I don't know whether I should be putting this in campsites, beaches or naturist disasters. You will see why!
Campsites:
I have just come back from La Pinede, in western Brittany, the Carnac area.
I had done a little research on the net and what I had read was borne out by what I found.
The campsite is set in a pine forest and could be described as quiet. The essential facilities are all there with clean showers and toilets. There is no shop per se, though the reception does sell beer and ice creams, maybe other stuff too that I didn't notice; this is a naturist club, rather than a commercial campsite. The nearest town, Erdeven, is only a few km away and has everything. A baker delivers each morning. I arrived half an hour after the reception closed but had no difficulty being allowed in. There was a lot of space to choose from, space not spaces as they aren't marked. I was invited to join the communal couscous supper they hold every Saturday night, and it was excellent. Lots of great food, very friendly people (all French), and I was generously given lots of wine as I hadn't come prepared!
The next day I went to the
Beach:
la plage de Kerminihy, roughly 5km from the site. The beach is about 2km long, easily found, good parking, quite nice sand, water was warm, about 20c I'm told, good mix of bathers, no obvious gawpers. Quite a lot of seaweed washed up at the tide-line and a few quite tasty insect bites would be the only drawbacks for me. Apart from the the lack of sunshades for hire which might have saved me from my
Naturist Disaster:
I got quite badly sunburned. Yes I know I am stupid, and yes I am suffering for my stupidity. I only went camping with a small tent and it was agony sliding in and out, the nylon catching on every burnt cell and each blade of grass seeming like a knife as it poked at the groundsheet. Because the sunburn was so sensitive I couldn't expose my body to the sunlight much and kept moving to find the shade during the day. The showers are either cold or a preset warm and both felt like bathing in acid. No I haven't done that, but who knows how stupid I could be in future. It ended up that I was so uncomfortable the only sensible option was to head back home. I had travelled down by motorbike and putting tightish leathers back on, then swinging my leg over the saddle was more than any masochist could ask for. Still I made it home and may have learned a lesson.
If anyone wants any more info on the site or the beach please pm me, and be patient waiting for my reply as I am often away.