Liked Everything. Mark is a great host. We were allowed to pick our own pitch. The campsite is an absolute little gem. There are no divides between the individual pitch areas but this is absolutely not a problem as there is so much space. The camping field is beautiful. All the other campers on site were so friendly, just like the host. The pool is smaller than maybe some other sites but again this isn't a problem. The kids and us loved the pool. The shower facilities are excellent. They really are the best we've every experienced on a camping holiday. Proper showers like you'd have at home. None of this push button malarkey. Mark keeps them spotlessly clean. Washing machine is €4, very reasonable. You need a washing machine token from Mark. There is a tumble dryer but we didn't use it because it was so hot during our stay. We just hung the washing out. Mark provides a bread order service for in the morning. He comes round the evening before and asks what bread you would like for the next morning. A very relaxing campsite in a rural setting. not noisy at all. Genuinely the best campsite we've stayed on. We would highly recommend and will definitely be coming back. We loved it.

Disliked This is not a dislike. We absolutely loved our stay on site. During our time on site, it became a little busy. Mark's 2 excellent showers on site probably weren't enough at that point for the number of people on site at that time. If at any point Mark grew his excellent shower facilities by even another 2 shower cubicles. It would be a real asset to his already brilliant campsite.

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Liked The staff are welcoming and friendly. Although I always try to use my terrible French, the staff spoke really good English. The pool is really nice. On site bread order each morning. You order it the day before at the bar/shop and collect it the next morning at the bar/shop. That the showers have an element of temperature control to them. I discovered the really large shower cubicle down the bottom on the right hand side with a sink in it also. I used that shower for the rest of my stay. Close to Mimizan for the beach. Toilet/wash/shower area nice and clean. Toilet paper provided.

Disliked Was very noisy at night with teenage kids messing around. Was gone midnight by the time some people went to bed and stopped being noisy. If you're having a shower and somebody flushes the toilet, your shower water goes scolding hot for a second or two. They seem to clean the toilet/wash/shower area on a morning, right around the time everyone seems to want to use it. They shut one side at a time for cleaning, leaving a queue of people for the toilet/wash/shower area. No hand-wash provided. You feel like you're all packed in like sardines on the camping pitches. The roads on site are made from a variety of recycled waste materials such as broken glass, mirrors and bricks, which although commendable for using materials that would otherwise be waste. It is very dusty because of this and there is overspill debris from it onto the camping pitches which is not ideal. The shower heads in the smaller shower cubicles are fixed and the water doesn't project far enough out from them. You really have to get your head under to wash your hair. There is wifi on site but you can only have it for a maximum of 2 devices which wasn't ideal for a family of 4 with at least 4 phones. Mobile Internet reception at the site was really not very good at all.

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From the manager: Thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed review of your stay. Regarding noise levels at the campsite, our manager is on site and makes sure each evening that everyone’s peace and quiet is respected. We do our very best to maintain a peaceful atmosphere after 11 p.m. and intervene whenever necessary. Regarding the cleaning of the sanitary facilities, this does require the temporary closure of part of the sanitary block for approximately one hour. This is necessary to allow our team to thoroughly clean and disinfect the facilities, ensuring clean and pleasant amenities for all our guests. However, we always make sure that part of the sanitary facilities remains accessible during cleaning. As for the roads and pitches, our maintenance team regularly rakes the pathways and maintains the pitches. We did experience a significant period of drought, which unfortunately resulted in more dust than usual, despite our team’s regular maintenance. Finally, regarding the Wi-Fi, we have improved our network compared with previous years by installing additional antennas to provide better coverage. However, during busy periods, the network can become more heavily used, which may result in a slower connection. This is one of the reasons why we limit the number of connected devices, so that as many guests as possible can benefit from Wi-Fi access. Thank you again for all your comments. Your feedback is valuable to us and helps us continue to improve our services and the comfort of our guests. The Camping La Clairière Team

