CosyCamp

After a first incredible summer at CosyCamp, we cut our holidays in Italy to return to Auvergne. Auvergne is for us a relaxing destination and Chamalières sur Loire is an amazing village. CosyCamp is located in the south of the department and the weather is nice in this part of the country. The site is run by a bunch of friends, caring and passionated people who make you feel at home .The campsite is very large, no cars go through, and respectful of nature and environment. Many aromatic gardens and tasty meals from the restaurant come from local producers. Everything is beautiful, down to Earth, and delicious. Children can swim in the pool, and there are creative and fun activities organised for them.

   Richard and Sophie have designed the perfect place to relax as a family. On arrival you get a warm welcome, they inform you of all the great things to do on the campsite and all the highly recommended places to visit in the local surroundings. The site is car free, plots are large, the amenities are spotless, plenty of places for children to run free and lots of relaxation areas for the adults. The surrounding area is stunning full of history, good food and outdoor living activities.

Highlights of our stay included: fresh French bread delivered every morning for breakfast, exploring the River Loire by kayak, the hotel standard swimming pool, the local French markets and the hidden away medieval villages.

We will be back next summer.

We just came back from Cosycamp after spending 15 nights in our own tent, all we can say is book now before they full up! 

Richard and Sophie has created a very unique site in Haute Loire region, the atmosphere is very inviting and friendly; compares to other campsites we've been to it is small yet you don't feel being cramped in because they do not allow car in the sites! On top of that, you have the direct access to the Loire too. Has anyone mentioned their carefully designed herb garden yet? They are very happy for you to use their herbs for your own cooking!

The region itself is stunning and Cosycamp is in the heart of it! If you like hiking, mountain biking you will not be disappointed.

The highlight for us is spending many evening around the communal campfire meeting new people and friends. Even if you are not keen to socialise with other campers in the site, you should at least watch Richard to light one of the Norwegian candle for the campfire once! 

Thanks for the team in Cosycamp for an amazing holiday! 

Ich werde auf deutsch schreiben um auch deutsche Reisende für diesen absolut fantastischen Campingplatz zu begeistern :).

Wir hatten dort 10 Tage in Juli 2014 verbracht. Wir fanden es wunderbar. Trotz dem schlechten Wetter hatten wir unseren Aufenthalt genossen. Es ist alles so liebevoll dort.

Die Plätze großzügig, das Restaurant gemütlich, die Gärten(!) und der Pool sehr gepflegt. Die Sanitäranlagen sind sauber und geräumig. Was aber die größte Rolle spielte: das Team. Man merkt, dass die Leute dort gerne arbeiten. Sind immer hilfsbereit und interessiert. Sie bauen mit ihren Gästen eine Beziehung auf. Deshalb ist die Atmosphäre dort so toll!

Nach 10 Tagen CosyCamp sind wir zu einen anderen, vorgebuchten Platz, in den Süden gefahren. Obwohl das Wetter viel besser (weniger regnerisch halt) war und der Camping an sich gar nicht so schlecht, haben wir "unseren" CosyCamp sehr vermisst! 

Der Spirit macht es! Danke CosyCamp!

This campsite is superb and one of the best sites we have ever stayed at. On the bank of the Haute Loire, it’s a truly stunning location.  Waking up every morning, looking at the beautiful hills from within the valley, was wonderful. We wanted to have a rest but to also have the opportunity to do some fun stuff with our 6-year old – we got what we wanted. There were hardly any mosquitoes either – bonus!

There’s plenty to do both off and on site, so if you are looking for a rest, you will certainly get one here; if you want to be active, you can go and do your active stuff too.  It’s good area for cycling both on and off road.  A car-free campsite is quite refreshing and it means that children can cycle around safely. The cars were quite safe in the parking area too. 

All the facilities are well maintained and cleaned regularly. There are two shower blocks, with plenty of hot showers and toilets, even during peak times.  The pool is a very good size and we didn’t experience a bun-fight for loungers, chairs or the large squidgy loungers. The shallow pool is excellent for very small children.

