This article was first published in The Independent travel section in June 2008
You have 1,500 km to drive in three days, but even with this strict timescale you still have time to show your children a sample of the finest the French have to offer. With only 117 km to the French border you can point out the distant mountain tops of the Pyrenees as you pass but I would recommend not stopping until you reach the village of Labouheyre in the Landes region of Southwest France. A family stopping point beyond reproach, especially if you remember to bring along a picnic, located on the border of Parc Naturel Régional des Landes de Gascogne it is still close to the main road to Bordeaux so as not to disrupt your journey.
You will reach Bordeaux an hour after leaving Labouheyre and this is where you have to make some tough decisions. Wine or Brandy? Staying in Bordeaux overnight will offer you the chance to discover a town listed as a World Heritage Site in 2007 and the opportunity to sample the wines that have long since made Bordeaux a household name. If you are in the mood for extravagance, and why ever not you are in Bordeaux after all, then enjoy Café Maritime (0033 05 57 10 20 40; www.cafemaritime.com) in the Quai Armand Lalande for around €20 (£16.67) per person. For a more family orientated price range you should consider, La Remise (0033 5 56 48 20 01) at €13 (£10.84) per head. Both restaurants offer an expansive wine range by the glass and bottle and are a mere stones throw from the Garonne River. If you choose to bed down in Bordeaux for the evening, Hôtel de la Presse offers double rooms starting at €50(41.67) including breakfast. If you want to press on then Cognac, your next destination is only 134km up the road.
If your children are of the nautical disposition, then maybe choose brandy over wine and follow the coast from Bordeaux 100 km until you reach Le Verdon-Sur-Mer where you can cross the Gironde Estuary on a ferry to Royan where on the half hour journey your children will see the oldest working lighthouse in Europe, Cordouan lighthouse, as recommended by the French Tourist Board (09068 244 123; uk.franceguide.com/). Once you depart the ferry Cognac is 65km due east and will take about an hour to travel to. Stay in the Hôtel Cheval Blanc (0033 05 45 82 09 55; www.hotel-chevalblanc.fr) from €52(£43.4) for a double room per night, it is a short walk to the La Charente river and close to the Jardin Public and the town centre shops, bars and restaurants. As is the general theme for this road trip, L’etage (0033 05 45 82 07 03; www.express-etage.com) offers the decadence at a budget that France so readily offers in this region. Should the time be available to you, then you can visit the houses of Martell, Hennessy and Remy Martin amongst others and tours of the Hennessy distillery are priced from €9(£7.50) in late August.
Leaving Cognac, head North West to Les Sables D’olonne where you will find eleven kilometers of beachfront that is less tourist orientated than the Ile de Re coast a hundred kilometers south. With high tide before 10am and after 4pm this town makes for a splendorous lunch stop where the children can enjoy the beaches with the aid of a volleyball and a dish of fresh Breton seafood at L’Oceane (0033 02 51 21 16 88) and with a price range of between €15-20 (£12.50-17) it is reasonable enough so you can resist sitting on the dock with your fishing rod and a disposable barbeque.
After lunch a leisurely one and a half hour drive North-east to Angers will leave you with time to spend an afternoon and evening experiencing a glistening pearl of western France. Overlooked by the Chateau d’Angers, where the Duke of Wellington trained before defeating Napoleon at Waterloo, Angers is a university town thus the lifestyle is very youth orientated making it suitable for your children. At the Chateau you can see the largest collection of medieval tapestries in the world and wander around the walls of a castle to have proudly never fallen to any invading force.
Continuing the parental pleasure aspect of the trip, why not visit the Distillerie Cointreau, which lies just off the Angers ring road and offers tours in English every hour for €5.50(£4.60) or relax a little and check into Univers Angers (bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk) in the town centre from €55(£45.90) a night plus €9(£7.5) for an extra bed. Early evening could see you take a stroll around the Jardin des Plantes, Angers former botanical gardens and full of exotic plants or visit Cathédrale Saint-Maurice d'Angers and if you get time, La Maison d’Adam. In the evening try Caveau, with its cave like ceilings and rounded tables it is bordering on the traditional but without the stuffy airs and graces often associated with French cuisine and with prices starting at €12(£10) a head or alternatively La Ferme offers a four course dinner for €17(14.20) excluding drinks. On a full stomach walk back to your hotel, staying as always to the main streets for safety and sleep, for tomorrow the final leg is 500km.
From Angers you will arrive at Rouen, on the banks of the River Seine. On the drive you may see points of interest regarding both World Wars as this region of Normandy was significant in both allied and French resistance struggle against the Nazi’s. The port town of Rouen hosts an annual Armada which sees the worlds most impressive shipping vessels descend on this tiny stretch of the river. In late August it is my suggested stopping point midway through your journey, not too large to be disruptive on time but with a wide enough selection of café’s that you can find a lunch for three for under €15(£12.50). If you have time see the Tour de Beurre (Butter tower), named so because during lent in Medieval times, phesants used to pay to use butter instead of giving it up and this funds were used to build the tower. It served as a muse for Monet and the astronomical clock on Gros Horloge street and dates back to the 15th century.
