For the last 2 weekends we have travelled to the Vendee and back. The first weekend to visit my partners Mum who lives there and who was gravely ill in hospital. Unfortunately she died the day after we got back so this last weekend we went to her funeral. It has been exhausting emotionally and a lot of driving. Our hired motorhome is booked for our 9 day holiday from next Friday and usually I am so excited about going to France and was especially so this year as I love motorhomes. But now I feel exhausted and the magic has gone. We have to spend the last day or so in the Vendee to collect some things so I thought instead of doing our normal trip down to the south we could spend some time exploring the Loire Valley and maybe the west coast? I don't know a lot about the Loire, I've had a quick look online but time is running out so I thought you guys may be able to help and inspire me - where should we go? What's the must sees and where's nice to stay, maybe on the river bank? Any recommended tourist routes or even non tourist routes? We will be camping in Aires or municipals so don't need all singing/dancing sites. Maybe theres a thread on here already?
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Municipal at Amboise, it's about one euro more than the aire behind it, good shower block etc, on an island, view of the chateau, lovely town you can walk to, one of my favourite places. (Municipal swimming pool next to it)
Sorry for your news.
Azay-le-Rideau, Also is a fav municipal on here.
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Municipal at Azay Le Rideau is much praised on here ... see here ... The main attraction along the Loire is the wonderful variety of Chateaux ... the 'biggies' to see are Chambord, Chenonceaux, Blois, Angers (for the world famous Apocalypse Tapestry) and Villandry (for the amazing gardens) ... but here's a complete list.
Make sure you 'catch' a son et lumiere show ... Chambord, Blois and Azay are all excellent and very different.
Then there's the wines ... beautiful villages and towns, and the 'quality of light on the river' ( a restaurant on the river's edge as the sun sets and into twilight can be breathtaking).
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
Sorry to hear your news and a holiday now would seem a good idea to help you get over the loss. Probably a good idea as well not to do too much driving as you have already done a lot.
The Loire is a lovely area and has many places to visit. I can only speak of the places we have visited and the 2 that spring to mind best are Saumur and Loches (not strictly Loire but very close and a lovely little town).
Saumur has a campsite in the middle of the river and Loches has a site almost under the walls of the old town.
Both are in easy reach of some lovely chateaus such as Chenonceau, Usse, Chinon and the Abbey at Fontevraud
Attached 3 photos to hopefully whet your appetite for the Loire. 1) Loches taken from very close to the La Citadel campsite and a couple of Saumur (one of the Chateau and one taken from the Chateau looking down on the Loire).
Sorry to hear about this - Just come back from the Loire so try the municipal at Azay - really relaxed with better sanitaires (well one block) than some commercial sites. Lovely walks and quiet town - the chateau is undergoing major work but still interesting and the gardens were free to walk around from 6-9pm because of this. The campsite at Loches is good as well. Just recharge your batteries and go with the flow....
You mentioned the west coast. I'm a big fan of the west coast of the Loire, but it is a very French area so there aren't many reviews of the campsites in English. I like the area because it's a fairly low key sort of sea side, beaches are not packed and good for strolling/playing (plus watersports). Quite a lot of WW2 gun emplacements etc. too as you get closer to St Nazaire. There's not that much to see, but it's a great area to relax!
I've just come back from (not municipal) Camping Le Ranch in St Michel Chef Chef (review on it's way!). It's exceptionally clean, well equipped and the staff are friendly, about 15 mins walk from the beach. It's a good family site, but even when full in August it wasn't noisy.
We have literally just left Saumur. What a lovely place it is. We stayed at Ile d'Offard, it's the one on the island in the middle of the river. It apparently was a Municipal bit has been taken over by Flowers camping. The pitches were a bit tired, but then it is the end of the season and there was quite a bit of rain before we arrived. The facilities are excellent - clean toilets and showers, pool, bar/restaurant, kids play area. The whole of the site boundary is fenced in, so security isn't a problem. You can walk along the river outside the fence, all the way round. The town of Saumur is about a 20 minute walk, over the bridge. It combines very old, and modern, and has a massive market on Saturday. You can take boat trips along the River too. We also went to the Louis Grenelle wine caves - €2.50 for the tour, and tasting. We came away with a case, champagne in all but the name. Would definitely go back.
Right next door to the Vendee, we are now in Vannes, at Camping Le Conleau, another municipal which has been taken over by Flowers. Again, excellent. We like it more than Ile d'Offard, mainly because it's slightly smaller and has had less rain. The pool is heated and the facilities are very clean.
The magic is coming back and a plan is starting to form!Thank you all so much for your advice, Blois Son et Lumiere is on the list(found a centrally located Aire) as are the campsites at Loche, Azay and Saumur. Just going to take a peak at Vannes and Camping Le Ranch........
This is a bit late, but the municipal Au Bord De Loire at Gennes is quite nice, on the river banks and has a municipal pool next door. Handy for the all the chateaux between Saumur and Tours (1hr away).
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: The Loire
