This site uses cookies - see our privacy policy. Ads & links in bold may give us a small payment from the seller, at no cost to the buyer. However, this never affects our views - if we like it, we recommend it.
Center Parcs Top tip: Booking via CenterParcs.fr is nearly always cheaper than CenterParcs.eu for exactly the same holiday (often more than €100 cheaper for a week in summer). Your browser will translate CenterParcs.fr to English if you don't speak French! Read more.
Which Center Parcs In France Is Best? (2024)
The seven Center Parcs in France offer a busy, family-friendly holiday in good quality accommodation. Each park has dozens of activities, including swimming pools and places to eat.
But which is the best Center Parcs in France?
If you want the short answer, we think that Le Bois Aux Daims or Les Trois Forêts should be top of your list.
However, Les Bois-Francs, Le Lac d'Ailette and Les Hauts Des Bruyeres are usually the cheapest Center Parcs in France.
Also, Les Villages Nature Paris is definitely worth considering if you like the idea of also visiting Disneyland Paris as the resort is next door to the theme park. Meanwhile, Le Lac d'Ailette is the nearest to the UK for most people. Les Landes de Gascogne is the newest Center Parcs resort in France. It opened in summer 2022.
But which is the best Center Parcs in France?
If you want the short answer, we think that Le Bois Aux Daims or Les Trois Forêts should be top of your list.
However, Les Bois-Francs, Le Lac d'Ailette and Les Hauts Des Bruyeres are usually the cheapest Center Parcs in France.
Also, Les Villages Nature Paris is definitely worth considering if you like the idea of also visiting Disneyland Paris as the resort is next door to the theme park. Meanwhile, Le Lac d'Ailette is the nearest to the UK for most people. Les Landes de Gascogne is the newest Center Parcs resort in France. It opened in summer 2022.
Le Bois Aux Daims is a good value French Center Parcs resort
For our full comparison we looked at factors including customer reviews, travel time from the UK, prices at different times of year, location and onsite activities.
Which Center Parcs in France is nearest to the UK?
Six of the seven Center Parcs in France are in the Northern half of the country, meaning that they are all relatively easy to reach by car from the UK.
You can reach France via various ferries from Portsmouth, Plymouth, Harwich and other places.
For simplicity we’ve listed the driving time from the 35-minute Eurotunnel which goes from Folkestone to Calais.
From nearest to furthest from Calais:
The longest drive by far is Les Landes de Gascogne, which is the newest Center Parcs in France. It's in South West France and is a whole seven hours further than Le Lac d'Ailette.
You can reach France via various ferries from Portsmouth, Plymouth, Harwich and other places.
For simplicity we’ve listed the driving time from the 35-minute Eurotunnel which goes from Folkestone to Calais.
From nearest to furthest from Calais:
- Le Lac d'Ailette - 2 hours 30 minutes drive from Calais
- Les Villages Nature Paris - 3 hours 30 minutes drive from Calais (or about the same length of time by Eurostar from London).
- Les Bois-Francs - 3 hours 30 minutes drive from Calais
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 4 hours 45 minutes drive from Calais
- Le Bois Aux Daims - 5 hours 30 mins drive from Calais or you can fly to Tours in about 90 minutes.
- Les Trois Forêts - 5 hours 30 minutes from Calais
- Les Landes de Gascogne - 9 hours 30 minutes from Calais
The longest drive by far is Les Landes de Gascogne, which is the newest Center Parcs in France. It's in South West France and is a whole seven hours further than Le Lac d'Ailette.
Center Parcs Le Lac d'Ailette is the closest for most people coming from the UK...
|
...whilst Les Villages Nature Paris is also quite close
|
Which Center Parcs village in France gets the best reviews?
According to average reviews, Le Bois Aux Daims is the best Center Parcs in France. It scores 4/5 on TripAdvisor and slightly more than 4 on Google Reviews.
Les Trois Forêts gets the second-best reviews overall (3.5/5 on TripAdvisor, 4/5 on Google Reviews)
In third place are Les Hauts Des Bruyeres and Les Landes de Gascogne (the newest Center Parcs). Both score 3.5/5 on TripAdvisor and just under 4/5 on Google reviews.
Les Bois-Francs, is the lowest scoring with reviewers, with an average of 3/5 on TripAdvisor or 3.4/5 on Google reviews. Le Lac d'Ailette and the Center Parcs at Disneyland Paris both get slightly better scores on Google Reviews, but both only score 3/5 on TripAdvisor.
