In August 2023, with Kaylie seven months pregnant, Harry and Joseph in the back seats, and a TentBox strapped to the roof of our car, we set off from Liverpool for a two-week road trip through France.
It was not the most conventional time to take on a big family adventure. Kaylie understandably did not fancy flying while heavily pregnant, but we still wanted to get away and experience somewhere new. Neither of us had travelled through France before, so we thought: why not?
We had recently started selling TentBoxes through Camper Camper and wanted to properly test one out for ourselves. I removed the spare wheel from the boot and built a simple storage and kitchen setup into the space, giving us somewhere to carry our camping gear, cook food and keep everything reasonably organised.
The plan was loose. Liverpool to Dover, the ferry across to Calais, then down through France towards Annecy, the Gorges du Verdon and finally the coast around Antibes and Cannes.
We had a rough route, but no rigid itinerary. We wanted the freedom to stay longer when we liked somewhere and move on when we were ready.
The journey to France
We drove from Liverpool to Dover and crossed the Channel by ferry to Calais.
There was something exciting about driving off the ferry and knowing the whole trip was ahead of us. We had two kids, a pregnant Kaylie, a car full of camping equipment and no real idea how the next two weeks were going to unfold.
It felt adventurous from the beginning.
The beauty of travelling this way was that we were not tied to airport schedules, baggage limits or fixed accommodation bookings. Everything we needed was either inside the car or strapped to the roof.
Our first proper stop: Annecy
Annecy was the first place that properly stopped us in our tracks.
We had seen photos beforehand, but they did not prepare us for how beautiful it was in real life. The lake, the mountains, the old buildings and the architecture of the village all came together to make it feel almost unreal.
The water was incredibly clear, and everywhere you looked there seemed to be another view worth stopping for.
Because Annecy was our first major destination, I think it had the biggest impact on us. It was the moment the trip really began to feel special. We had driven all that way, arrived somewhere completely new and found something even better than we had imagined.
It instantly became one of our favourite places from the whole journey.
Camping at the Gorges du Verdon
From Annecy, we travelled towards the Gorges du Verdon and stayed near Les Salles-sur-Verdon.
The scenery here was breathtaking. Huge cliffs surrounded bright blue water, and the whole area had a wild, adventurous feeling to it.
We kayaked through the gorge, explored the lake and even found places to jump from the rocks into the water. One of my favourite memories from the entire trip was jumping into the lake from the jetty with Harry at night.
It was one of those simple moments that stays with you. No organised attraction, no complicated plan, just the two of us repeatedly jumping into the warm water in the dark and enjoying ourselves.
The campsite itself also had one of the best surprises of the trip: Surf Eat.
It was a lakeside bar with a relaxed surfer feel, lights hanging through the trees, a tightrope, cold beers and stone-baked pizzas. It had the kind of atmosphere you cannot really manufacture.
You could sit there after a day on the water, surrounded by the trees, eating pizza and watching the evening settle over the lake.
It became a proper hidden gem for us and is somewhere we would recommend to anyone visiting the area.
We also had an incredible steak at a small family-run restaurant in Les Salles-sur-Verdon. It was not a flashy place, but the food was brilliant and it felt genuinely local.
The night the storm arrived
Of course, not everything went exactly to plan.
One night at the Gorges du Verdon, a huge thunderstorm rolled in. With Kaylie seven months pregnant, sleeping inside a roof tent during a major storm suddenly felt slightly less adventurous and slightly more ridiculous.
Rather than stubbornly sticking it out, we decided to leave the TentBox for the night and found a hotel directly above the campsite.
It cost us about €50 and ended up being one of the best decisions of the trip.
The hotel was lovely, and it meant Kaylie could have a proper night's sleep in a real bed halfway through the holiday. After days of camping, driving and looking after the boys, it was a well-earned bit of comfort.
It also became part of the story. The trip was never about proving that we could camp every single night, whatever the weather. It was about enjoying ourselves and adapting when we needed to.
Sometimes the best travel decision is simply admitting that the pregnant woman deserves a hotel room.
Antibes, Cannes and a taste of luxury
Towards the end of the trip, we headed south to the coast around Antibes and Cannes.
After camping, kayaking, cooking from the back of the car and sleeping in the TentBox, it was nice to finish with a little bit of luxury.
One of the highlights was Hyde Beach Club in Cannes. Sitting by the sea, eating amazing ceviche and enjoying the atmosphere felt like a completely different side of the holiday.
That contrast was one of the things we loved most about the trip.
One day we could be jumping from a jetty into a lake, cooking from the boot of the car and sleeping on the roof. A few days later, we were eating ceviche at a beach club in Cannes.
It gave us the mix we had wanted from the beginning: lakes, mountains, adventure, beaches and a little luxury.
Travelling without a fixed plan
We had rough ideas about where we wanted to go, but we mostly decided the length of each stay as we went along.
That approach worked brilliantly for us.
If we loved somewhere, we stayed longer. If we felt ready to move on, we packed up and continued south.
One useful thing we learned was not to give up just because a campsite website says it is full. On several occasions, we turned up and were still able to get a pitch.
We got the impression that campsites often leave some flexibility because travellers change plans, leave early or decide to stay for extra nights.
Obviously, there are no guarantees, especially during peak season, but being willing to turn up and ask worked for us more than once.
It suited the way we wanted to travel. We were not chasing check-in times or following a strict schedule. We were simply moving through France and seeing where the trip took us.
What the TentBox was really like
Part of the reason for the trip was to test the TentBox properly before selling more of them through the business.
It is easy to talk about a product after seeing one fitted or using it for a single night. It is completely different to live with it for two weeks while travelling with children and a heavily pregnant partner.
The trip gave us a real understanding of how the setup worked.
The TentBox gave us the freedom to stop in different places without needing to book hotels or carry a traditional ground tent. The boot storage and kitchen setup also meant we could cook, store equipment and keep the main part of the car available for travelling.
It was not always glamorous, and there were definitely moments when space felt tight, but that was part of the experience.
It showed us that you do not necessarily need a full campervan to have a proper road-trip adventure. With a roof tent, a sensible storage setup and a willingness to be flexible, you can travel a long way and create some brilliant memories.
Our favourite part
If we had to choose one overall favourite, it would probably be Annecy.
Maybe it was because it was our first proper stop. Maybe it was the shock of seeing just how beautiful the lake and village were. Whatever the reason, it made an immediate impression on us.
The Gorges du Verdon gave us some of the most exciting moments of the trip, and the coast gave us a great finish, but Annecy was the place that first made us realise how special the journey was going to be.
Looking back
The trip made us feel adventurous, happy, excited and grateful.
We had travelled across France for two weeks with two young boys, a baby on the way and a TentBox on the roof. We had kayaked through a gorge, jumped into lakes, eaten incredible food, found hidden bars and escaped a thunderstorm by booking a €50 hotel room.
It was not perfectly planned, and that was probably why it worked so well.
Some of our best memories came from the things we had not booked or expected: finding space at supposedly full campsites, stumbling across Surf Eat, jumping from the jetty at night and deciding to treat ourselves to a hotel when the weather turned.
The trip proved that family adventures do not have to be perfectly organised. Sometimes you just need a rough route, the right setup and the confidence to set off.
Our tips for a France TentBox road trip
- Keep your plans flexible and avoid booking every single night before you leave.
- Try campsites in person, even when they appear full online.
- Create a practical storage and cooking area so you are not constantly unpacking the entire car.
- Mix adventurous camping stops with the occasional comfortable night or luxury experience.
- Most importantly, do not worry when things do not go exactly to plan. Those moments often become the best stories.