Where should we go in Spain and France?

We have our ferry booked to Spain in August. We have done this twice before exploring Spain with our two kids who were babies and young kids then.
This time we are driving all the way back to Calais. This is a new adventure for us all and we have 2 1/2 weeks. We will spend maybe 2 nights around San Sebastián and then go over the Pyrenees into France.

Should we go Green route or Blue??

We have done Loire valley and half way down the green route towards La Rochelle before. But that was many years ago. It might be nice to do this route again but in the opposite direction.

Two years ago we got 2/3 the way towards Provence down the blue route and had fun. The main appeal of this route is exploring the south of France. In 13 years we have never got that far before. Good weather seems appealing.

I’m interested in people’s opinions and also those who know the Pyrenees well. Any suggestions welcome.

Blue will be sunnier and busier, looks like a big chunk will be on expensive tolls.

Espot in the Pyrenees is stunning if you love mountains and the quieter life.
The puy du fou is a cool French take on a theme park, your kids may enjoy. Google it as it’s not what you probably think.
Green

I always think it’s best to discover these places for yourself. Some people love holiday parks with their own attractions while others love the peace and quiet. We are booked for September and are doing the opposite of you. Driving through France then Andorra down the East coast of Spain then MotoGP in Aragon and up through the middle of Spain to Santander. Theres always the campsites we go back to but try new ones as well. It’s just an adventure.....

Ozzy Pete said:

I always think it’s best to discover these places for yourself. Some people love holiday parks with their own attractions while others love the peace and quiet. We are booked for September and are doing the opposite of you. Driving through France then Andorra down the East coast of Spain then MotoGP in Aragon and up through the middle of Spain to Santander. Theres always the campsites we go back to but try new ones as well. It’s just an adventure.....

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Spanish MotoGP sounds good, is there weekend camping at the track?
Ideas are always handy but yes good to explore and stumble of hidden gem that’s how I found Espot.

We used to live in Provence, it’s a tad over rated. The autoroute drive back to UK from there via Dijon or Reims ok but west coast of France better but slower trip. Way cheaper for everything plus once you hit Provence the beaches and camping sites get crowded and expensive. I prefer French coastline to mountains, plenty of empty beaches and fabulous good value food in Occitanie, Dordogne and all the way up the west side. Stick to the now free Michelin Guide app for eating out - it’s always right especially at the cheaper price ranges and get a SANEF E tag. Bon voyage!

@Lambeth Cali tell us what type of adventure you would like. One to remember is that France will be JAM PACKED in August as the French all take their holiday that month, and the coastline in particular will be steaming

Also, the time you have may mean a lot of rushing about??

Pyrenees are fantastic for wild camping and big adventures. How about returning via the Massif Central? beautiful and often overlooked….the volcano’s are awesome

We pretty much always go in August. We usually cope okay. With the ages of our kids we can do reasonable miles and manged the long 600 miles drive back last year from Ardeche in two days.
That would allow us to have a few days in the Pyrenees and a good week or so in the South if we go Blue route. We usually like to stay 2 or 3 days at places but may stay for 5 if we really like somewhere.
With it being August I would reserve sites at the beginning and end. I hadn't actually decided if I would reserve all every site. Probably most of it with a couple of gaps. We never wild camp.
"Adventure" is a fairly mild use of the word! More going to new places, rather than swinging off mountains. Went up a windmill this weekend and that nearly gave me a nose bleed.

If you get as far as St Tropez there is the best theme park for teenagers, ever.
It’s a bit like Disney with all of the themes and queues removed and all the rides out next door to each other.
Actually it’s nothing like Disney, it’s brilliant.

If you are going that way, it’s a long way down, Haut-Villers is nice to stock up on champagne. Lyon is worth a day trip for lunch and to see the giant wall painting, mur de canuts.

At Lyon I’d be tempted to drive towards Italy through tunnel Mont Blanc and down to Genova , stunningly pretty route, then back into France near Monaco. Monaco brilliant for car spotting, otherwise vulgar.

id take a couple of days in the picos first then pyrenees love the road that goes through isaba into france , spainish side is cheaper for food as well if eating out , then head over to tarn gorge area , then grenoble area (vercors balcony roads), annecy , if i wasnt heading austria way after busfest id probably do the same myself as i did before whilst motorcycle touring

4x4 joker said:

Spanish MotoGP sounds good, is there weekend camping at the track?
Ideas are always handy but yes good to explore and stumble of hidden gem that’s how I found Espot.

