The Alan Rogers / Caravan and Motorhome Club Awards - Results 2017
Presented at the Vakantiebeurs, Utrecht in January 2018
The Alan Rogers Campsite Awards were launched in 2004 and proved a great success. Since 2016 the awards have been jointly presented alongside the Caravan and Motorhome Club.
The awards have a broad scope and before committing to our winners, we carefully consider campsites which are featured in the Alan Rogers guides and The Caravan and Motorhome Club 'Venture Abroad' program, taking into account comments from our site assessors, our head office team and, of course, our members & readers.
The award winners come from the four corners of Europe, from Spain to Germany, and this year we are making awards to campsites in seven different countries.
Needless to say, it’s an extremely difficult task to choose our eventual winners, but we believe that we have identified a number of campsites with truly outstanding characteristics.
In each case, we have selected an outright winner, along with a highly commended runner-up. Listed below are full details of each of our award categories and our winners for 2017.
Camping Resort La Yole is an attractive and well-run site, two kilometres from a sandy beach. It offers 362 pitches, of which 91 mobile homes are either privately owned or available to rent. There are 133 touring pitches, most with shade and separated by bushes and trees. An area at the rear of the site is a little more open. All the pitches are of at least 100 sq.m. and have electricity (10A), water and drainage. The pool complex includes an attractive outdoor pool, a paddling pool, slide and an indoor heated pool with jacuzzi. There has been a recent extension to the pool area. There are also gym facilities and entertainment is organised in high season. This is a clean and tidy site, ideal for families with children and you will receive a helpful and friendly welcome.
A friendly and very well-run site, Camping Sandaya Parc la Clusure is highly recommended. Set in a river valley in the lovely wooded uplands of the Ardennes, known as the l’Homme Valley touring area, the site has around 500 large, marked, grassy pitches (around 250 for touring). All have access to electricity, cable TV and water taps, mostly in avenues off a central, tarmac road. There is some noise from the nearby railway. There is a very pleasant riverside walk; the river is shallow in summer and popular with children (caution in winter). The site’s heated swimming pool and children’s pool have a poolside bar and terrace. You will also find over 200 rental accommodations.
Camping le Domaine d’Oléron is a neat, well presented and well-managed site where you will receive a warm and friendly welcome from Anneke and Freddy who speak excellent English. The site is set in a peaceful rural location between Saint Pierre and Saint Georges and is part of the Chadotel group.
This well-run, modern site is pleasantly situated in Delft's park and forest area on the city's eastern edge. It has 200 touring pitches formally arranged in groups of four to six and surrounded by attractive trees and hedges. All have sufficient space and electrical connections (10A Europlug).
Our Progress & Innovation Award acknowledges campsites with creative and original concepts, possibly with features which are unique, and cannot therefore be found elsewhere. We have identified innovation both in campsite amenities and also in rentable accommodation.
Two brothers, a wine producer and a hotelier opened Domaine de Massereau in August 2006. It is set within a 50-hectare vineyard dating back to 1804, and the idea was to promote their wine, so tours are arranged, and they now produce their own olive oil as well.
Caravan Park Sexten is 1,520 metres above sea level and has 268 pitches, some very large and all with electricity (16A), TV connections and water and drainage in summer and winter (underground heating stops pipes freezing). Some pitches are in the open to catch the sun, others are tucked in forest clearings by the river. They are mostly gravelled to provide an ideal all year surface. It is the facilities that make this a truly remarkable site; no expense or effort has been spared to create a luxurious environment that matches that of any top class hotel.
Michelle, Josep and their daughter run this spacious, friendly site, which is always a popular destination. It is spotlessly clean and well-maintained, and the owners operate the site in an environmentally friendly way. Eight hundred seventy-two level grass pitches (720 for touring units) are laid out in a grid system, all with 10A electricity.
