Destination for first visit with young children

[colinth1]

Hi

I'm planing a holiday to France with 2 young children age 3 and 4. We normally go to Spain where there is usually plenty to do for the children, could anyone recommend a resort which is child friendly ? Ideally beach, shops for the wife etc etc

Sorry if this is a bit vague, I've only ever visited Alpe D Huez so the rest of the country is a bit of a mystery.

Thanks

 

[Belle]

The Vendee is pretty special, lots of loverly beaches, Sable d' lonne has loads of shops too.

[Russethouse]

We loved the Vendee too and stayed in Jard sur Mer a few miles south of Sable d'lonne, but within reach of both it and La Rochelle. Tranche sur Mer wasn't far either. There is a zoo in Sables d'lonne (or just outside) and a great aquarium in La Rochelle.

We went with Eurocamp and stayed

 http://www.eurocamp.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=Campsites.ResortOverView&ver=1&Mastercode=147

Last year I visited La Baule, liked that very much too, it's more of a 'resort'

http://www.paysdelaloire.co.uk/en/vsaimez/default.asp?idt=7&idst=46&xtor=SEC-5

[Jill<br><br>Jill (99)]

We liked St Malo, as my husband and I find beaches really boring, so one of us could sit on the beach with the children for a while while the other went round the town.  In general though, we used to have a base and travel out from there, so we did that with other campsites in Brittany and Vendee too and would go to a different beach each day so that the one not sitting on the beach had something else to do.  Later on, we went to places at least an hour from a beach as we found they were more attractive places to be and there would be a greater variety of other things to do.  I've found that a lot of seaside resorts consist of concrete holiday complexes.  Luckily for us, the children soon got bored with beaches too, so after a couple of hours, they would moan and we'd go to visit a castle or something.

We also used to go to places with lakes.  We are campers though.  We used to like to camp by lakes, as I was always nervous about the children being in the sea having had a bad experience when the sea suddenly got rough in Frejus and waves were knocking us under as we tried to get back to the beach.  Lakes often have several areas cordoned off - a play beach for young children and another section for swimmers.  They often have diving platforms and slides too.  Plus, there is more likely to be a play area nearby as well.  There is also the addition that there may be boats available for hire or you can use inflatables more safely.  The scenery is often much more attractive too.  Annecy or Aix les Bains for example - lakes surrounded by mountains.  I realise you have probably been and come back again now, but it may give you ideas for another year, or ideas for someone else.

[Gastines]

St.Malo/Dol/Dinard/Dinan area. The Sea+dozens of different beaches/rocky./sandy /safe. Cobac Park ideal day out for a family,take your own picnic or buy there.Bourbansais Zoo,lots of animals/Horse and hound display/Birds of prey display,another good day out. The Goat farm at Plerguer,Aquarium at St.Malo.Plenty of restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets,plenty of shops to suit anyone plus of course really good markets at Dinan/Dol/Dinard/St.Servan etc. etc. Enough choice for all ages all within a 15km radius.

Regards