So, the four Center Parcs with the best reviews also happen to be three of the furthest from the UK. The question is whether you are willing to drive a bit further based on customer reviews.
Here's the full ranking, in order:
Les Trois Forêts gets the second-best reviews overall (3.5/5 on TripAdvisor, 4/5 on Google Reviews)
In third place are Les Hauts Des Bruyeres and Les Landes de Gascogne (the newest Center Parcs). Both score 3.5/5 on TripAdvisor and just under 4/5 on Google reviews.
Les Bois-Francs, is the lowest scoring with reviewers, with an average of 3/5 on TripAdvisor or 3.4/5 on Google reviews. Le Lac d'Ailette and the Center Parcs at Disneyland Paris both get slightly better scores on Google Reviews, but both only score 3/5 on TripAdvisor.
So, the four Center Parcs with the best reviews also happen to be three of the furthest from the UK. The question is whether you are willing to drive a bit further based on customer reviews.
Here's the full ranking, in order:
- Le Bois Aux Daims - 4.1/5 on Google Reviews + 4/5 on TripAdvisor = 8.1/10
- Les Trois Forêts - 3.9/5 + 3.5/5 = 7.4/10
- Les Landes de Gascogne - 3.8/5 + 3.5/5 = 7.3/10 (the newest Center Parcs in France)
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 3.7/5 + 3.5/5 = 7.2/10
- Le Lac d'Ailette - 3.8/5 + 3/5 = 6.8/10 (nearest to the UK)
- Les Villages Nature Paris - 3.6/5 + 3/5 = 6.6/10 (next door to Disneyland Paris)
- Les Bois-Francs - 3.4/5 + 3/5 = 6.4/10
Center Parcs Les Trois Forêts scores well with reviewers
|
Center Parcs Les Landes de Gascogne is the newest Center Parcs resort in France
|
Which Centerparcs in France is cheapest?
Now, here’s where it gets interesting…
For a rough price comparison we looked at three different sets of holiday dates at seven Center Parcs in France.
We searched for a week in early August 2024, a week in October 2024 and a week over Easter 2024. We looked for the basic price for a family of four in the cheapest accommodation available on CenterParcs.fr. For some reason, that is usually cheaper than booking the same holiday on CenterParcs.eu.
We didn’t include the cost of activities, which can be quite a bit over the course of a week at Center Parcs. We converted the price from Euros to Pounds Sterling based on the exchange rate at the time.
We found that Le Lac d'Ailette, Les Hauts Des Bruyeres and Les Bois-Francs were usually amongst the cheapest. Les Villages Nature Paris (the one by Disneyland Paris) was always the most expensive option.
The two French Center Parcs with the best reviews - Les Trois Forêts and Le Bois Aux Daims – were usually somewhere around the middle of the price comparison.
For those who enjoy staring at numbers as much as me, here’s the full results from our (limited) price comparison.
Prices for a week in August 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive
Prices for a week over Easter 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive:
We couldn't find a price for Les Bois-Francs at Easter 2024.
Prices for a week in early October 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive:
Searches carried out in November 2023.
For a rough price comparison we looked at three different sets of holiday dates at seven Center Parcs in France.
We searched for a week in early August 2024, a week in October 2024 and a week over Easter 2024. We looked for the basic price for a family of four in the cheapest accommodation available on CenterParcs.fr. For some reason, that is usually cheaper than booking the same holiday on CenterParcs.eu.
We didn’t include the cost of activities, which can be quite a bit over the course of a week at Center Parcs. We converted the price from Euros to Pounds Sterling based on the exchange rate at the time.
We found that Le Lac d'Ailette, Les Hauts Des Bruyeres and Les Bois-Francs were usually amongst the cheapest. Les Villages Nature Paris (the one by Disneyland Paris) was always the most expensive option.
The two French Center Parcs with the best reviews - Les Trois Forêts and Le Bois Aux Daims – were usually somewhere around the middle of the price comparison.
For those who enjoy staring at numbers as much as me, here’s the full results from our (limited) price comparison.
