Our Family Road Trip to the South of France

This summer we packed up the car and headed south once again, making the long journey from London down to the Mediterranean. We’ve driven this route before, but one of the things I love about a road trip is that no two journeys need to be the same. This time, we planned our stopovers a little differently — choosing smaller, scenic towns that gave us the chance to explore more of France along the way.

The Outbound Journey

Stop 1: Laon

Just 2.5 hours from Calais, Laon was the perfect first stop to ease into the drive. The old town, perched on a hill, has cobbled streets and charming decorations that instantly made us feel like we were in “real France.” We stayed the night at a rustic farm, where the highlight for the children was undoubtedly feeding the animals. It was a peaceful and relaxed start to the journey.

Stop 2: Noyers

The next morning we set off for Noyers, another 2.5 hours’ drive away. Noyers turned out to be one of the prettiest villages we’ve ever visited — the kind of place that feels straight out of Beauty and the Beast, with its timber-framed houses and winding medieval streets. We only needed a short time here, but it was well worth the detour.

Stop 3: Clermont-Ferrand

From Noyers, we braced ourselves for the longest driving stretch of the trip: another 3 hours and 40 minutes down to Clermont-Ferrand, our next overnight stop. We could have shaved an hour or two off the overall driving time by taking the most direct route south, but choosing to stop in Laon and Noyers made the journey so much more scenic and memorable.

Our Stay at La Sérignan Plage

This was our second visit to Yelloh! Village La Sérignan Plage, and it felt like there was even more going on this time. The pool area had daily music and dancing, and on the 15th of August the site came alive with fireworks and celebrations for Assumption Day.

The pool complex does get busy — no surprise given the size of the campsite — and the whole holiday concept is definitely geared more towards children’s fun than adult relaxation. But two visits in, and I can’t fault it in terms of quality. The accommodation is excellent, the entertainment is full-on and varied, and the beach is just a three-minute walk away. Most importantly, it manages to tick the boxes for our teenagers as much as it does for our younger children, which is no small feat.

I’ve written a full review of La Sérignan Plage here if you’d like all the details.

The Return Journey

Stop 1: Gannat

After saying goodbye to the beach at Sérignan Plage, we drove 3 hours 40 minutes north to Gannat, just above Clermont-Ferrand. We broke up the drive with lunch and a visit to Paléopolis, a prehistoric park with lots of model dinosaurs and some interactive exhibits. The children loved digging for fossils. That night we stayed in a yurt — Sam’s idea for something a little different. The kids were thrilled, and it certainly made for a memorable stop.

Stop 2: Saint-Valery-sur-Somme

The following day was the longest driving leg of the trip — just under six hours. This route takes you right past Paris, so if you wanted to add a city break into your itinerary, it would make a convenient stop.

We carried on to Saint-Valery-sur-Somme instead, a touristy but atmospheric town on the coast. Its streets are lined with restaurants serving endless moules-frites. It’s also a place steeped in history — William the Conqueror set sail for England here in 1066, and Joan of Arc was imprisoned here centuries later.

Final Leg: Back to Calais

From Saint-Valery it was only a 1.5-hour drive back to Calais. We arrived at the Eurotunnel terminal a couple of hours earlier than our standard ticket time, and by chance, it wasn’t busy. We were waved onto the next train — a little bonus that doesn’t always happen (in the past we’ve tried and been told to wait for our scheduled train).

Tips for Planning a South of France Road Trip

• Factor in the Costs
  Driving with kids can be cheaper than flying — especially for larger families — but there are still fuel, tolls, and overnight stops to think about. I’ve written a full cost comparison of driving vs flying to the South of France if you want to see the numbers broken down. And of course, the journey assumes you’ve got a reliable family car to start with — for anyone weighing up an upgrade before a big trip like this, it’s worth exploring car financing options by award-winning lender Azora to see what’s achievable.

• Plan Scenic Stopovers
  For us, the journey isn’t just about getting from A to B. This time we used the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France directory for inspiration, which is how we ended up in Noyers. It’s well worth picking one or two villages to break up the drive and make it part of the holiday.

• Keep the Driving Manageable
  Splitting the trip into two overnight stops meant we averaged around four hours of driving per day. It made the journey feel more relaxed and gave us time to explore en route. Depending on your children’s ages and patience levels, you might decide one stopover is enough.

• Mix Up the Accommodation
  Hotels and Airbnbs are convenient, but adding something a bit different (like our night in a yurt in Gannat) keeps the trip exciting for the kids. Or you could try one of the many French campsites with great family-friendly facilities — a swimming pool, playground, or on-site activities can make all the difference after a long drive.

Reflections on the Route

Doing the trip this way, with two overnight stops in each direction, meant an average of about four hours’ driving per day. Now that the children are older and more patient, we easily could have managed with just one stopover each way. But taking two gave us the time and space to actually do things en route — like visiting Paléopolis this time, or the Museum of Confluences in Lyon on our previous trip, or simply wandering through picturesque French villages.

It felt less like a slog southwards and more like a series of mini-adventures that stretched the holiday out beyond the beach. And for me, that’s the real joy of a family road trip.

This trip has definitely spurred us on to plan more road trips across Europe. Next time we might cross over into Spain and revisit the Costa Brava — we had such a wonderful time in Begur — or perhaps try a different holiday parc in France or even Italy. There are so many options!

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