Le Castel tries to make holidays easier for parents and fun for kids. Just about everyone goes away with big smiles on their faces, but we are not perfect for everyone.
Owner Jon Barnsley was previously Travel Editor of a UK newspaper, so he is used to giving fair and frank evaluations of holiday venues. Here he does the same to his own property...
Pros:
You are encouraged to treat Le Castel like your home and simply help yourselves to drinks etc. There is a very relaxed atmosphere. Jon does not get stressed if kids (or adults) break things.
Le Castel is a safe environment for kids with huge lawns, a den, play marquee, trampoline etc.
We serve kids meals around 5.30pm so you can have adult only time later
Children's play sessions are arranged most days to give parents a change to read a book, take a bath or simply chill out
Parents staying in the chateau can easily hear children in rooms upstairs - with or without a baby monitor. It is also no problem if kids pop down crying or simply after more chunks of bread during adult suppers.
There are fridges in the suites so you can keep snacks and drinks handy for hunger attacks. (You can even pop some beers or wine in there for yourselves!)
It's not a problem if kids leave toys strewn everywhere ..although it is always appreciated if they do clear things away.
All suites have two bedrooms and lots of space. They are designed to be luxurious but child friendly.
Cons
You never know what the other families are going to be like! Thankfully, there have never been any problems. Kids always get on and most parents seem to manage even if they don't gel with everyone. We have had weeks where all families have wanted to arrange reunions.
Menus each day are set, so there is no choice. However, cold meats, salads and cheeses are always available. Many mums are just grateful they have not cooked the meal and are often thankful that they don't have to make a decision!
Meals are usually taken with other guests, but you can have a quite word with Jon and he will set up an individual table for you
The swimming pool is above ground and not heated. It is not supervised. We do not regard it as a big selling point as wonderful beaches are only ten miles away and there are swimming pools in nearby towns.
The play marquee is packed with toys, but kids can be pretty destructive so there is no guarantee that everything works all the time! If batteries have worn out let us know and we will get things going again.
We don't have the full range of facilities offered by big name resorts like Mark Warners, but most kids find more than enough to do here.
There are no TVs in the rooms, but there is one in the salon (with UK tv including Cbbebbies) and one in the play marquee. The cottages do have full UK telly.
The self catering cottages are 50 metres from the chateau and some parents feel this is too far away to leave kids if they fancy a meal in the chateau. However, we can provide baby sitters at additional cost if booked in advance.
Points to bear in mind:
Children's meals are intentionally simple. We do get some mini gourmets, but the majority of our smaller guests tend to only want pasta, chips, lots of bread and very few green things.
Adult suppers are designed so that they don't spoil too much if you are having trouble getting your nippers to sleep. It does mean we are talking hearty food rather than fine dining most nights. On the Friday we do give you a gourmet five course meal, but it is still designed with flexibility in mind.
Le Castel can be quite noisy! Jon dreams of children who do maths homework quietly for 8 hours a day...but it doesn't happen. The great thing is that no parent can feel smug if their child is being quite while others rampage round the grounds or scream the house down..because a few minutes later it could be their nipper wailing or shouting with joy.
We are very good at looking after slightly nervous new parents and have most of the gear you need to make your life easier.
You are responsible for your children at all times, espcially on the trampolines or in the swimming pool. Jon would like all kids to be wrapped in cotton wool while at Le Castel...however, we seem to attract the slightly more robust families, where parents feel their kids have an element of bounce in them. In an ideal world little Henry wouldn't hit Charlotte over the head with a log...but it does happened.
There are two cats at Le Castel who are very long suffering with children. One three year old did pick Kylie up and lick her bottom - she was not amused and we are trying to discourage this in the future!
