WORLDROVER GUIDES Nude beaches & Nudist activities

 

WE HEAD FOR THE MED CARAVANS UNHITCHED.

....you can explore the roads that lead up into the hill villages, or relax in the picnic places that the French provide along the motorways.

Why not combine freedom, comfort, affordability, and an absence of stress by not towing a caravan but by renting them on site as you travel.

You can make one your holiday home for a couple of weeks or your base for a couple of days en route.

If your holiday destination is in the South of France the driving itself can often be a memorable part of the holiday. The advice is always to plan enough time and take it easy on the way.

Be able to explore the roads that lead off up into the hill villages, and relax in the superb picnic place that the French so thoughtfully provide along the motorways.

On the way to the Mediterranean sun there are modern marvels to experience. On the A75 auto route driving becomes more like flying as you motor high above the valley of the river Tarn on the Viaduct de Millau.

The viaduct is higher than the Eiffel Tower. Opened in 2004 it now shortens the journey by 100km and saves up to 4 hours in the holiday season. It enables you to avoid the continual traffic jams that used to plague Millau. The Viaduct is currently the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world.

Should ancient marvels be more to your taste then plan your route so that you can slip off the A20 and visit Rocamadour.

The ancient town is perched high up in the Causse de Gramat limestone cliffs, and looks out over a spectacular gorge some 490 feet below, where the River Alzou cuts into the rock.

Rocamadour is one of seven great pilgrimage sites in the 10th - 12th century.


The town was named after an early Christian hermit St Amadour who un decayed body was discovered here in 1166.



T he site was on the pilgrimage route to San Juan de Capestella and still remains a important for other religions site such as the Black Madonna and the Sword of Roland.

This particular region of France is noted for it's dramatically situated villages and the prehistoric cave art that has been discovered nearby. There are sites of Perch Merle, Font du Game and Lascaux.

As to accommodation try to start looking early in the afternoon for campsite signs so that you have time to check out the appeal and cost of what is available.

We spent a pleasant couple of days at a three star site called "Camping Les Tilleuls" near Rocamadour.

It had a small swimming pool and that essential ingredient a decent sized shady emplacement.

The caravan (static) was well equipped and we enjoyed breakfast and evening drinks outside on the wooden deck. It was a good base from which to explore the Regional Natural reserve of Causses de Quercy

Web: http://perso.orange.fr/lestilleuls-roca/INDEX_ANG.htm (Tel. 05 65 33 64 66.)

WHERE FLAMINGOS FLY.

When we eventually reached our holiday park near Montpellier in the South of France the sun was setting over the lagoons that bordered the Mediterranean Sea.

The next morning the water was the brightest blue with a mass of pink flamingos performing a well choreographed stately dance as they waded over the shallows of the Lac de Reves.

Lac des Reves means "lake of dreams" and we were close to the 180,000 acre regional natural park that is the Carmargue.


The flamingoes are not the only seasonal visitors.

The mediterannean coast has acted like a magnet drawing holidaymaker from all over Europe.

As the chic places like Saint Tropez, Monte Carlo and Nice got more expensive (and more crowded) development extended all along the western coast towards the Spanish border.

Fortunately there is a break in the holiday towns and the untamed wilderness are of the "Carmargue delta" with its marsh lands and wild white horses provide a measure of natural beauty.

We were staying in a large and well equipped caravan on one of the Siblu holiday parcs.

Formerly known as "Haven Europe" the company operates in France, Italy and Spain.

As well as renting they offer the opportunity to buy and own a holiday home.

When not exploring the local towns or topping up your suntan on Carnon Beach which is on the other side of the lake just three miles away, there is plenty to do in the park.

 

In the early evening you may hear the clack of metal balls as holiday makers play boule under the shady pine trees outside the cafe and bar.

Nightly shows are staged by the eight strong entertainments company and we found them giving polished performances in their version of the musical “Grease” and a rather spooky Halloween production.

I met Jodi Hutton who helps run the Tiger Club for the 4 to 9 year olds while their parents relax.

She was also involved with the shows and was looking forward with some trepidation to her part in a Bond style production involving a cat fight with another girl and nifty foot work with some nimble Ninjas

Jodi, who recently finished a college course in the performing arts at Stratford on Avon is happy with this her first professional engagement.

She is the baby of the company and appeared as a witch and a scarecrow. I had to say that she looked considerably more attractive by the swimming pool.

The pools are impressive and they are well staffed by life guards who are kept alert by changing station every 15 minutes and taking time away each hour.

Unfortunately they finish work at 6pm and the pools are then closed. Not so good if you come back from a day away and fancy a swim.

Many of the local towns along the coast bustle with tourists in high season. One of the first to be constructed was La Grande Motte it has stunning architecture and has become a huge and famous seaside resort.

It's not a particularly up-market sort of place but it's well served with restaurants and amenities and activities for children.

By contrast there are a good few jewels to be found just inland. Aigues Morte is worth a visit and is an authentic ancient walled town that seems to breath history.

The name "Aigues Morte" must have been there before the city was, harking back to a time when only the marshes and the ponds called "Dead Water " (Aquoe Mortuoe) decorated the landscape.

The imposing ramparts date back to 1240 when Louis IX (St Louis) choose the place for a port in the Mediterranean and made a fortress of it.

You can tour around it in a small road train. (Adults: 4 Euros, Children: 2.50 Euros.

 

Further afield and inland, Carcassone and the village of Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert provide interesting history and stunning camera fodder and the small original local towns have charm.

Beach, touring or even canoeing through the Hérault Gorges in "La vallee des Moulins" the Valley of the mills you certainly will not be bored.

Bon voyage!

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FACT FILE

The beaches of Languedoc Roussillon, tend to be larger and sandier than the ones in Provence and some stretch for miles along a coastline. There is a really superb guide to them at:
http://www.creme-de-languedoc.com/Languedoc/languedoc-beaches.php

For more information about the Siblu holiday park at Lac de Reves log on to http://www.siblu.com/

Aigues Morte: http://www.pescalune-aiguesmortes.com/

Canoeing through the Hérault Gorges: http://www.canoevdm.com/htm/eng.htm

Caravan at Rocamadour : http://perso.orange.fr/lestilleuls-roca/INDEX_ANG.htm
(Tel. 05 65 33 64 66.)