Prices for a week in August 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive
- Les Bois-Francs - £1301
- Les Trois Forêts - £1401
- Le Lac d'Ailette - £1408
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - £1434
- Les Landes de Gascogne - £1533
- Le Bois Aux Daims - £1556
- Les Villages Nature Paris - £2037
Prices for a week over Easter 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive:
- Le Lac d'Ailette - £831
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - £929
- Les Trois Forêts - £971
- Les Landes de Gascogne - £978
- Le Bois Aux Daims - £985
- Les Villages Nature Paris - £1366
We couldn't find a price for Les Bois-Francs at Easter 2024.
Prices for a week in early October 2024 for four people from cheapest to most expensive:
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - £576
- Les Bois-Francs - £595
- Le Lac d'Ailette - £608
- Le Bois Aux Daims - £668
- Les Landes de Gascogne - £694
- Les Trois Forêts - £746
- Les Villages Nature Paris - £930
Searches carried out in November 2023.
Center Parcs Les Bois-Francs is one of the cheapest resorts in France
Which Center Parcs in France has the best facilities?
Whichever Center Parcs you choose, you’ll find a good choice of activities. Many of them cost extra, but there are dozens of things to do.
There is some variation in the number of activities on offer, according to the official website:
In some comparisons we’ve done (such as our comparison of German Center Parcs) we’ve found big variations in the number of activities on offer. However, in France, there’s a good consistency with 5 of the parks offering between 92 and 115 activities, according to the official website.
The first exception is Les Villages Nature Paris but that is the resort near to Disneyland Paris so during a week's holiday you will probably spend a few days off site anyway. Les Landes de Gascogne is a smaller park and only opened in 2022.
With a little bit of digging, we can also find out how many of the activities listed above are free (i.e. included in the cost of your holiday). From most to least:
It is also worth mentioning that there is some duplication on the Center Parcs website. For example, various activities within the 'Aqua Mundo' are listed as separate 'included' activities - such as the 'wild river' 'outdoor pool' 'wave pool' and 'children's pool'.
There is some variation in the number of activities on offer, according to the official website:
- Le Bois Aux Daims - 115 activities
- Les Trois Forêts - 108 activities
- Les Bois-Francs - 102 activities
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 99 activities
- Le Lac d'Ailette - 92 activities
- Les Villages Nature Paris - 84 activities
- Les Landes de Gascogne - 80 activities
In some comparisons we’ve done (such as our comparison of German Center Parcs) we’ve found big variations in the number of activities on offer. However, in France, there’s a good consistency with 5 of the parks offering between 92 and 115 activities, according to the official website.
The first exception is Les Villages Nature Paris but that is the resort near to Disneyland Paris so during a week's holiday you will probably spend a few days off site anyway. Les Landes de Gascogne is a smaller park and only opened in 2022.
With a little bit of digging, we can also find out how many of the activities listed above are free (i.e. included in the cost of your holiday). From most to least:
- Le Lac d'Ailette - 29 free activities
- Le Bois Aux Daims - 26 free activities
- Les Landes de Gascogne - 25 free activities
- Les Trois Forêts - 24 free activities
- Les Villages Nature Paris - 24 free activities
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 23 free activities
- Les Bois-Francs - 22 free activities
It is also worth mentioning that there is some duplication on the Center Parcs website. For example, various activities within the 'Aqua Mundo' are listed as separate 'included' activities - such as the 'wild river' 'outdoor pool' 'wave pool' and 'children's pool'.
Center Parcs Le Bois Aux Daims has a good range of free activities
Which Center Parcs in France has the best swimming pool/waterpark?
If you’ve been to a Center Parcs before, you’ll know that the waterpark is one of the main attractions. In the UK they are called the ‘Subtropical Paradise’ whilst in Europe they are usually called 'Aqua Mundo' (which translates as water world, if you’re interested) or sometimes 'Aqualagon'.
With a bit of searching, you can find reviews of the waterparks at Center Parcs in France.
The Aqua Mundo at Les Landes de Gascogne scores a sensational 4.7/5 on Google Reviews. However, it's a new park and this was only after 65 reviews so we will hold off a while before getting too excited. It has a wild river, wave pool, whirlpools, a slide with two-seater boats and a twin flume which you can race down.
According to reviewers, the Aqua Mundo waterpark at Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris near Disneyland Paris and the waterpark at Le Bois Aux Daims are both excellent. Le Bois Aux Daims scores 4.4/5 on Google Reviews whilst Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris isn't far behind on 4.3/5.
The waterpark at Les Bois-Francs is the lowest rated with an average customer review of 3.8/5.
