Sun cream .. packed, children's toys.. packed, camera..packed, cancel the milk..done! Yes, you've guessed it, the holiday season is nearly upon us as school sports days, swimming galas, end of term concerts and prize-givings fade to a distant memory. With many families getting geared up for their annual summer holiday now is the time to start getting prepared and what better place to start than with France For Families which offers loads of information to help you with that all essential planning, as well as the latest information on where to go and what to do.

The value of the site content has recently been endorsed by the Google search engine which has dramatically increased France For Families' ranking on common search words, resulting in many first page results..great news for our advertisers!

Driving to France
Many of you will be travelling to France this summer by car.  Have a look on the France For Families website for lots of useful driving information and advice.  For those of you that are heading to the south coast, please remember the safety advice we saw on one of the overhead motorway gantries: " ralentissez, la mer ne s'évapora pas"..slow down, the sea won't evaporate!  If you can't resist exceeding the speed limit, you might like to check a new website www.controleradar.org which contains information on fixed radar traps on the French roads.  Whatever you do, please do drive safely and take frequent breaks.

Travel Games
The France For Families website has lots and lots of useful advice for entertaining your children en route to and from your holiday destination.  In addition to all the suggestions listed we thought it might be helpful to include some downloadable sheets and instructions which you and your children can take with you on your journey. Instructions are given for four very enjoyable games which include Car 'Treasure Hunts', Zany Car Registrations, Car Bingo (our childrens' all time favourite) and Car Snooker. These are quick to pick up and simple to play. HAVE FUN!  Also we recommend you have a look at the website www.car-travel-games.co.uk which has loads of other ideas you might find useful.

Airline update
Travelling to northern France and Normandy has had a boost with the fairly new charter flights operated by European Executive Ltd. www.euroexec.com. With flights of just 30 minutes to Le Touquet or 35 minutes to Le Havre this could be an opportunity to try a day trip with a difference, or even simply a quick means to get to the north of France. Services operate from Brighton Shoreham to Le Touquet outbound on Mon, Thurs, Fri and Sunday with  return flights on Mon, Thurs, Sat and Sunday. To Le Havre flights out and inbound operate on Mon, Tues, Wed, Fri and Sat.

Poitou-Charente
A recent visit to the Poitou-Charente region and more particularly the Charente département revealed an area of France slightly overlooked by tourists and yet one which has lots to offer. The countryside is gently undulating which makes it an ideal area for cycling. We loved it taking off among the vines on tracks and cycling for miles with not a car to be seen. This sort of off-road cycling requires a good map however and we would recommend an IGN Séries Bleu 1:25000.  A good source for travel maps is the Stanfords' website.  The children especially enjoyed an interactive, fun-packed afternoon out at Le Château des Enigmes, not somewhere listed in many guide books (if any in fact) but a gem of a find nonetheless.

Beaches
We know that beaches abound around the French coastline and that finding some sand for children is not a problem. However we would particularly like to mention a series of beaches just south of Royan. Heading south you first come to a magnificent beach of fine sand at St.Georges-de-Didonne between the Pointe de Vallières and Pointe de Suzac. This has children's beach clubs, sand yachting etc. but is very much a resort beach. Quieter and backed by sand dunes and pine forests are a series of 4 bays giving rise to the beaches of Suzac, l'Arnèche, Vergnes and Nonnes. In season these can get busy..but the huge expanse of beach at St.Georges-de-Didonne always has some space!

Thinking about a winter holiday?
If you're thinking about a skiing holiday in France this winter, now is the right time to get your holiday accommodation sorted before everything gets booked out - this happens quite early for the peak school holiday weeks at Christmas and February half term.  And here to help France For Families has recently added a new section on accommodation in the Alps offering everything from apartments to catered chalets.

Last month's competition
The prize of two free tickets to one of 100 famous French monuments in the www.monum.fr group has been awarded to Ben Wright, owner of  Chalet Vallons in the Alps de Haute Provence.  We particularly appreciated his excellent suggestions on additional content for the area around the Gorge du Verdon and Entrevaux which are now reflected in the site.  Thanks Ben!

Well all that remains is to wish you a lovely summer holiday, safe driving and Bonne Journée!
From the team at France For Families.