There is a bar and restaurant, which serves simple but good, locally sourced food in the evenings.  One evening a week, they have a family crepe party, which is too nice to resist! Drinks and ice-creams are available throughout the day. It is also a space for families to sit, which is quite welcomed when there’s inclement weather.

For us, the part that really made our holiday was the warm welcome from the lovely owners, Richard and Sophie.  They are the friendliest owners you will ever meet.  They were always smiling and always around if you needed them (not that we ever did). Each week, they took time to give a presentation about what’s on around the area.  Different activities were put on every week for children and families to be involved in.  Our daughter loved making musical instruments from leaves and branches!

Sophie and Richard spoke excellent English but always allowed me to try to speak French. You got a sense that you were staying at their place, rather than just on a campsite.  This campsite is a project for Sophie and Richard – the philosophy you read on their website is not hype.  I was blown away by how lovely it was in the first few months of it opening.  I can’t wait to return to see what it’s like in a few years time.  We will definitely be back.  Thank you!

We are just home from two weeks at Le CozyCamp. The whole holiday was fantastic. The plots are large with (free) WiFi coverage of the whole site. The toilet / shower areas are spacious, clean, modern and plentiful.

What really sets Le CozyCamp above the competition however is the staff. Richard and Sophie were always around the site looking after people and helping non-native speakers with booking outings etc. The other staff were all incredibly friendly, patient and happy to help whenever they could.

The site also has a nice "family room" / Bar (with the emphasis on "Family Room"). It was made clear that we could bring out own food and drinks here as we wished, though ultimately we enjoyed fresh-brewed coffee's, hot-chocolates and home-baked pizza's from the bar on more than a couple of occasions. If you are really lucky, you might get a torrential downpour during which the chef might make a spectacular vegetable soup!

The camp-site also ran a few family evenings serving crepes and the local speciality lentils from Le Puy-En-Velay. Normally, I'm not big on socialising on camp-sites, but we spent a couple of evenings here enjoying good food and wine with our neighbours!

The villages of Chamalières-sur-Loire and Retournac are easily accessible by bike (and the latter boasts a great butchers, fruit and veg store, a lovely patisserie and an average supermarket).

On our last day, we stole a quick look around one of the "Safari Lodges" whilst it was being cleaned and we are seriously considering a return for a week of luxury!

Thank-you very much to Richard, Sophie and all of the other staff who made our stay so enjoyable. Your hard work has paid off and your camp-site is excellent!

:)

Matt Grimley

We stayed at Cosycamp for 11 nights in August 2013. It was fantastic. The facilities are kept exceptionally clean, the showers are always hot and you don't need to faff around with tokens. The swimming pool is big enough to not feel too crowded on a hot day and again it and pool side are kept clean. Cosy camp provide comfy sun loungers and cool beanbag beds to sun bathe on. The cafe/bar area provides a limited menu for evening meals but what they do provide, salads, pizza, burgers & selection of desserts are scrummy. There are a good selection of local beers and wines on offer too and of course ice cream. There is a lounging area above the airy bar area which the kids loved to congregate in to play their games together.  

The Cosycamp team provide information on the area in the way of maps and leaflets which are easily accessible in the cafe/bar. We found them very happy to help us with our activity planning. The location is fab. We selected a large tent pitch 200m2 it faced directly to the river which was excellent for swimming in and kayaking on. The whole site is well laid out to include a playground for the kids, campfire area (many a marshmallow toasted), scenic seating areas & BBQ area. There was also an activity afternoon for the children on Tuesday. This was very low key which we liked and involved the kids making musical instruments out of different materials found in nature. It was very well done and both our children aged 6 and 9 enjoyed making them. 

The whole atmosphere of Cosycamp is laid-back but not so much that you feel the need to tiptoe around. I think that fun and relaxation is at the heart of this site. In fact we struggled to get the kids go anywhere else ... you must though because the area is beautiful!

P.S We loved the road cycling in the area its not as full on as the Alpes but you need to like the odd hill!, MTBing still needs exploring! We will be back...

Thank you to the Cosy camp team for a wonderful holiday.