The water parks at the other three Center Parcs in France (Le Lac d'Ailette, Les Trois Forêts and Les Hauts de Bruyères) all score a very respectable scores of 4.2/5.
Here's the full run-down of the swimming pools at the French Center Parcs from highest to lowest rated:
With a bit of searching, you can find reviews of the waterparks at Center Parcs in France.
The Aqua Mundo at Les Landes de Gascogne scores a sensational 4.7/5 on Google Reviews. However, it's a new park and this was only after 65 reviews so we will hold off a while before getting too excited. It has a wild river, wave pool, whirlpools, a slide with two-seater boats and a twin flume which you can race down.
According to reviewers, the Aqua Mundo waterpark at Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris near Disneyland Paris and the waterpark at Le Bois Aux Daims are both excellent. Le Bois Aux Daims scores 4.4/5 on Google Reviews whilst Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris isn't far behind on 4.3/5.
The waterpark at Les Bois-Francs is the lowest rated with an average customer review of 3.8/5.
The water parks at the other three Center Parcs in France (Le Lac d'Ailette, Les Trois Forêts and Les Hauts de Bruyères) all score a very respectable scores of 4.2/5.
Here's the full run-down of the swimming pools at the French Center Parcs from highest to lowest rated:
- Aqua Mundo at Les Landes de Gascogne - 4.7/5
- Aqua Mundo at Le Bois Aux Daims - 4.4/5
- Aqua Mundo at Les Villages Nature Paris - 4.3/5
- Aqua Mundo at Le Lac d'Ailette - 4.2/5
- Aqua Mundo at Les Trois Forêts - 4.2/5
- Aqua Mundo at Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 4.2/5
- Aqua Mundo at Les Bois-Francs - 3.9/5
The swimming pool at Center Parcs Les Landes de Gascogne is very popular with customers
Which is the largest Center Parcs in France?
There is a notable difference in the size of the different Center Parcs resorts in France. That isn’t really the case in the UK, where they are all built to a fairly similar scale.
I wouldn’t obsess over how many hectares a resort has (or indeed how big a hectare is). However, it does give a general idea of how much there is to explore.
If you’re planning a fortnight’s holiday, then I would lean towards a larger resort to keep it interesting. For a short break you might prefer a smaller site that you can quickly get familiar with.
From largest to smallest:
So, Les Trois Forêts is the largest Center Parcs in France by far whilst three resorts are smaller, including two of the newest resorts – Les Villages Nature Paris and Les Landes de Gascogne.
(These figures may not be 100% accurate, as there are different numbers quoted online. Some resorts have large lakes which are included in the figures. It's also worth noting that Center Parcs describes Les Hauts Des Bruyeres as 'France's second-largest Center Parcs' despite it covering the smallest area on the list above!).
I wouldn’t obsess over how many hectares a resort has (or indeed how big a hectare is). However, it does give a general idea of how much there is to explore.
If you’re planning a fortnight’s holiday, then I would lean towards a larger resort to keep it interesting. For a short break you might prefer a smaller site that you can quickly get familiar with.
From largest to smallest:
- Les Trois Forêts - 435 hectares
- Les Bois-Francs - 300 hectares
- Le Bois Aux Daims - 260 hectares
- Le Lac d'Ailette - 224 hectares
- Les Landes de Gascogne - 130 hectares
- Les Villages Nature Paris - 120 hectares
- Les Hauts Des Bruyeres - 110 hectares
So, Les Trois Forêts is the largest Center Parcs in France by far whilst three resorts are smaller, including two of the newest resorts – Les Villages Nature Paris and Les Landes de Gascogne.
(These figures may not be 100% accurate, as there are different numbers quoted online. Some resorts have large lakes which are included in the figures. It's also worth noting that Center Parcs describes Les Hauts Des Bruyeres as 'France's second-largest Center Parcs' despite it covering the smallest area on the list above!).
Other notable differences between the seven Center Parcs in France
- As mentioned, Les Villages Nature Paris is a joint venture with Disneyland Paris which opened in 2017. It takes about 15 minutes by car to get to the theme parks, or there's a shuttle that you can pay for which takes 25 minutes.
- Le Bois Aux Daims is one of newest Center Parcs, having opened in 2015. Les Trois Forêts opened in 2010, whilst Le Lac d'Ailette opened in 2007.
- The oldest Center Parcs in France are Les Bois-Francs and Les Hauts Des Bruyeres which both opened in the 1980s and 1990s (they are also the two cheapest parks in most cases in our price comparison).
