This is our France road trip itinerary from one of the first long term France road trips we did. This was pre-Bongo, and we took a tent.
This one month France road trip itinerary starts from Calais, and does a big loop down to the Spanish Pyrenees via the Auvergne and Perpignan, then back up again via Bayonne, Île d’Oléron, and the Loire Valley, returning to Calais. Accommodation is camping (either tent or camper) and geared toward families with young kids who like to embrace slow travel. A fantastic budget trip for the school summer holidays!
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Check out our video highlights from our summer in France (and a little bit of Spain):
A summer road trip around France and Spain
For those people based in the UK, the summer holidays are an expensive time to travel. Flight and accommodation prices rocket and everywhere is seemingly overrun with tourists. Before the boys started school we always avoided travelling in the UK summer holidays. But now they’re in school, and with a full six weeks to fill, thinking caps were on for something cheap, not too touristy, and something easy.
France is an obvious choice for us as it’s easy to get to and we can take our car over on the Ferry. Plus we LOVE France – the wine, the climate, the landscapes, the croissants, the history. We just had to plan where to go and what to do to avoid the crowds as much as possible. And we decided to head to the Spanish Pyrenees!
So we booked a return ferry crossing with DFDS Ferries from Dover for a total of £138 to camp and road trip France from Calais and down to the Spanish Pyrenees with our Vango Air Tent.
READ: Top 10 tips for driving through France
Camping in France with kids
The French do family campsites very well and they are a fantastic budget choice for families. The camping holiday parks are well organised, clean, offer lots for the kids (swimming pool, playgrounds, usually a kids club), and have a restaurant and bakery on site (get ready for fresh croissants in the morning!) I also always enjoy the mix of European nationalities that visit the parks, and how all the kids play together.
If you’re also planning on camping over the summer, check out or Camping with kids Checklist, which includes a FREE printable download to manually tick off those family camping items.
Tips for doing this France road trip itinerary
Book all camping accommodation in advance, especially if you’re travelling in the European summer holidays. I provide a link to our review for each campsite we stayed in below in the itinerary, which includes tips for selecting a good pitch.
Plan any day trips to arrive before 11am. We had a couple of days out where we had to turn around and return to the campsite because we didn’t follow this rule of visiting early in the day.
Go with the flow of campsite bedtimes. We find that when camping in Europe (especially Spain), you go with the flow and slip into ‘camp time’ with going to bed late and getting up late. There were many evenings the boys weren’t asleep until 10pm and all kids are still playing in the playgrounds at 9pm. It’s near impossible trying to get our boys to sleep when all their pals are still outside playing. The payoff of letting them go to bed late was that they slept in the following morning, and us parents would have a lie in and managed to get stuff done before they woke up! This was very handy on the travel days when we had to pack up the tent.
Pack warm sleeping bags. Temperatures can drop at night, especially in the Pyrenees and we were surprised at how cold it got. Although daytime temperatures often hit 35 degrees.
Pack scooters. We packed our microscooters for all the family. This meant that we didn’t have to bother with bikes and bike racks as they fold up and fit in the foot-well of the car, and were a super fun way to get around the campsites, especially the bigger ones.
Check out our camping with kids checklist to find out what we packed in our car for this camping road trip.
Our France road trip itinerary
This turned out to be one of our best family adventures. We had the most amazing summer; swimming every day, trekking the Pyrenees, exploring medieval towns and villages, and playing on stunning beaches, all in fantastic weather and on a budget.
In fact, we often commented on the trip how we probably spent less money camping in France for the summer than we would have trying to entertain the kids back at home in the UK. The reason? Well we had days where we didn’t leave the campsites as there was so much free stuff to do. We also self-catered pretty much the entire trip.
All campsites in this France road trip itinerary have a swimming pool, toilet and shower blocks, and an electrical hook-up point at the pitches. But each and every campsite was very different to the next, which is one of the many things we loved about this road trip.
Day 1: Ferry from Dover and overnight in Reims
Driving time from Calais: 2 hours 40 mins
Where we stayed: Hotel Première Classe Reims Nord, Bétheny
It’s always worthwhile checking ferry crossings to both Dunkirk and Calais when travelling from Dover to get the best deal with DFDS. The sail time to Dunkirk is only 30 minutes longer, and there’s not much difference in the drive time to Reims.
