Camping Du Bas Meygnaud

There’s something special about Camping du Bas Meygnaud. Normally if you mention a campsite in France with a pool, on-site restaurant, bike rental, badminton court and a pair of mobile homes to rent your head begins to swim with the sound of screaming children and the clapping bingo-wings of morning aqua-aerobics sessions. However Camping du Bas Meygnaud could not be further away from this commercial camping fanfare.

Run by potentially the friendliest hosts on the continent and poised in countryside so sun-floweringly typical of rural France, this is the traditional family camping that everyone this side of the channel is searching for. A blanket of tall pine trees casts a cooling cover of shade over half of the campsite, the skinny trunks reaching high above, spilling their shadows across the grass pitches underneath. This brown and green scene is given colour by the glorious summer sun splintering through the canopy, as well as, of course, the peppering of colourful family tents. Out in the open there is ample camping space away from the trees, ideal for suntan searches and those wanting to camp closest to the amenities – modern, clean and well equipped for families with the littlest of campers.

The real pleasures here, though, come in the homely little touches that give Camping Du Bas Meygnaud that friendly local feel. An organic herb garden looks, at first glance, a little over grown but venture closer and you'll find a treasure trove of produce waiting to be plucked and thrown into your evening meal. The busy worker bees that to and fro from the vegetables in flower are also on your side, stockpiling their goods in the beehive that provides honey to campers with a sweet tooth. Some of this produce can be brought in the small grocery shop by reception. Or, if you fancy the night off, enjoy some tasty slap-up regional food and wood-fired pizzas in the campsite’s restaurant.