Camping Les Marins

To acquaint yourselves with the local area, board the Vélorail des Combrailles (five minutes’ drive) for a pedal-powered jaunt through the fields and woodlands of the Auvergne along a former railway line. Most kids will relish orienteering adventures in the Forêt des Colettes (20 minutes), and sporty families can perform feats of bravery on the rope courses and climbing walls at Accro-Sioule Kids Accrobranche - Allier (25 minutes). Your younger progeny will likely love you forever if you treat them to rides on donkeys at Asinerie de la Vioune (15 minutes), where you can also buy artisan soaps made from donkey milk and cute stuffed toys. More cuddly animals are found at La P’tite Ferme de Boussat, home to rare-breed sheep and goats (plus lambs and kids in springtime). Sneak in a history lesson with a visit to the spectacular crag-top remains of Château-Rocher (half an hour) overlooking the dramatic Sioule river gorge, or stop by the Musée de la Paléontologie (20 minutes) to marvel at the displays of prehistoric fish bones and fossils excavated from the ancient crater lake at Menat.