As our ferry arrived at 7pm French time (they’re one hour ahead of the UK) we booked a basic hotel outside Reims for £31 – Hotel Première Classe Reims Nord, Bétheny. Nothing special, but as it’s just for a night’s sleep with another driving day tomorrow, it’s perfect. There is an ALDI supermarket opposite to pick up some fresh croissants for breakfast.
Day 2-7: Camping Vaubarlet, Auvergne
Driving time: 5 hours 40 mins
Read our review of Camping Vaubarlet
This is a great site for families who love nature as it’s set in a peaceful wooded valley in the south of the Auvergne. Very popular with Dutch families, it’s a small park with a pool, kids club, and bouncy castle. But the highlight was playing in the stream that runs alongside the campsite. There are some cycling, running and hiking tracks around, but this is is the place to sit back at relax and let the kids have fun.
Day 8-11: Camping Le Haras, Western Mediterranean
Driving time: 5 hours
Read our review of Camping Le Haras
This region of France does get busy during the summer, but this park is a peaceful oasis from the hustle and bustle, with Catalan-style buildings surrounded by exotic trees. We absolutely loved the vibe of this campsite, and dinner at the onsite restaurant with a local band is playing is a must.
Close by is the small town of Palau where you can watch glassmakers at work. We loved exploring the nearby beaches (Le Racou was our favourite) and nearby Collioure is just beautiful (get there early, it gets exceptionally busy). There is so much to do in the region and we really could have stayed longer.
Day 12-16: Camping Gavín, Spanish Pyrenees
Driving time: 5 hours
Read our review of Camping Gavín
The views and facilities of this campsite are very impressive. You are right in the heart of the Spanish Pyrenees. However, pitches are very small and it gets very loud and busy in the summer holidays although we’ve since learnt this is typical of many Spanish campsites.
Just a 15 minute drive away is the cable car from Panticosa where you’ll find some fantastic hiking trails. Kids will also love the high ropes in the nearby village, at Biescas Aventura.
If you want to explore more of Spain from this point, check out our Northern Spain road trip itinerary.
Day 17-20: Camping Lou P’tit Poun, Biarritz region
Driving time: 3 hours
Read our review of Camping Lou P’tit Poun
Kids stay for free at this spacious site in the Basque country. It’s just a stone’s throw away from the foothills of the Pryenees, incredible beaches, and lively Bayonne. What a great location! It’s also a peaceful site, even in August (we couldn’t believe how quiet it was!), and there’s a free local shuttle bus from the site entrance to the beach at Ondres-Plage, although there’s also a dedicated cycle path you can follow.
Biarritz is also just a 30 minute drive away, but arrive VERY early to secure a parking spot. Do be wary of the beaches in this region with little ones and the surf is big and the current powerful.
Day 21-24: Domaine d’Oléron, Ile d’Oléron
Driving time: 4 hours
Read our review of Camping Domaine d’Oléron
Haven’t got a tent or camper? Book this campsite through Eurocamp and stay in an Eco Lodge Tent or Holiday Home.
Situated on the island of Oléron, accessible via a toll-free bridge from the mainland, this campsite has a great family atmosphere featuring a fantastic swimming pool and playground.
The island is much more understated than its neighbour, the fashionable Île de Ré and boasts much better beaches. Having now visited both islands, we prefer Île d’Oléron. There are bike tracks criss-crossing the island, but it’s easy to drive around and find parking.
Day 25-29: Les Alicourts, Loire Valley
Driving time: 4 hours 30
Read our review of Les Alicourts
Although we love our tent, after 3.5 weeks of camping it was a treat to stay in a static mobile home, complete with hot showers, proper beds and an oven. This is the place if you want on-tap entertainment for your kids and an easy holiday in the one place. Stock up at the supermarket before you arrive as you may not want to leave!
It’s brilliant fun for kids aged 4+, especially the waterpark, and the kids club is excellent. The man-made lake is a beautiful focal point and a you can hire pedaloes, canoes, and bikes on site. If you do manage to tear the kids away there are some stunning family friendly chateaux in the region.
Day 30: Drive back to Calais
Driving time: 5 hours
30 days and over 3000km later, it’s time to return to Calais to catch the ferry back to England.
You may also like to read:
Best family campsites in France
Best Châteaux to visit in the Loire Valley with kids
Top 10 tips for driving through France