Be enchanted by the Aude region in Southern France for your next family holiday.

The Aude region in the Languedoc-Roussillion is home to the cosmopolitan city of Narbonne and numerous picturesque villages. The Mediterranean beaches are child-friendly, many with gently sloping beaches and the dramatic cathor castles are brilliant for a knightly play!  The historic city of Carcassonne sits on the Aude river and has it’s own man made beach ideal for a paddle.

The region is perfect for families looking for a cultural holiday with lots of interesting activities for all ages. It is accessible by plane (closest airports are Carcassonne and Toulouse), by train from Paris or by car from the Ferry ports.

Three of our property owners loved their family holidays so much in the Aude region that they decided to leave the UK and start a new life there. Thankfully they all chose to run family-friendly holiday accommodation so that other families could fall in love with the area. Each of the properties are so diverse to each other that there really is something for everyone! They all however have one thing in common: they all offer a family friendly holiday with facilities for babies, toddlers and children of all ages.

All of these holiday properties are located within half an hour’s drive of Carcassonne.

Family-friendly, award-winning Wine and Olive Château

1 – 3 bedrooms sleeping from 2 to 10 people

This wonderful château, a working wine and olive oil domain, offers an idyllic getaway for the whole family. The cluster of independent cottages have been decorated to a high standard by owners Floris and Victoria. There is a fantastic range of family activities on offer: fencing lessons for the kids , medieval costume workshops, treasure hunts set in medieval villages, picnics on a private barge on the canal du Midi and wine tastings, alliteratively just laze the sunny days away.

Children will have lots to choose from to keep them amused: swing set, playroom (with a good selection of toys, puzzles, dressing up clothes etc), ping-pong table and fuzz ball, enclosed swimming pool and the owners will also set up a paddling pool for toddlers. Older children and adults can have a game of tennis or why not have a family stroll through the vineyards (if you have a toddler in tow borrow the carry back pack) there are also plenty of bikes and children’s seat available to enjoy a family cycle along the Canal du Midi.

The nearest village of Treves, a port village on the Canal de Midi is just five minutes away offering a choice of restaurants, bakers, fishmongers and shops, and Carcassonne is just a fifteen-minute drive.

Toddler Friendly Traditional French village house

5 bedrooms, sleeps 13

Owners Mark and Andrea moved to this traditional French village and live near the house with their young children. The house itself has been lovingly restored and has its own private solar heated swimming pool, the garden is fully enclosed, so no worry about wandering toddlers and there is a playbarn with Little Tykes play frame. Mark and Andrea also are happy to supply evening meals and pampering session and also babysitting.

Child friendly gite cluster with swimming pool and gardens

2 and 3 bedrooms

Louise and Mike set up home in this area after enjoying some wonderful family holidays. These beautifully restored gites, nestled in their extensive grounds offer a relaxing family base from which to explore the region. Within the grounds there is an enclosed 6 x 12 swimming pool (heated to 24 degrees May-September) and the garden, which has the pool, is enclosed by fences and natural barriers so children cannot wander. Each gite has its own private terrace and there is also a large communal terrace with tables for each property and a seating area with sofas in the shade by the barbeques. There are six hectares of woods and meadows to explore and enjoy walks and picnics and there is a fabulous selection of baby and toddler toys for guests to adopt.