Camping La Serre

This lush land has loads to do in its mountainous surrounds, from rambling around the local castles to whizzing around the many nearby mountain bike routes. Marked trails for hiking and cycling are around the valley, including a nearby greenway biking path. Fans of old piles should make their way first to the spectacular ruins of the Château de Montségur, a hilltop fortress hailed as the most famed of all the Cathar castles (it was the last Cathar stronghold, which finally fell after a 10-month siege in 1244). The castle and its accompanying museum, in the nearby village of Montségur, are both open to the public. Another famed Cathar castle, the Château de Foix, is 45 minutes' drive to the west. See also the old medieval town of Mirepoix with the 13th-centruy Saint-Maurice Cathedral which has the second biggest Gothic arch in Europe (after the cathedral in Spain's Girona). To delve much further back in time, take the kids for a megasaurus day at Parc de la Préhistoire in Tarascon, 40 minutes' drive from the site.