Camping has never been so fine. Tim Hughes enjoys the cream of Normandy - just a short hop from the Channel ports
Lush rolling countryside, studded with unspoilt stone villages, empty beaches, pretty coves and towering cliffs ... Lower Normandy has it all.
It may be the first glimpse of France for many British holidaymakers, but few take the time to linger, before heading south. They are missing a treat, but, thankfully, leave its pristine beaches and rocky headlands for those of us who love it.
The attractions are many: D-Day beaches, historic Bayeux and Caen, fabulous Cherbourg with its maritime heritage, and iconic Mont St Michel.
Of all its wonders, nowhere is more beautiful – nor so devoid of tourists – as the northern tip of the Cotentin peninsula – that finger of land jutting into the Channel like a cheery thumbs-up.
The coastline is reminiscent of the best of Brittany, a succession of gorse-clad headlands and secret bays culminating in jagged Cap de la Hague – an outcrop of the oldest stone in France.
Keen to explore this most quintessentially-French of landscapes, but also seeking a bit of chill time by the beach, I scooped up my two boys, sailed to Caen and made the easy drive up to the top of the peninsula, turning right at Cherbourg and out along the rugged tip to L’Anse Du Brick.
The village is home to one of the best-kept secrets in France: a five-star luxury glamping site, tucked into a hillside grazed by goats, and gazing out over the sea. Run by Les Castels, which has 42 sites across France, L’Anse Du Brick is run with families in mind, with a covered swimming pool, outdoor splash pool with water slide, great pizzeria and a shop stocking everything you forgot to grab at the hypermarché on the way.
Accommodation is in stylish cabins – ours slept four – with a lounge with TV, a spacious kitchen for those who prefer to self-cater. There’s also a deck, with views over the bay – and a barbecue – great for grilling the local fresh, and incredibly cheap, seafood. And Wi-Fi, if you can’t live without it.
Days are spent relaxing by the pool or crossing a little footbridge to the beach – where you are fairly guaranteed to have the place to yourself.
Rugged: Pointe Du Hoc offers beauty and is a lasting monument to those who fell in the D-Day landings
Close to hand are pretty fishing villages, castles, secluded islands and Cherbourg itself – with its award-winning Cité de La Mer – a former ocean liner terminal now converted into an aquarium and maritime museum, housing a decommissioned nuclear submarine and relics from the Titanic, which called there on its ill-fated voyage. It’s a hard place to leave, and begs the question: why go any further?
THE FACTS: Here for more information on L’Anse Du Brick and Les Castels
EXPLORE: Make your own pilgrimmage to the D-Day beaches of Normandy...more here
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