DRIVINGTOURINFRANCEPROVESAHIT
We’ve based ourselves half-way down France’s west coast to increase our chances of sunshine. Whenever we’ve driven down France, clouds seem to instantly disperse south of the Loire Valley.
Of course, it’s a long way to travel with a car full of kids for a bit of sun – at least five hours direct from the Caen/Ouistreham ferry port, in fact. So we’d arranged a couple of detours to break-up the journeys.
Arriving late afternoon, we check into La Citadelle, a hotel from the Middle Ages which actually dates all the way back to, er, May 2017.
Entering the Grand Parc is a bit like setting foot on a giant movie set, with a cast of hundreds acting out set pieces from throughout the ages – in French, of course. Headsets are required for English commentary.
We arrive just in time to catch the best attraction of the lot – Les Vikings. Set in a lakeside village, the 26-minute show begins with a sedate wedding but the scene erupts into chaos after a huge Viking raid. With fires, explosions and, well, plenty of surprises, it’s all very exciting.
With batteries recharged, day two sees us dashing around to squeeze in as many of the timetabled shows as Holiday homes at Siblu’s Bonne Anse Page holiday village in Charente-Maritime (siblu.com/camping-bonneanse-plage; 0208 610 0186) start from £511 based on up to six people staying seven nights from May 26. Brittany Ferries (brittanyferries.com; 0330 159 7000) operate crossings from Portsmouth to Caen from £159 each way for a car and family of four. Day entry to Futuroscope (en.futuroscope.com) in Poitiers starts from 36E per person, based on four people booking single day tickets in advance we can. There’s the tale of King Arthur, medieval jousting, musketeer sword fights, chariot racing, gladiator battles and more. It is, simply, a history lesson brought to life – and one our children will surely never forget.
After seven nights away, 1000 miles of driving and two overnight ferries, we arrive back in England on a Monday morning, happy but exhausted. But, before home, there’s one final detour, to drop Alex off at nursery.
“Oooh, what did you get up to in France?” asks Kim, the receptionist.
“Nothing!” he replies.