Camping Club International Eurosol is an attractive, friendly and well-maintained site deep in the Landes pine forests of Aquitaine. The fabulous golden sandy beach is just a few minutes walk away (700m), with supervised swimming (high season) and a range of watersports. Several cycle trails lead from the site through the vast forests, and a riding centre is located just 500 metres away. To the south, the Basque country and Biarritz are within easy access.
Castel Camping Le Brévedent is a well-established, traditional site with 132 pitches (105 for touring units, 31 used by tour operators) set in the grounds of an elegant, 18th-century hunting pavilion. Pitches are around the fishing lake in the lower gardens (level) or the old orchard (gently sloping). All have 10A electricity.
Camping Bled is situated on the western tip of Lake Bled and is an excellent example of how a site should be run. Check-in is quick and efficient, and English is spoken. The site is large but well-spaced, with 244 touring pitches, all with electricity, 40 fully serviced pitches, and six with private sanitary facilities; most pitches benefit from shade. Pitches at the front are used mainly for overnighters. There are lovely views across the lake toward its famous island. This site is well-organised, and the facilities are modern and spotless.
Located in a peaceful valley with magnificent views of the mountains beside the Saja River and only a short walk from the picturesque and unspoiled village of Sopeña, this gem of a site is on an open, level, grassy meadow with trees. Wonderful stone buildings and artefacts are a feature of this unique site.
Attractively laid out among low pine trees, some twisted by the wind into interesting shapes, Orbitur Camping Guincho is located behind dunes and a wide, sandy beach. With a railway and motorway connection to Lisbon, the site provides a good base for combining a seaside holiday with a sightseeing visit to Portugal’s fascinating capital.
The Saint Cast family developed Domaine de la Brèche with care and attention. The attractive site occupies a 24-hectare estate, 4 km. northeast of Saumur on the edge of the Loire behind the levees. There are 235 spacious, level, grass pitches, with 135 for touring, including ten premium pitches. Trees and bushes give some shade. All have electricity (some require long cables). Eighty have a water supply and drainage. The restaurant (open to the public), bar and terrace provide an attractive social base and are popular with British visitors. The pool complex includes a heated indoor pool, flumes and toboggans and a paddling pool.
Lake Idro, one of the smaller northern Italian lakes, is tucked away in the mountains west of Lake Garda. Rio Vantone is on the lake's southeast shore with marvellous views across the water to the villages on the opposite bank and surrounding mountains.
Camping le Moulin Fort is a tranquil riverside site with British owners John and Sarah Scarratt. The 130 pitches are enhanced by trees and shrubs, offering plenty of shade, and 115 pitches have electricity (6A). From the snack bar terrace adjacent to the restored mill building, a timber walkway over the mill race leads to the unheated swimming pool and paddling pools.
Den Driesch is an attractive site just 500 m. from the centre of the historic town of Valkenburg. Pitches here are grassy with reasonable shade and are all supplied with 10A electricity. A number of semi-asphalted pitches are particularly suitable for motorhomes. There is a well-stocked shop with freshly baked bread every day. The southern Limburg region is very popular for outdoor activities and Den Driesch is well placed to take advantage of these. This is an excellent walking country and the long-distance walks, Krijtlandpad and Pieterpad both start nearby.
This is a first-rate, family-run park in the small country village of Redcross, in the heart of County Wicklow. It is within easy reach of beauty spots such as the Vale of Avoca (Ballykissangel), Glendalough and Powerscourt, plus Brittas Bay, a 3.5-mile stretch of beautiful white dunes and clean beaches. The 211 touring pitches (many fully serviced) are divided into separate, well-landscaped areas with a separate adults-only section. All have 6/10 amp electricity connections and offer a choice of hardstanding or grass. A further 26 pitches are given over to seasonal tourers.
This is a well-organised and quiet site located just northeast of Dresden, with easy access from the autobahn. The site has very good facilities and is arranged on grassland beside a lake, which is reached from the site through a gate. Although the site is fairly open, trees do provide shade in some areas.
