Bordeaux Camperventure

Well, what a mission THIS was. Booked back in February, we’d already gone through multiple cycles of we will/we won’t be able to go. We’d had to jiggle flights a bit as easyJet changed their schedules (but they were pretty helpful, it has to be said), and had a minor wobble as Indie Campers finally confessed they’d had to downsize our campervan as the bigger models were all stuck in Germany, but as departure day loomed closer, it looked like we were game on for a two week break after all. And then, UK.gov brought in quarantine (or quatorzaine, which is much more accurate) for arrivals from France, and we had to adapt. (In fact, as it was so obvious this would happen, I’d procured alternate flights back just in case, £120 well spent, it turned out.) Week 2 cancelled so we’d have enough time to clear quarantine before start of school.

On to the trip. We were picked up from Bordeaux airport by Luis and, sure enough, 3YO was car-sick on the 30 minute journey to the van depot. The epic trip I’d sketched out looping around Royan, Cognac, Angouleme, Perigueux ands Bergerac went up in smoke. :o) In fact, what we did was plenty enough driving – 30-60 minutes a day was ample for all of us.

We used a combination of France Passion‘s book and Google Maps to find places to stay. The France Passion options are nice as they’re quiet and eclectic, but facilities are lacking or non-existent. But they are free to stay at! We stayed at a deserted chateau with a couple of horses and a tree with fallen apples to feed them; a semi-industrial wine warehouse facility and a truly gorgeous chateau representing the St Émilion ideal (although with no loos, let alone shower).

We switched up to some campsites, as I was feeling the need for more washing options and we were asking a lot of the girls – adding in a swimming pool felt the right thing to do, especially given the 34 degree heat. Le Maine Blanc had a decent pool, but not much else to recommend it. Oak Lake was very nice indeed, and the lake a good selling point (and freshly made bread/pastries in the morning too!). Le Vieux Chateau took top marks though – really friendly, very clean, great services and nice other guests.

The driving was good fun. A good engine in the van and it moved nicely. I’m glad in fact we were downgraded, as our original choice would have been wider (maybe even longer), and this van was plenty to be getting through some of the situations we found ourselves in. Heck of a turning circle on it though, and 2.75m tall, so not really suitable for nipping to the shops in. Our GPS had a great time, taking us on essentially very well tarmacked farm tracks that criss-crossed between the main roads. It really felt very off the beaten track, and all the better for it.

We met up with a friend who randomly was in the area, so we met for a walk in Maubuisson. And at St Émilion, we saw some friends who now live in Bordeaux for a picnic lunch and a stroll.

St Émilion was a real highlight, a lovely village centre and we enjoyed a fabulous steak tartare lunch there, plus stocked up on the wafer thin little local coconut macaroons that seem to be a specialty. As we were flying home, we couldn’t stock up on wine – this saved time, as every other shop is a wine merchant and you could go mad (and broke).

The other highlight was Rauzan, the village just above the Vieux Chateau campsite. A nice, short walk up to it, and everything you’d want from a modest village – coffees, bread and a good pharmacy.

And we also had a good time at Blaye – we took the ferry across from Lamarque and visited the Citadel, which was well worth a trip, and had a cracking restaurant (also a hotel) within the walled village – actually, it had several restaurants, and a few little crafty shops too.

Blaye (and ferry to get there from Lamarque)

The holiday was a great change of pace and scenery, so really welcome after the months at home. The blend of campsites and independent venues was good, but the beds (especially the top bunk) in the van were pretty tough, even for a week. A battery fan inside would have been helpful at bedtime, given the heat and unmoving air. I managed to twist my ankle really quite badly while hopping in and out of the driver’s seat trying to get aligned to empty the grey water tank, which was very painful, but fortunately didn’t incapacitate me.

The final nuisance was the huge, unmanaged, queue at Gatwick. All the families needed to queue to be checked by a human operative, that makes sense, but social distancing was out the window, and they had not streamed people based on their arrival, so I can only assume arrivals from France, Spain (quarantine-required) were cheek by jowl with those from Greece, Portugal (no quarantine required) for 20+ minutes, making a mockery of the whole flipping thing.