The weekend started beautifully… we’d made it to the south of France and to a wonderful natural park area called the Camargue. We’d even seen the famed pink flamingos on our drive into our campsite for the next 4 nights and it had water slides, a bar (big bonus) and was next to a gorgeous beach.
And then on the 4th night a red warning alert for high winds came though, coupled with a warning for flash flooding! As we were right by the coast and also sandwiched from the north by salty marshes, we got scared. And then the wind really picked up….
When we arrived at Le Clos du Rhone near Saintes Maries de la Mer, we were looking forward to some time on the beach, swimming in pools, and generally having a break from racing down to the south coast. And this place really did deliver for us for the first three days. The kids got to play on the three waterslides here, swim in the really lovely Mediterranean Sea and generally relax. They played in the kids play area and we enjoyed a cold blonde beer at the little café/bar. It said it was a 4 star campsite and it’s about right. There were even washing machines!
For the first day we enjoyed the baking hot sun and explored the area and the site.
On the second day we walked into Saintes Maries de la Mer and visited the beautiful church there.
On the third we relaxed, the children slid down the slides for the millionth time and every time we saw the sunrise or sunset during our time there, it filled our hearts with joy. And then the clouds came rolling in…
On Google weather it had said to expect some rain and a possible risk of flooding. Having not travelled much in France, we weren’t sure how accurate these alerts were. But we packed up our awning, table and chairs and tidied our pitch, just in case the weather got worse or we needed to leave early in the morning. And I am very glad that we did so! The red and orange alerts just got worse!
Some rain started drizzling around 6pm, so we ate inside the motorhome, watched a bit of a film and got an early-ish night because we were travelling to near Perpignan the next day. At this point the red alert hadn’t been issued. But by midnight that evening, the motorhome was being battered by high winds and we were rocking in our beds wondering if anything like a door or a window was going to be ripped off into the night!
My husband and I didn’t really sleep that night, but luckily both of the kids managed to get lots of rest. I think it’s because they had been so busy doing some home schooling, playing outside and swimming, that they were knackered (which looking back was a blessing).
I would describe the night as torturous. It was the first storm we’ve weathered in our motorhome! By 6am the next morning, the winds were still howling and a red alert for rain, thunderstorms and flooding had come through as a loud, blaring alert on our phones, so we left the campsite as quickly as possible.
Looking at the weather, the storm was also going to hit Montpellier, the region we needed to drive through. So we phoned it in, decided to not travel that day and looked at alternative options. We had booked a five star campsite for that evening called Le Brasilia in Canet en Roussillon, but instead picked an Ibis budget hotel in Arles which would allow motorhome parking in their car park for free. We were really worried that sassy would get damaged in the thunderstorms and wanted somewhere secure for her to rest up for the next 24 hours.
The hotel was basic, full, and we obviously got the last few reserve rooms as they had lots of mosquitos and strange smells, but it had four strong walls and was a refuge in the storm! We got two double rooms and were checked in by 8:30am. As we had travelled to the city of Arles, we had managed to jump to the right of the storm. We took this opportunity to get out into the city and explore and learn a bit about the history of Vincent Van Gogh whilst the weather was clear.
I am so glad we did! It is such a beautiful place and after a few cafés with beautiful coffees, some flan vanilles for the kids and lots of exploring, we went back to the hotel for lunch.
By 1 pm, the storm had altered its course and came towards Arles, hitting us hard and we were so pleased we had decided to duck into a hotel rather than try to risk the journey in our motorhome in high winds and floods. We watched rolling thunderclouds, lightning and lashing rain until 10 o’clock that night, from the safety of our window. We had parked our motorhome so we could keep an eye on her and my husband kept going down to check she was not leaking and was okay. The kids were amazing, they were awestruck at the thunderstorms that never seemed to end, and had a new experience of hunkering down in a hotel room in a natural phenomenon! It was quite romantic, if not scary.
We slept okay, but not great, as happens when you worry about your lovely motorhome. It becomes your sanctuary on wheels! But luckily we got up early in the morning for a continental breakfast and we were reunited with Sassy.
Onwards we go, to continue our journey to Perpignan. And we see a peek of clear skies on the horizon! 
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