Low season at la Garenne: time for relaxing activities !
Walking, cycling, or going for a car ride
The surrounding hills of the Eyrieux Valley offer ample opportunity for lovely walks, cycling tours or car rides. Descriptions of these are available at the reception.
The Dolce Via
A beautiful walking/cycling trail, at a stone’s throw from the campsite, runs along the railway track of the old steam train, now called ’Dolce Via’. The railway track once linked La Voulte-sur-Rhône to Saint-Agrève, situated at a height of 1,4OO m., and ran all along the Eyrieux river through a wild and picturesque landscape.
The former railway, disused since 1968, has now become a simple trail. The way is relatively level and suitable for walking and cycling (use mountain bikes or commuter bikes).
Organized activities in Mai, June and September
In Mai, June and September you can participate in (organized) activities, such as pétanque competitions, excursions, summer’s evening walks, wine tasting, barbecues, live music nights, etc.
Summer’s evening walks at Mirmande and Crussol Castle (alternately)
At regular intervals throughout the season, we pay a visit to the charming medieval village of Mirmande (listed as one of the most beautiful villages of France). Our stroll uphill through the meandering paved streets takes us to the pretty romanesque church of Saint Foy at the top of the hill.
Or we visit the ruins of Crussol Castle, a 12th-century medieval fortress perched on a rocky spur, opposite Valence, looking down on the Rhône Valley. We begin our walk at the parking lot below the castle ruins. At the top, we are rewarded with fantastic views !
(We go by car from Saint Laurent du Pape to the parking area at Mirmande or Crussol Castle, where our walk starts.)
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Walking holiday in June
In June we organise a three weeks’ guided walking holiday through the scenic countryside of the Eyrieux Valley. There are three walks a week : on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Walks will vary in length and level of difficulty
Enjoy your dinner !
‘Le Bistro’
Our restaurant ‘Le Bistro’ overlooks the swimming pool, as does the enclosed outside terrace, where mulberry trees provide ample shade for relaxing with a cool drink or an ice cream.
In the kitchen Nils is the ‘chef’. The food he cooks is simple and honest, prepared with fresh ingredients, which are often sourced from the surrounding Eyrieux valley.
His dishes comprise French specialities, like bœuf bourguignon, gratin dauphinois, or sauté de dinde. But also tasty Italian pastas or the popular Austrian schnitzel.
Barbecue and spare rib evenings
On weekends festive barbecues or spare rib evenings are alternately held on the outdoor terrace of the restaurant.
The barbecues go with various homemade salads and ‘baguette’, whereas the grilled spare ribs go with salads and chips.
Now and then the evenings are accompanied by live music.
Indonesian evening
On Wednesdays we ‘go oriental’ and organize an Indonesian evening, a tradition which has survived at the campsite for almost twenty-five years, and has been handed down from father to son!
Together with our team, Nils cooks various dishes from the Indonesian kitchen : nasi goreng, rendang, sambal goreng telor, gado gado, ajam pedis, saté, …
All the dishes are homemade and prepared with care.
Pizzas and snacks
Delicious freshly made pizzas can be taken away every day, except on Wednesday.
There are ten different pizza toppings to choose from.
Chips and snacks can be taken away.
Practical information
In Saint Laurent-du-Pape
In the village of Saint Laurent (5 minutes’ walk from the campsite) you will find a bakery, a small supermarket, a butcher shop, a tabac shop (newspapers and cigarettes), and a post-office (limited opening hours !).
A doctor’s and dentist’s surgery are in the village square. We will be happy to help you to make an appointment.
A hospital is in Valence (20 minutes’ drive from the campsite).
In La Voulte-sur-Rhône
In La Voulte-sur-Rhône (5 minutes’ drive from the campsite) there are two supermarkets (Carrefour and Intermarché), a few restaurants, chemist shops, petrol stations, a garage, a post office (with cash dispenser), and several banks (with cash dispensers).
Every Friday morning a weekly market is held in the market square below the castle.
There is a veterinary surgery in La Voulte. We will be happy to help you to make an appointment.
Fresh bread
At the campsite we sell bread daily throughout the entire season. You can order fresh bread for the next day at the reception office (until 6.30 p.m.).
ACSI Camping Card
In the low season there is an extra reduction with ACSI Camping Card.
Welcome at Camping La Garenne
Camping La Garenne, owned by a Dutch family, is a medium sized family campsite with 119 pitches, partially laid out in terraces.
Situated halfway the ‘département’ Ardèche, between Valence and Montélimar, it occupies a particularly sheltered spot at the entrance of the beautiful Eyrieux Valley.
The campsite is only a short stroll from the village center of Saint Laurent du Pape, and is within easy reach of the A7/RN7 and RN86 (15 minutes from the A7).
The surrounding hills offer ample opportunity for lovely walks, cycling tours for racing bicycles, or car rides.
For commuter bikes and mountain bikes there are the Dolce Via and the Via Rhôna, two beautiful flat cycling trails, the one along the Eyrieux river, the other along the river Rhône.
In conclusion, we’d like you to know that we speak English.
We wish you a warm welcome at our campsite, and sincerely hope that you will enjoy your stay with us.
Judith Martojo - van der Meer & Nils Martojo
Camping at La Garenne
Campsite
Our campsite, situated amidst the hills of the Eyrieux Valley, is naturally laid out, for a large part on flat ground, for a minor part in terraces. The pitches are seperated by hedges, low walls or trees and have varying degrees of shade. Their sizes range from 80 to 120 m2.
Our L- shaped swimming pool
XL swimming pool!
Our campsite disposes of a large L-shaped swimming pool (320 m2) and paddling pool (50 m2), which are both safely fenced off.
On the sunny terrace there are deck chairs and parasols, and the paddling pool is provided with mini-slides for toddlers.
The quiet mornings in the pool allow for swimming a few lengths (if you wish to).
The pool water is not artificially heated.
Swimming trunk/ Inflatable pool toys
Please note that proper swimming trunks are obligatory. For hygienic reasons boxer shorts or Bermuda shorts are not allowed.
In order to provide ample swimming space to everyone during the day, inflatable pool toys are permitted not earlier than 5 p.m.
The swimming pools are open every day from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
https://campinglagarenne-ardeche.fr/en/14-uncategorised-2.html?start=10#sigFreeIdb695b88183
Campsite map