CHM Montalivet, La Jenny or Euronat? Help

[wiener]

Hi!
We'll be in Euronat 21-28 July 2018. Anyone else that time who'd like to meet up there?
Anyone offering a ride from Bordeaux to Euronat on 21st July (Saturday)? Would be great:)

[wiener]

So we were both in Euronat and for a day-trip to CHM Montalivet.
Here are some tips:)

We flew to France, so we needed to get to the campsite by public transport. From Bordeaux main railway station there's a bus running a few times a day to Lesparre (Transgironde line 703). From there there are even less busses that go to Montalivet (712), stopping both at CHM Montalivet and also later at Euronat. In total it took about 3 hours from Bordeaux to Euronat (120 km), but it was very cheap, it's about 3 EUR for the whole trip.

In Euronat you can rent small holiday houses (mobile homes) for a week, it was quite reasonable price as we were 6 of us. You have to pay extra if you don't bring your own bedsheets or towels.
The entire campsite is in a huge forest, the houses have some garden, terrasse with sunbeds, table and chairs. It really looks like a huge village but the houses are quite far from each other, so it still feels like being in a forest. Because it is so big area, you also don't feel that there are so many people. It feels nice calm everywhere.
The beach from the entrance is quite a distance away, so it's quite handy to have a bicycle. You can rent also a bike for a week (36 EUR). Lot of people ride the bike, also to get to the "centre" where there are many shops (also supermarket), bakery, restaurants and a stage where in the evenings there was some live music, and also sport fields and rooms for activities/animation. The archery is further away, it was quite nice acitivity even for beginners!
Altough there were signs reminding the people that "you are in a naturist camping - go naked", I had the feeling that less than 50% did so. On the beach it was better ratio, but even on the beach there were about 10% clothed people, the lifeguards/security didn't remind them about it.
The beach is very nice, sandy and very wide, with nice waves. It can be also dangerous so i'ts only allowed to go into the water where there are the lifegueards (marked with flags).

From Euronat there is a nice bike road to the city of Montalivet (there's also an ALDI supermarket, open also on Sundays) and further to the campsite CHM Montalivet. It was about 30 min by bike to Aldi, and 45 min to CHM. With the Euronat-badge you we could get free day-pass to the CHM  campsite at its reception. The sport fields are near to the entrance, there we still didn't feel that it's a naturist campsite, only more inside the camping. In this camping there are also houses to rent but the "tent pitches" seemed to be more in a forest, on some nice small hills.
CHM has also a "center" but with less shops and restaurants than in Euronat. Most of them make afternoon break (they close between lunch and dinner time). Closer to the beach you can meet much more naked people. There's also a small aquapark near the beack exit with a few water slides and pools. They don't have much animation programs, but I managed to attend one water aerobic. It was't very professional, it was without music and the trainer also didn't show much. There were more lifeguards around the pool looking after the safety and if people respect the rules (e.g. at the slides), The lifeguards demonstrate good example, they also did not wear clothes or just a T-shirt or walkie-talkie.
When going to the real beach you pass a small house where a guard sits and remind the people not undressed yet that that is a naturist beach so they should take off their clothes already here. In the other dircetion they control if we are guest of this campsite (you have to show your camp-ID or your day-pass. Also on the beach the lifeguards (also naturists) remind people who are not undressed (e.g. walkers coming along the beach from other campings) that it is a naturist beach.

In both campings I was not satisfied with the cleanliness in the public toilets/showers. Toilet lids were missing, mostly there was no paper and no soap.

[cseven]

So I've been to Euronat and CHM. Got a bit bored of both. How's La Jenny? Is there much of a youth crowd?

[kissane]

I love Monta, and go there annually. The night life is good, the people are friendly, and while the restaurants can very in quality as some open and close over the years, i have never been too disappointed. They have a good selection of glamping tents, chalets, and normal camping plots. The beach there is truly stunning, and it is beside the town where there is a large market, and some of the most impressive wine estates of France are within a short drive if you like visiting.

I did try Euronat but they had some bizarre rules like having to get a separate ID to enter the pool, and the population density is lower so if you go to the beach and forget something it takes a lot longer to go back to your site to retrieve it. You really need a bike there. That being said, the commercial centre is rather impressive.

Arna is the same distance from Bordeaux, except south. You would need to rent a car to get there, but the waves are even more powerful than at Monta. It is definitely the smaller of the 3 but the food is great and generally very relaxed.

Unfortunately i cannot advise re La Jenny.

[Paula MZ]

So I've been to Euronat and CHM. Got a bit bored of both. How's La Jenny? Is there much of a youth crowd?

Why you are bored about CHM?