Liked This is a brilliant little place. Charline was extremely welcoming and friendly when we arrived and made us feel at ease as well as at home. We liked that we could choose our own pitch out of the pitches available on our arrival. The pitches are a really good size and semi private surrounded by hedges and set in a semi wooded area of mature trees. The toilet/shower/wash facilities are really good and clean. Toilet roll and hand was provided. €3 for the washing machine is excellent value. There is a tumble dryer also but we didn't use it. We just hung our washing out. There is a communal fridge/freezer should you wish to use it. The pool area is lovely. There is on site wifi. It struggles a little to reach in the camping pitch areas but our girls felt to at ease to go and sit up at the bar/restaurant area and use the wifi. The bar/restaurant areas are lovely. The pizzas are up there with the best we've ever had. The deserts are amazing as well. There is enough to do on site apart from the pool, with table tennis/badminton and volleyball. There is also a small fishing lake on site. The bakery is less than a 10min walk into the local village for all your French bread needs. The staff on site are so welcoming and helpful. Charline is like a busy little bee. She never seems to stop. Its obvious they are working very hard all the time to maintain the high standards on this site and it shows. We felt very peaceful amongst the trees during out stay at Le Lieu. Charline speaks extremely good English and god love her, she put up with and helped me with my terrible French. We would definitely stay here again.

Disliked These are not dislikes as we loved our time at Le Lieu and would definitely stay again. There was an issue with some of the locks on the toilet and shower doors. They were very difficult to lock at times. I spoke to Charline about it and she was aware of the issue. A nice addition would be a hand dryer next to the hand washing sink in the toilet area. The showers are really very good. A nice little control over the temperature of the shower so that you could adjust it hotter or colder to your liking would be a nice extra. Although I have to say, the showers were always of a lovely warm temperature. If I'm being really over critical, there may have been 1 or 2 cob webs in the toilet/washing areas but so what, It is in a woodland setting. Some of the pitches are a fair distance from the electrical hubs. Not a problem for us as we have and extra long electric supply lead. So, remember to bring yours or you can get one on site and leave a deposit.

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Liked Spacious pitch for tent. Big lake for swimming in. The pool with the slides is great fun. Site is nice. Restaurant serving good local food. Bread ordered at and collected at reception. Shop in reception area sells good French bits like madeleines and palmier biscuits along with ice lollies etc.

Disliked No toilet roll in the toilets, so remember to take your own. Similarly no hand wash in the toilets, so remember to bring your own or some hand sanitizer. Personally for a 4 star campsite I think these two things should be a given. Also, maybe because I'm an early bird and most definitely the first person on site in the showers. It took a long time for the hot water to come through. I basically had 2 cold showers on the 2 mornings I stayed. The hot water was just starting to come through by the time I'd finished my shower. The shower pressure is a bit weak and the shower doesn't stay on very long. One shower I used had the shower rose missing and the water came out like a jet. The showers and washing facilities are a little dated but we've found this with many French campsites. In some areas, this adds a bit of old French charm. Such as the terracotta esk floor tiles that I loved on this site but the rest of the washing facilities are due an update/renovation. The shower/washing/toilet areas could do with a bit of a better clean but they were usable.

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Liked I in particular loved our stay at Camping du Château de Leychoisier. We arrived at the site and I went in the office where I was met by the site owner. He's lovely but speaks occasional English. Between his little English and a lot of French and my little French and my a lot of English. We got checked in and on our pitch with electric hook up. The pitches on this site are massive, which is good for us because we were in our massive family tent. The pitches are all surrounded by beautiful mature trees and it's like camping in a woodland. Some people would describe the toilet, shower and washing facilities as a bit old but personally I think that added a bit of old French charm to things for me. You can place a bread order at the office each day for the next morning. All the usual French bread suspects can be ordered but I have to say that the croissants they get to site are literally the best croissants I've ever had. You go to the reception/office each morning to collect your bread order. You can buy other little bits from the reception/office such as wine and one of our daughters bought some cookies. The pool area is clean and well presented. The pool isn't heated but was always above 20°c each time we used it. Once you were in, it was very comfortable. My partner loved lounging by the pool whilst me and our daughters swam. There is also a lady who works in the office. She speaks more English than the owner. I found her good company, friendly and humorous. Whilst chatting with her, I found out she speaks German also. The site has wifi, it works around the office area just fine but struggles a little once you're under the trees in the camping pitch area. There is a washing machine on site to wash clothes. Don't try to find it yourself because you won't find it in a month of Sundays of looking. Ask at reception and pay the €7.50 (I also got a washing pod included in that price) and a member of staff will show you where the washing machine is. It is not a token operated washer like so many on other campsites. It was a normal domestic washing machine like anyone would have at home. The program instructions on it were in French but luckily for me, it was exactly the same washing machine I have at home in the UK. So, I knew exactly how to work it. I didn't see any drying facilities such as a dryer, we dried our our washing at our pitch on a camping clothes airer we have. You can take a walk around the grounds of the beautiful enchanting château. We also saw deer in a field next to the site. Lots of little birds will come and visit you on your pitch. Looking to pick up any bread crumbs you may have dropped. They're very friendly and are obviously used to campers being about the site. During our time at Camping du Château de Leychoisier, the site was always quiet and peaceful. I would definitely come back.