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We have been twice previous to Covid. It’s unbelievably hard to find somewhere anywhere near the circuit. The last time we went every single road within a 50 klm radius of the circuit was blocked by police and took us ages to get back to our campsite which was Lake Caspe. www.campinglakecaspe.com. Lovely site but you have to be into bikes big time if you stay over the MotoGP period. The lake is massive and you can hire a motorboat by the hour. Something to think about..... oh and if you are of a certain age it’s FREE entry into the motoGP, just show your passport.

Have done kinda both and no preference for one or the other: it depends entirely on you. But since you've never seen this part of the south, you can certainly opt for your blue route (and if you're there at the end of August, the crowds could not be too bad there).
What I would recommend, whichever route you choose, stay away from the péages as much as possible: France is so much more beautiful and more real along the route nationales and such.
For overnight you can use Park4night, it’s French and very useful.

Lambeth Cali said:

We have our ferry booked to Spain in August. We have done this twice before exploring Spain with our two kids who were babies and young kids then.
This time we are driving all the way back to Calais. This is a new adventure for us all and we have 2 1/2 weeks. We will spend maybe 2 nights around San Sebastián and then go over the Pyrenees into France.

Should we go Green route or Blue??
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We have done Loire valley and half way down the green route towards La Rochelle before. But that was many years ago. It might be nice to do this route again but in the opposite direction.

Two years ago we got 2/3 the way towards Provence down the blue route and had fun. The main appeal of this route is exploring the south of France. In 13 years we have never got that far before. Good weather seems appealing.

I’m interested in people’s opinions and also those who know the Pyrenees well. Any suggestions welcome.

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21/2 weeks is a bit quick we took four weeks last sept/Oct and had give Portugal a miss. We loved seville, Ronda (photo of bridge) is a must, Marbella is superb, especially the old town and Toledo (second photo). And believe it or not Benidom, great campsite, superb pool, a short cycle ride to the prom.

Anthony1 said:

21/2 weeks is a bit quick we took four weeks last sept/Oct and had give Portugal a miss. We loved seville, Ronda (photo of bridge) is a must, Marbella is superb, especially the old town and Toledo (second photo). And believe it or not Benidom, great campsite, superb pool, a short cycle ride to the prom.

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We’ve done most of Spain with the kids before. One 4 wk and one 2 wk holiday. It’s more the opportunity to see South of France we are looking forward to.

Lambeth Cali said:

We’ve done most of Spain with the kids before. One 4 wk and one 2 wk holiday. It’s more the opportunity to see South of France we are looking forward to.

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We used to go to Frejus regularly when our boys were small, camped on the beach near Port Grimaud. On the way back from Spain last year we stopped off at an amazing town, Le Grande Motte (photos). Fabulous sea front. Of course Cannes, Nice, Grasse, Monaco, all worth a visit.

Sounds great fun. How about driving across Spain, wonderful scenery, through Pamplona, to just south of Barcelona, then a few nights next to a sandy Mediterranean beach (did a site just south of Barca airport and another sixty miles further south near Tarragona, both wonderfully located on the beach and not packed out in the second half of August) then head north, veering into the mountains (for some cheap stuff in Andorra if that's important and the scenery if it's not), and then across Southern France as far as the Camargue, stopping at Aigues Morts, walled coastal town on which many English and Welsh castles are based, and Arles for some van Gogh and the fantastic Roman arena, before trundling north, avoiding motorways, using town aires or municipal sites for the showers. If you took your blue route you could go via Beaune, in Burgundy, another walled medieval town with a large aire (actually a large car park near a supermarket in the town centre, five minutes from the old bit) and drive through the vineyards of Champagne, avoiding Paris before arriving at Calais, which, incidentally, has a fantastic beach with car parking under 2 meters or on road parking a few minutes' walk away and a brilliant wave machine every few minutes (the ferries!) and surprisingly inexpensive waffle coned ice-creams ............ sorry, zoned out a few minutes ago, near "as far as the Camargue" and then just wrote in a hazy dream of holidays gone by! Whatever you choose, have a wonderful time ......