- Les Landes de Gascogne is the newest Center Parcs in France. Its first customers arrived in May 2022.
- Les Haut Des Bruyeres has been going through a 'reinvention', which runs from 2020-2024. Upgrades have included updating hundreds of VIP Cottages, Premium Cottages and Comfort Cottages. They also renovated the Deep Nature Spa in 2022 and are improving various other communal areas.
Conclusion – which is the best Center Parcs in France?
All seven Center Parcs have something going for them, but I would personally go for Le Bois Aux Daims or perhaps Les Trois Forêts if it's cheapest for the week you want to visit.
They have a similar number of activities, get good reviews for their waterparks and are a similar driving distance from Calais. They're also both quite new parks, having been built in the noughties. The waterpark ('Aqua Mundo') at Le Bois Aux Daims gets slightly better reviews than the pool at Les Trois Forêts and the overall review score for Le Bois Aux Daims is slightly better.
However, if you have children wearing princess dresses or singing along to The Lion King soundtrack in the car, then you might prefer Les Villages Nature Paris, which offers the facilities of CenterParcs with only a short daily journey to Disneyland Paris. It also has the advantage of offering the joint best waterparks of the six French Center Parcs, according to customer reviews.
If you're looking for a cheap Center Parcs in France, I'd look at Les Hauts Des Bruyeres as it is similarly priced to Les Bois-Francs but gets slightly better reviews.
Le Lac d'Ailette is somewhere in the middle in most of our comparisons, but it's main plus point is that it is the nearest to the UK for most people.
Les Landes de Gascogne has good points and bad points, but I wouldn't immediately leap to book it. It is the newest Center Parcs resort in France and early reviews of the swimming pool are outstanding. However, it's the furthest from the UK, it is more expensive than most Center Parcs and it has fewer activities than all the other Center Parcs in France.
They have a similar number of activities, get good reviews for their waterparks and are a similar driving distance from Calais. They're also both quite new parks, having been built in the noughties. The waterpark ('Aqua Mundo') at Le Bois Aux Daims gets slightly better reviews than the pool at Les Trois Forêts and the overall review score for Le Bois Aux Daims is slightly better.
However, if you have children wearing princess dresses or singing along to The Lion King soundtrack in the car, then you might prefer Les Villages Nature Paris, which offers the facilities of CenterParcs with only a short daily journey to Disneyland Paris. It also has the advantage of offering the joint best waterparks of the six French Center Parcs, according to customer reviews.
If you're looking for a cheap Center Parcs in France, I'd look at Les Hauts Des Bruyeres as it is similarly priced to Les Bois-Francs but gets slightly better reviews.
Le Lac d'Ailette is somewhere in the middle in most of our comparisons, but it's main plus point is that it is the nearest to the UK for most people.
Les Landes de Gascogne has good points and bad points, but I wouldn't immediately leap to book it. It is the newest Center Parcs resort in France and early reviews of the swimming pool are outstanding. However, it's the furthest from the UK, it is more expensive than most Center Parcs and it has fewer activities than all the other Center Parcs in France.
Le Bois Aux Daims is our choice for the best value Center Parcs in France
Which are the best cheap alternatives to Center Parcs?
There are plenty of alternatives to Center Parcs if you want a family-friendly holiday in France. You’ll find a top 10 in our guide to French holiday parks, but highlights include:
- Domaine des Ormes Campsite covers a similar size to a UK Center Parcs resort. It's not a campsite, despite the name and it has plenty of lodges/static homes for hire. The main attraction is the 'dome aquatic complex' which opened in 2019 and is a similar sort of thing to a Center Parcs swimming pool. Reviews average 4/5.
Domaine des Ormes Campsite in Brittany is a good alternative to Center Parcs in France...
|
...and it scores 4/5 from reviewers, which is similar to the highest scoring French Center Parcs
|
- Village Les Mouettes in Brittany has indoor and outdoor swimming pools, pony rides, playgrounds and places to eat onsite.
Village Les Mouettes in Brittany has an excellent choice of swimming pools...
|
...and it's only 20 minutes drive from the ferry which you can catch from Plymouth
|
- La Garangeoire Campsite in Vendee on the west coast has several swimming pools, horse riding and beach access
La Garangeoire Campsite is a 7 hour drive from Calais but it gets excellent reviews...
|
...and has plenty of these lodges for hire
|
