca ferry so looks like there's a bit to do on it.

I think we might go ahead and book le ruisseau in Biarritz. A bit pricey but at least the area has stuff to keep the adults entertained aswell. The last site we were in was in the countryside and there was nothing really in the area.