There’s cachet to pitching your tent in the grounds of a Louis XVI hunting lodge that’s been in the same family for 200 years. Choose a site around the lake or under the apple trees that make the local cider, and in the morning you’ll be roused by the sound of the baker’s van and the smell of pains au chocolat wafting across the grass.

campinglebrevedent.com , 00 33 2 31 64 72 88; £21 per night for two adults in high season (£4.30 per child aged 7-12, £3.40 for 0-6s). Sail to Caen or Le Havre, both 30 miles away, with Brittany Ferries (0871 244 0744, brittany-ferries.co.uk ) or LD Lines (0844 576 8836, ldlines.co.uk )

9 LES ROULOTTES
France

These gypsy caravans are the real deal. It’s three for the price of one: a 1970s two-person, a 1930s triple and a 1950s roulotte that serves as a compact kitchen/diner. There’s also a restored 1890 caravan, a self-contained unit for two with bathroom. The whole ensemble sits by a river so slow, it looks like a pond.

The 15 best campsites in France

Whatever kind of site you’re after, Jonathan Knight, author of Cool Camping France, has been there

• The 10 best campsites in Greece

The 10 best campsites in Greece

The author of Cool Camping, Richard Waters, reveals Greece’s most beautiful sites

• The best Greek island tavernas

Britain's perfect pitches

Adventure, romance, showers, zero guilt; a night under canvas has it all, says the editor of the Cool Camping guides

• All your tent gear

• How much for a motorhome?

• Britain's best family campsites

The ultimate music festival tent?

Ginny McGrath takes a top of the range tent to a music festival to see if technology can overcome mud, sweat and bleary eyes

• Posh camping at Britain's music festivals

Related Internet Links

• Our dedicated section on camping and caravanning

Related Links

• The 10 best campsites in Greece

lesroulottes.net , 00 33 6 67 74 94 93; £402 per week for five people. Fly to Tours, 45 miles away, with Ryanair (0871 246 0000, ryanair.com )

10 VAL D’OR
Luxembourg

Luxembourg has 999 square miles of rolling hills and forests, and tucked away in the heart of it, in the middle of the Ardennes, is this little gold mine. Val d’Or is as sleepy as it gets: a village with 140 souls and a tiny bar like Nan’s front room. A river trickles through the site, and there are forest walks aplenty, but it’s more the kind of place to just sit and listen to the birds.

valdor.lu, 00 352 92 06 91; £17 per night for two adults (£2 per child). Eurotunnel (www.eurotunnel.com) has returns from Folkestone to Calais, 250 miles away, from £100

11 CAMPSPIRIT
Holland

In this reed-enclosed eco-haven on Lake Veluwe, you can choose a Native American teepee, a Sahara tent or a Kyrgyz yurt. A Pakistani wedding tent provides the communal space. There’s pick-your-own organic veg, a woodland grove with hammocks and a dinky harbour if you need the sound of lapping water.

campspirit.nl , 00 31 630 36 47 23; £70 per weekend for two adults sharing a Sahara tent. See above for Eurotunnel; Calais is 250 miles away

12 TENTSTATION
Germany

Times recommends

• Overlanding then and now
• Live Q&A: ski fitness and injury
• Get the right payment card and deny Ryanair its hefty fee