[DaniSnow]

So I've been to Euronat and CHM. Got a bit bored of both. How's La Jenny? Is there much of a youth crowd?

Why you are bored about CHM?

when i was in CHM it was also boring, there were no activities in the evening, just the food area, no music, no shows ... and the bar which was okish.
the resort that i found mosy interesting in terms of activities in the evening is Arnaoutchot , after dinner there are different music shows, there is a theater with shows and the game room is also open till midnight, but the best thig is that from midnight till 2 am there is a dance bar with good music and fun Atmosphere.
la jenny is my second place, some nights there is a band in the food area, there is also a band in the golf clubhouse and some night a "disco" in the bar, during the day tons of things to do, archery, football, basketball, pony rides for the kids, golf....

[cseven]

So I've been to Euronat and CHM. Got a bit bored of both. How's La Jenny? Is there much of a youth crowd?

Why you are bored about CHM?

I just went there too much, and also felt like it was becoming a bit too textile since the management takeover. Not to mention that there was discrimination against single males.

[Paula MZ]

thanks for your answer:-)

[kata]

I was a week in La Jenny a few years ago. It is a very nice place. The distances are a bit long but there are also a lot of houses.

[swede]

I saw someone mention la Jenny and that they had a golf course? Is this true? If they have one that's awesome. Nude golf sounds amazing.

[kata]

I saw someone mention la Jenny and that they had a golf course? Is this true? If they have one that's awesome. Nude golf sounds amazing.

There is a large golf course. And keep playing naked :) I don't know anything else about golf.

[swede]

I saw someone mention la Jenny and that they had a golf course? Is this true? If they have one that's awesome. Nude golf sounds amazing.

There is a large golf course. And keep playing naked :) I don't know anything else about golf.

Awesome!

[cseven]

Fast forward to 2023... how are these resorts these days? I heard Monta has become a bit more 'textile' in the sense that you see a lot more (partially) clothed people than before. Is that true? And how are their single visitor policies these days? Are single travellers still treated like sex offendors?

[naturetom]

I was in the area of Montalivet last September with my camper on my own and went to ask at CHM if I could stay for a couple of days, but they told me (in a friendly manner) that a single person is only allowed if they know someone on the campsite who will be their "godparent", guaranteeing that the person is sticking to their naturist rules.
As I didn't know anyone there I was not allowed to stay, so I stayed on a nearby campsite and just went to their naturist beach which is open to the public (still nice, but it would have been much nicer to stay on the campsite).
I'm not sure if Euronat (also in Montalivet) has the same rules, but it is quite a bit more expensive, and I didn't need any facilities, so I didn't go there to ask.

With many of those campsites, it's a bit of a hassle every time as a single person, I have stayed in Sérignan Plage Nature in the south of France without a problem, and with a receipt from there I was able to stay in Arnaoutchot (they called the other campsite to verify), but two years later in Arnatchout they wouldn't accept me, as my previous stay wasn't in their system anymore and I didn't have any proof of my stay.

[cseven]

I was in the area of Montalivet last September with my camper on my own and went to ask at CHM if I could stay for a couple of days, but they told me (in a friendly manner) that a single person is only allowed if they know someone on the campsite who will be their "godparent", guaranteeing that the person is sticking to their naturist rules.
As I didn't know anyone there I was not allowed to stay, so I stayed on a nearby campsite and just went to their naturist beach which is open to the public (still nice, but it would have been much nicer to stay on the campsite).
I'm not sure if Euronat (also in Montalivet) has the same rules, but it is quite a bit more expensive, and I didn't need any facilities, so I didn't go there to ask.

With many of those campsites, it's a bit of a hassle every time as a single person, I have stayed in Sérignan Plage Nature in the south of France without a problem, and with a receipt from there I was able to stay in Arnaoutchot (they called the other campsite to verify), but two years later in Arnatchout they wouldn't accept me, as my previous stay wasn't in their system anymore and I didn't have any proof of my stay.

Whilst I understand the ideology behind not allowing single people (= single males), I do think it is borderline discriminatory as they don't have the same requirements with others (couples, families, groups of friends). But it is unlikely this would ever be legally challenged as these naturist resorts are such a small sector compared to the mainstream textile industry that any watchdog likely does not look at them.

I have been to CHM a few times. Each time got worse, in all honesty. I had my reference and even made friends within the camp who would holiday at the same time as me, but I always felt the gaze of the security guys (in their shorts and t-shirts) and even heard them footstepping outside my mobile-home in the late hours a couple of times. Unbelievable.

That said, I do miss that place, and hope to go there again this year after a long break (7 years). There is something special about it, that is certainly not created by the strict rules of not having 'single men'.