Bargain Gite holiday in South West France

If you are tired of flight delays, cancelled flights and holiday companies going bust, why not try a holiday where you have more control. Booking a holiday to a French holiday Gite (Holiday cottage in France) gives you more choices for holiday accommodation, holiday locations, travel options and even holiday activities. You can get bargain holidays by booking direct with Gite (holiday cottage) owners and ferry companies direct and because of the internet it is easier and cheaper to book these direct holidays than going into busy travel agents. You can book your bargain summer holiday from the comfort of your own home. Your first choice is to choose a location in France that you either like or would like to visit. For real bargain holidays the south west of France is probably best. It has lovely hot weather and is much cheaper than the Mediterranean coast. French holiday makers take their holidays in the south-west regions of Aquitaine and Midi-Pyrenees because of the lovely weather, great food and reasonable prices. Among these regions the department of Gers, part of the historic region of Gascony, is probably the least commercialised and therefore represents the best value holidays. The next holiday choice is to decide the type of holiday accommodation. There are the normal choices of hotels, farmhouses and bed & breakfast (Chambre D’hôte), but for the best bargain holidays why not try a Gite or French holiday cottage? There are hundreds to choose from ranging from the very basic to luxurious fully equipped gites with private pools. Make sure you choose a gite with pool because this will be invaluable in the hot summer months and will keep the kids happy for the entire holiday. Other things to look for in a gite are a covered outdoor eating area, bbq, freezer and dishwasher to make the most of the hot weather and make your holiday as relaxing as possible. There are many holiday travel choices, fly-drive (nearest airports are Pau, Tarbes, Bordeaux, Biarritz and Toulouse), by rail (nearest Motorail stations are Tarbes, Lourdes, Bordeaux, Biarritz and Toulouse), but for the best bargain holidays taking your own car is best. You can choose short channel crossings (either Ferry or Eurotunnel) from Dover and Folkestone to Calais or Boulogne from less than £50 each way. There are longer crossings that are more expensive but which cut down the amount of driving in France. Please note that driving in France is much less stressful than driving in the UK, especially on the auto routes where there is significantly less traffic than UK motorways. Another advantage of a self drive holiday is that you are not restricted to 20kgs baggage allowance, you can take as much with you as you can fit into your car and then fill the car up with cheap wine etc for the journey home. Taking your own car on holiday also gives you the flexibility to travel around and see more of France in comfort and with a vehicle you are familiar with. You could take the kids to the beach, local lake, horse riding, shopping, golf etc. You can drive up into the Pyrenees Mountains either walking, climbing or just sightseeing. So if you are looking for a great value, bargain holiday why not try a French Gite holiday. You can book this holiday easily on the internet, it costs much less than a package holiday and you do not have to worry about Travel companies going bankrupt, Icelandic ash clouds, Air Traffic Controller strikes and terrorist threats. You don’t have to pay holiday booking fees, fuel surcharges, excess luggage charges and even charges for using the toilet on a plane!