Two hundred kilometers North-East takes you to Calais, your final destination. France is more than Paris, vineyards and the expensive south; it is a country where each village or country town offers their own produce whether it be sausage, cheese or liquor. Never be afraid to stop when driving through France because the worse that will happen is you discover a flavour you will only deplore the supermarkets for not stocking when you get home.
You will reach Bordeaux an hour after leaving Labouheyre and this is where you have to make some tough decisions. Wine or Brandy? Staying in Bordeaux overnight will offer you the chance to discover a town listed as a World Heritage Site in 2007 and the opportunity to sample the wines that have long since made Bordeaux a household name. If you are in the mood for extravagance, and why ever not you are in Bordeaux after all, then enjoy Café Maritime (0033 05 57 10 20 40; www.cafemaritime.com) in the Quai Armand Lalande for around €20 (£16.67) per person. For a more family orientated price range you should consider, La Remise (0033 5 56 48 20 01) at €13 (£10.84) per head. Both restaurants offer an expansive wine range by the glass and bottle and are a mere stones throw from the Garonne River. If you choose to bed down in Bordeaux for the evening, Hôtel de la Presse offers double rooms starting at €50(41.67) including breakfast. If you want to press on then Cognac, your next destination is only 134km up the road.
If your children are of the nautical disposition, then maybe choose brandy over wine and follow the coast from Bordeaux 100 km until you reach Le Verdon-Sur-Mer where you can cross the Gironde Estuary on a ferry to Royan where on the half hour journey your children will see the oldest working lighthouse in Europe, Cordouan lighthouse, as recommended by the French Tourist Board (09068 244 123; uk.franceguide.com/). Once you depart the ferry Cognac is 65km due east and will take about an hour to travel to. Stay in the Hôtel Cheval Blanc (0033 05 45 82 09 55; www.hotel-chevalblanc.fr) from €52(£43.4) for a double room per night, it is a short walk to the La Charente river and close to the Jardin Public and the town centre shops, bars and restaurants. As is the general theme for this road trip, L’etage (0033 05 45 82 07 03; www.express-etage.com) offers the decadence at a budget that France so readily offers in this region. Should the time be available to you, then you can visit the houses of Martell, Hennessy and Remy Martin amongst others and tours of the Hennessy distillery are priced from €9(£7.50) in late August.
Leaving Cognac, head North West to Les Sables D’olonne where you will find eleven kilometers of beachfront that is less tourist orientated than the Ile de Re coast a hundred kilometers south. With high tide before 10am and after 4pm this town makes for a splendorous lunch stop where the children can enjoy the beaches with the aid of a volleyball and a dish of fresh Breton seafood at L’Oceane (0033 02 51 21 16 88) and with a price range of between €15-20 (£12.50-17) it is reasonable enough so you can resist sitting on the dock with your fishing rod and a disposable barbeque.
After lunch a leisurely one and a half hour drive North-east to Angers will leave you with time to spend an afternoon and evening experiencing a glistening pearl of western France. Overlooked by the Chateau d’Angers, where the Duke of Wellington trained before defeating Napoleon at Waterloo, Angers is a university town thus the lifestyle is very youth orientated making it suitable for your children. At the Chateau you can see the largest collection of medieval tapestries in the world and wander around the walls of a castle to have proudly never fallen to any invading force.
Continuing the parental pleasure aspect of the trip, why not visit the Distillerie Cointreau, which lies just off the Angers ring road and offers tours in English every hour for €5.50(£4.60) or relax a little and check into Univers Angers (bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk) in the town centre from €55(£45.90) a night plus €9(£7.5) for an extra bed. Early evening could see you take a stroll around the Jardin des Plantes, Angers former botanical gardens and full of exotic plants or visit Cathédrale Saint-Maurice d'Angers and if you get time, La Maison d’Adam. In the evening try Caveau, with its cave like ceilings and rounded tables it is bordering on the traditional but without the stuffy airs and graces often associated with French cuisine and with prices starting at €12(£10) a head or alternatively La Ferme offers a four course dinner for €17(14.20) excluding drinks. On a full stomach walk back to your hotel, staying as always to the main streets for safety and sleep, for tomorrow the final leg is 500km.
From Angers you will arrive at Rouen, on the banks of the River Seine. On the drive you may see points of interest regarding both World Wars as this region of Normandy was significant in both allied and French resistance struggle against the Nazi’s. The port town of Rouen hosts an annual Armada which sees the worlds most impressive shipping vessels descend on this tiny stretch of the river. In late August it is my suggested stopping point midway through your journey, not too large to be disruptive on time but with a wide enough selection of café’s that you can find a lunch for three for under €15(£12.50). If you have time see the Tour de Beurre (Butter tower), named so because during lent in Medieval times, phesants used to pay to use butter instead of giving it up and this funds were used to build the tower. It served as a muse for Monet and the astronomical clock on Gros Horloge street and dates back to the 15th century.
Two hundred kilometers North-East takes you to Calais, your final destination. France is more than Paris, vineyards and the expensive south; it is a country where each village or country town offers their own produce whether it be sausage, cheese or liquor. Never be afraid to stop when driving through France because the worse that will happen is you discover a flavour you will only deplore the supermarkets for not stocking when you get home.
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