Picardy family holidays and breaks

Picardy is just a short hop from several Channel ferry ports and offers lots of scope for all ages to get close to nature. These factors combined with its non-touristy prices makes it a great place for low-key family holidays, but also one close enough to Paris to make day-trips into the French capital a breeze.

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Today

18°C
66°F

Capital City	Amiens
Flying Time	1 hours
Timezone	GMT +1
Local Currency	Euro

What to do

With older kids, visit some of Picardy's world-famous World War I sites – see our feature Somme Battlesites. With younger ones, discover the Bay of Somme, a beautiful wilderness of fresh air, endless deserted beaches, dunes and meadows just made for exploring, on foot, by bike or canoe, by boat, or even by land yacht. The Marquenterre bird sanctuary is a highlight of family holidays here.

Tear yourself away from wild nature to visit the Somme’s main city of Amiens with its UNESCO listed Gothic cathedral, its waterside medieval houses, and a number of sites associated with science fiction author Jules Verne. Amiens’ scenic Hortillonages is a very pretty area of market gardens crisscrossed by canals that you can explore by motorized punts or barques à cornet, and there’s also a famous puppet theatre, Chés Cabotans d’Amiens.

If the thought of Disneyland Paris is all too American for you, head for the Oise département, home to the very Gallic Parc Astérix, with rides and attractions in five lands: Ancient Gaul, Roman Empire, Ancient Greece, Vikings, and ‘Through History’.

In the Aisne département, visit farms galore and enjoy treetop adventure courses and horse-riding.

Where to stay

PV Holidays has one holiday village in Picardy, the eco-friendly Belle Dune, and one apartment resort, Résidence de la Plage, both in the Somme département.

It also has two apartment resorts, Les Jardins de la Côte d’Opale and Résidence Le Phare at Le Touquet not far away in the Pas de Calais.

Also in the Somme, the Domaine de Drancourt campsite at St-Valéry is available through Eurocamp, Keycamp, and Canvas. The same operators offer La Croix du Vieux Pont in the Aisne; see our feature on Eurocamp La Croix du Vieux Pont. 

Alternatively, see our feature Glamping and Unusual Camping in Northern France.

Another option in the Aisne is Centerparcs’ Lac d’Ailette, with cottages on stilts beside a tranquil lake.

When

Though it’s not primarily a beach destination (it has only a short coastline, though is within easy reach of beaches in other regions), Picardy is best visited in summer to take advantage of its wealth of outdoors activities perfect for family holidays.

How

Ferries are the natural means for getting to Picardy, since you can bring your own car – ideal for family holidays. Amiens is just over 1hr 30mins south of the main ferry crossing hub of Calais in the Pas-de-Calais, and a little closer to Dieppe in Normandy.

Trains are another option, but you will need to hire a car to explore the region.

Note that Ryanair’s flights to ‘Paris’ actually land at Beauvais in the Oise département.

Eat

Farm produce is a highlight of mainly rural Picardy, so as in the rest of France, you’ll have little trouble finding great fresh food for family holidays, whether it’s on the menu of small-town bistros or at local markets where you can browse excellent local ingredients to take home and cook in your self-catering accommodation.

For listings of places to buy local ingredients direct from the producer, see Bienvenue à la Ferme.

Cost

Since it’s not a tourist hotspot, Picardy is a great base for family holidays on a budget, with transport costs kept to a minimum and a good choice of self-catering accommodation where you can save money by eating at home or making picnics to take out with you.

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