Disliked Obviously as above. We loved our stay at Camping du Château de Leychoisier. So, these aren't dislikes as such. Maybe it's because I work as a gardener. Grass, hedges and trees are my profession. The pitches are all a little on the shady side. I would not recommend getting rid of any of the trees. They're all beautiful but coppicing the trees to thin out the canopy would really make a difference. This would let a little more sun through and strike the perfect balance between light getting through and dappled shade. Again, maybe it's because I'm a gardener by profession but there is enough tree work at Camping du Château de Leychoisier to keep me busy for a very long time. As I've said the showers, toilets and washing areas are a little old and tired but I liked that and it added a bit of old school French charm. However that also comes with its quirks. The first shower on the left in the male showers with the nice fancy tiles. I found it to be of perfect temperature in the morning but oddly in the afternoon, the water temperature from it was hotter than the sun and too hot to use. I started using the second shower on the left. Again one of the showers with the nice fancy tiles in it. I found this shower to be of perfect temperature all the time and so that was the shower I used for the rest of our stay. My daughters used the newer showers that are at the back through both of the male and female shower areas. They complained at first that some of them were too cold. They discovered that the middle cubicle apparently was the best one to use with lovely warm water. The toilet area has male toilets on one side and female toilets on the other. I found the toilets to be completely usable. However my partner and daughters complained of the floor in the toilets on the female side being wet a lot of the time. They wondered if there was maybe a leak somewhere. There were a fair few spiders lurking around the toilets. This didnt bother me at all but we did have to de-spider a toilet cubicle before our daughters would use it and we kept it de-spidered for them to use during our stay. My partner said the female toilets would benefit from a deep clean. €7.50 is a little on the high side to use the washing machine. All the other sitexwe stayed at. Their fee to use the washing machine was €5. So, €5 seems more like the going price for use of a washing machine on site.

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Liked We booked and paid for our stay at Le Cattiaux Camping before reading the reviews. After reading previous reviews, we had mixed feelings about our stay at Le Cattiaux Camping. However upon arrival at Le Cattiaux Camping, any worries we may have had quickly faded away. Upon arrival we parked our car on the left outside of the electric gate and walked down to the office, here we met Xavier. Xavier only speaks French but was always nice to us. He directed us into the office where we met Amandine. After using my French to indicate that we had a reservation and who we were, Amandine replied in English. Amandine speaks very good English but I would try to talk in French when I could. Xavier showed us to the spot where we would be staying. To our delight and in contrast to some of our worries with regards to previous reviews, we were delighted to be given our own private riverside pitch with our own electric supply and a charming little apple tree. The facilities are good, the toilets, sinks and showers were all clean and well presented. There are washing and drying facilities on site. It is €5 for the washer and €5 for the dryer. They are token operated and you get the tokens from Amandine at the office. We also got a washing pod with the €5 token for the washer. It is a pleasant 15min walk from the site, over the river and over the train tracks into the local village of Boutigny-sur-essonne. The village has a lovely little bakery, a pharmacy, a florists, a train station, a restaurant and a bar/tabac. Although we never saw the bar/tabac open. There is a market on the carpark of the train station on a Saturday morning where you can buy veg, meat, bread and cheese. It is very easy to get the train from Boutigny into the centre of Paris and takes about an hour. During our stay at Le Cattiaux Camping there were several friendly cats on site, who our daughters loved befriending and giving plenty of loves to. From our riverside pitch we saw water voles, kingfishers and what we think were some kind of possibly wild goats or sheep. So, we would describe it as a good location for wildlife. Whilst on site, both Amandine and Xavier were both nice and pleasant with us. Whilst at Le Cattiaux Camping, the site was always quiet and peaceful. Given our riverside pitch, we would stay here again.

Disliked These are not dislikes as such as we fully enjoyed our stay at Le Cattiaux Camping. Please remember to bring your own toilet paper and hand-wash with you for the toilets and sinks as these are not provided on site. If I'm being overly picky. The grass on our pitch would have benefited from a mow and the edges strimmed before we pitched on it. The gravel area on our pitch for parking the car would benefit from a little weed control. We picked Le Cattiaux Camping due to its locality to Paris. We stayed for 3 nights in our large family tent with our 2 teenage daughters. Any longer that our 3 nights and our daughters would probably have started to get a little bored on site.

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