Fly 

There are daily flights to and from Nantes airport from the UK, USA and Ireland. You can conveniently fly into Nantes, hire a car at the airport for the duration of you stay at Dophin Gites. It is advisable to book car hire at the time of booking your flight. We are about 1 hour's drive from Nantes airport.

If you are flying from the UK, look at Flybe or Ryanair for cheap flights. The earlier you book your flight, the cheaper the flight.

Drive

We are located about 3 hours' drive from the Channel port of St Malo, and about half a day's drive from the other main ports.

Discounted Ferry Crossings

Paris

It is now possible to combine your stay at Dolphin Gites in Vendee with a trip to Paris. You may wish to see the sights, or combine your stay at Dolphin Gites with a trip to Disneyland.

It is surprisingly easy to travel to Paris from Dolphin Gites. The train (TGV) from Nantes now takes only 2 hours, so a day trip is certainly possible, however, an overnight stay would be more relaxed.

Which Ferry Crossing?

Approximate distances from Dolphin Gites to the cross channel ports are listed below:

St Malo/ 170 miles

Caen/ 240 miles

Roscoff/ 250 miles

Cherbourg/ 270 miles

Le Havre/ 290 miles

Dieppe/ 321 miles

Calais/ 400 miles

Dover - Calais  

This is a quick crossing which only takes about 90 minutes. You will make a big saving on the price of the crossing, less than half the price of the other cross-channel routes.  The journey from Calais to La Chaize Giraud takes about 6 hours, depending upon your driving speed. Don't be put off by the distance, as the roads in France are excellent, the density of traffic is much less and there are no heavy goods vehicles on the road on a Sunday.

Portsmouth - Cherbourg or Caen  

These are longer crossings (5 to 6 hours) giving you time to unwind and and enjoy the luxury facilities the modern ferries have to offer, eg. bars, restaurants, shops and cinemas. Many people prefer taking the night crossing with a cabin or reclining seat, so that they are refreshed for the journey ahead of them in the morning. From Caen it is motorway all the way (non-toll) and will take around 5 hours, but from Cherbourg the first 100 miles are on A roads and later some of the motorways are toll.

Portsmouth - St Malo  

This is another popular crossing. The  night crossing takes about 10 hours but if you are asleep in your cabin you will be unaware of the time. This crossing leaves the shortest drive in France in the morning (about 4 hours).