If it’s beaches you’re after I’d think twice about the blue route with kids - I’ve been there several times in august (pre children!) and the south coast is very congested. Beaches on Côte d’Azur are generally small with jams on approach roads and car parks full by early morning. We used to stay on a campsite near Moustiers (gorges du verdon) where you can swim in the nearby lake it’s still v busy though in summer. In my experience west coast is easier driving and much better beaches - although cold Atlantic rather than warm med of course!


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All very interesting suggestions. Thanks.

We don’t tend to do aires. We like lazy breakfasts and evening reading by the van. Ideally some ducks wandering past, kids in playground inventing new rules for “waffle club”.
But route suggestions great. I like a swimming lake. Wasn’t aware of South coast crowds. We’ve hardly ever been in traffic jams over the years. Perhaps green route better. Or a bit of both.

I was interested in Rousillon. Just over Pyrenees. Anyone been there??

I know D roads more scenic but I’m a fan of 90mph autoroutes in the Cali. Kent police are often telling me off for that. I worry about tolls when we get back. I enjoy using the Tag

Lambeth Cali said:

All very interesting suggestions. Thanks.

We don’t tend to do aires. We like lazy breakfasts and evening reading by the van. Ideally some ducks wandering past, kids in playground inventing new rules for “waffle club”.
But route suggestions great. I like a swimming lake. Wasn’t aware of South coast crowds. We’ve hardly ever been in traffic jams over the years. Perhaps green route better. Or a bit of both.

I was interested in Rousillon. Just over Pyrenees. Anyone been there??

I know D roads more scenic but I’m a fan of 90mph autoroutes in the Cali. Kent police are often telling me off for that. I worry about tolls when we get back. I enjoy using the Tag

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Why not straight up the middle, real France, unlike the touristy South and west coasts. The Municipal sites are excellent in small villages/towns.
Normally on the local leisure facilities. Most have excellent basic facilities. Rarely busy. Never had a problem getting in. Mixture of ehu and non-ehu pitches and in the "real" France.

WelshGas said:

Why not straight up the middle, real France, unlike the touristy South and west coasts. The Municipal sites are excellent in small villages/towns.
Normally on the local leisure facilities. Most have excellent basic facilities. Rarely busy. Never had a problem getting in. Mixture of ehu and non-ehu pitches and in the "real" France.

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Yes I would like that.
Part of the desire to stay south was for good weather. It has a huge effect on our holiday memories.
We could work our way up slowly.

Lambeth Cali said:

Yes I would like that.
Part of the desire to stay south was for good weather. It has a huge effect on our holiday memories.
We could work our way up slowly.

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WelshGas said:

French Municipal Campsites In France

Camping is a great way to see France plus with many different French municipal campsites available you can be sure to find the right place at a very reasonable cost.

www.eutouring.com

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Lambeth Cali said:

Yes I would like that.
Part of the desire to stay south was for good weather. It has a huge effect on our holiday memories.
We could work our way up slowly.

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I agree with everything that WelshGas says: the municipales are often gems, simple but just that little bit more than a normal camping spot. And not expensive at all and sometimes in the middle of a village so bakery, butcher and so on within walking distance.
Mind you, you will not find this along the péages so you will have to drive off and return to the boring péage in the morning
Enjoy!

Go on the blue route . I'm now living in the South of France , try the North of Department 30 if you like real France , almost no one speaking English, low prices , not many tourists, lots of aire camping situations in nature and river swimming all with Mediterranean weather.
Drop me a private message if you like to drop by in Mid August for the night, parking , shower etc and pool available.

WelshGas said:

French Municipal Campsites In France

Camping is a great way to see France plus with many different French municipal campsites available you can be sure to find the right place at a very reasonable cost.

www.eutouring.com

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Excellent link. Thank you

At least when we visit France for the next 5 years they are still going to be part of NATO and not in Putins pocket.

Anthony1 said:

Excellent link. Thank you

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Try Besseges camping , on the river and 50m away from a fabulous guinguette restaurant, on the river , must book though at least a week ahead.