For the first time last week we went on a big family holiday, travelling not just the six of us but also with my parents, my sister, my brother and his family. 13 of us got into cars and caught the ferry to Calais before driving to Villages Nature, a French Centre Parcs site just outside Paris. We had three cottages which were all attached and a private garden at the back.
Ours had 3 bedrooms, free wifi and a lovely communal area as well as two bathrooms and a seperate toilet. It was a fantastic space for the six of us and the children loved having their family next door too! The parc is big and green and everywhere you look there are trees, flowers and lakes. There were several playgrounds including a huge one in the enchanted forest, a giant pool complex with indoor and outdoor pools and plenty of slides for big and little people and there was an onsite farm with a cafe and soft play. It had all the usual Centre Parcs activities from tree tops trekking to escape rooms, to den building and climbing walls and we loved trying new things.
What we loved most though was spending time together. The children got so much one on one time thanks to lovely family who would take them off on little adventures, water slides and for visits to the bakery. It meant we got to spend dedicated one on one time with them as well as them having it with other family members and it made it really special.
The parc is situated about 10 minutes drive from Disneyland Paris and there is a bus that runs between the two. We couldn't resist a day trip there and ended up staying until midnight so that we could watch the Illuminations show which is just beautiful and lights up the castle. Finn's highlight was definitely being tall enough for Big Thunder Mountain and he couldn't get enough of the wild rollercoaster.
Cora loved seeing all the animals in the parc's onsite farm, stroking the goats, cows and horses and planning which ones she wanted to smuggle out with her and keep. She loved the play area in the farm too and I think she would love to try out the pony rides if we visit again as she was just a little bit too small.
Archie loved the waterslides and there were quite a few he could do. There was a fast one in a rubber ring which was my favourite and the two big boys loved the outdoors one in the middle of the rapids that never had a queue. I think all four children would have spent the whole week in the pools given the choice!
Dylan loved the big adventure playground set in the woodlands and playing games in it. It was the perfect place for hide and seek, tag or any other game they could make up and it was a shame we didn't have longer to spend there as there was so much more to explore.
The parc had something for all of us and was a great family place. We loved spending time as an extended family and it is definitely somewhere we would love to visit again!
I have plenty of photos I want to share, so here are a few
Our Accomodation
We stayed in a 3 bed Country Premium Cottage and each rooms was decorated with a different nature based theme.
The Playgrounds
The photos of the big enchanted forest one are in another post, these are just from other playgrounds around the parc.
The Farm
The farm was really interactive with lots of animals that were happy to be touched but they all had plenty of space to get away from humans too. There were big fields for the horses and cows around the outskirts of the main farm areas.
Hiring a Jeep
This was a big hit with the three boys (Cora had a nap) as we hired two jeeps that they could drive around the park. Ed and I had a remote control for them both that switched off the engine with one touch just incase!
The Parc in general.
It had an easy layout with the big swimming complex easy to spot! There was so much green.
Our day at Disney
My four children and I all wore our Disney gear for a lovely day on the rides, watching the parade and the illuminations
The Activity Centre
The big boys had a go on the climbing wall whilst the adults did a ninja warrior course. There were other games and activities and everything was pretty reasonable (2 euros each for the ninja course, 6 euros each for the climbing wall). It was located next door to the pool.
And finally a picture from the ferry ride home
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