A Outdoorsy Holiday at Les Villages Nature Paris, France

If there’s one thing families are really craving after successive lockdowns and several rounds of home-schooling, it’s time outdoors together having fun and enjoying freedom and fresh air.

One of our favourite resorts in which to do that is Les Villages Nature Paris in northern France, which, as the name suggests, blends natural surroundings and outdoor activities with proximity to the French capital. It’s also very handy for Disneyland Paris, one of our best-loved theme parks, and one where there’s always something new to experience.

‘At BelleVie Farm, families can enjoy hands-on activities such as animal care, cookery and gardening.’

Les Villages Nature stands out for us with its Five Lands where you can surround yourself with and immerse yourself in nature. First up is the Forest of Legends complete with rope bridges, treehouses and secret pathways. Discover the hiding places and hanging nests in the playground with younger kids, or build a hide-out with teens.

Then there’s BelleVie Farm, where families can discover the world of farming with hands-on activities such as animal care, cookery and gardening. Younger kids also enjoy its indoor playground.

More alfresco fun is in store in the two-hectare Extraordinary Gardens, where you can awaken your senses with a leisurely stroll past unique landscaping inspired by the four elements of earth, air, fire and water.

And last but certainly not least, Aqualagon has an outdoor lagoon that is naturally heated to 30°C all year round, as well as a giant water slide and a wave pool. There’s also the resort’s own lake with its lively waterside promenade to amble before challenging one another in the bowling alley or deciding which of the tempting restaurants to try out. All of the resort’s eateries serve dishes made with locally sourced, seasonal produce, in doing so reducing food miles and the pollution they cause.

We also love Les Villages Nature Paris for its luxurious self-catering accommodation, with the option to pick from Country Premium or Cocoon VIP comfort levels. All have a kitchen, lounge and one or two bedrooms, so you can spread out and relax while making the most of your quality time together.

The accommodation at Villages Nature is, as you’d expect from a property so focussed on nature, eco-friendly. This green holiday village was designed with a view to minimising its impact on the planet and its decade-long design, planning and construction was carried out with sustainability in mind. The lagoon is geothermally heated and indeed all heating and hot water around the resort comes from that source.

During construction, 28,000 new trees and 430,000 shrubs and plants were added to provide green space for both guests and wildlife to enjoy, while pride of place is given around the resort to natural materials, green walls and hanging gardens.

The resort is also very easily accessible by public transport, located as it is just 5km from the TGV/Eurostar/RER railway station of Marne La Vallee-Chessy. So it’s incredibly easy for UK visitors to reach by high-speed rail. And the attractions of central Paris are just 35 minutes away by the RER rail system.

Overall, one comes away from this groundbreaking resort with the feeling that one has seen the future of family holidays – one in which fun and sustainability can go hand in hand without compromising your enjoyment.

Note that every Les Villages Nature Paris Package purchased from Disney Holidays includes 2 Days of Disneyland Paris Park tickets for your entire party. Find out more.

Read about a family break at Les Villages Nature Paris.