Camping Sandaya L'Estanquet - 5 étoiles — Hotel in Rochefort

I really wanted to give this place more than 1 star as the staff are amazing , unfortunately there are just too many issues .

Let’s start with the good about the camp.

Staff are amazing Pool is decent size with to good slides. Felt very safe in the camp with the security Cabins are new and clean Camp is very clean Excellent location

Unfortunately that is all that is good, however there are so many downsides.

Although the cabins are brand new and clean and the entrance to the site looks modern and sleek, the rest of the park is in a bad state of disrepair, there are large pot hole all across the site in the roads, some so big that you wouldn’t even drive slowly through them. There are also large cracks and protrusions on these roads from roots of trees. The site simply dry dirt and sand everywhere.

Restaurant is hit and miss, got fantastic food one night and then walked out a second night when our food was undercooked and didn’t return for our entire stay of 2 weeks.

Evening entertainment (along with everything else in the camp) is geared only towards French speakers, with absolutely no attempt to incorporate or include any of the other of the many nationalities staying there.

The said evening entertainment may not even go ahead, there is a board detailing all events but quite often these events simply don’t proceed .

Very poor lighting around the park at night(you need a torch), most lights don’t work. This resulted in my stepping into one of the aforementioned large potholes one night and twisting my ankle very badly.

No grill as advertised on the website when booking. Site states that 4/5 star cabins include a grill plate, however you will be charged 40 euro a week for the plate. (The advertisement for this grill plate to be included is still currently on the website, see SS below).

Shocking internet, there is a charge of 15 euro a week or 25 euro for 2 weeks PER DEVICE, yes per device, so a family of 5 need to pay 125 euro for a basic service if staying for 2 weeks. What’s more there is no phone signal/roaming signal inside the camp forcing you to pay for the internet, surprisingly the phone signal returns immediately after leaving the camp confines.

Final cleaning now costs 89 euro, unless you wish to do it yourself, however all you are given is a yard brush, a wet brush and a filthy rag.

Pool, although the pool is good it can be extremely difficult to get a sun bed at times. This is because the guests at the other Sandaya camps are allowed in to use the camps facilities but you are not allowed into use there’s. I actually witnessed 2 guys one morning place 8 towels on beds between them and then leave the park and not return for a couple of hours with their families, while paying guests at this camp couldnt then get a bed and enjoy the pool. This can also lead to the pool becoming very busy at times and not suitable for younger kids , especially when groups of 10-15 teenagers arrive from other parks to use the pool.

Not allowed to use other Sandaya facilities, despite being told at the time of booking that we could use all the other Sandaya facilities in the area, this is not correct and we were stopped by a staff member as we tried to enter another park with our young kids , this staff member was extremely rude and dismissive.

Hidden fees, now Sandaya will say that the fees are NOT hidden and displayed on their web site. But you can end up paying over 300 euro extra on arrival at the camp depending on how many are in your party and how long your staying for. The following is a break down of charges for a family of 5 staying for 2 weeks.

125 for internet 80 euro for grill 89 euro final cleaning 45 euro tourist tax This is on top of Sandaya requiring a further 300 euro deposit on arrival.

However, please don’t let this review dissuade you from visiting/staying in the Les Mathes/La Palmyre area which is truly stunning , there is so much to do and see, just stay...

I wanted to give this review more stars as the staff are amazing, but unfortunately I simply couldn’t justify it.||Let’s start with what’s good in the camp.||1. Camp is very clean |2. Felt very safe in the camp with the amount of security |3. Decent size pool and 2 good slides|4. Cabins are all new and spotless|5. Staff are amazing||Unfortunately that’s where the good points end, there are so many downsides, I will try list as many as possible.||1. Although cabins are new and the entrance to the camp looks modern and sleek, the majority of the park is in a serious state of disrepair, with large cracks and pot holes littering the roads inside the camp, some so big that you can’t even go slowly through them in a car.||2. Restaurant is hit and miss, got fantastic food one night and then walked out the second when the food wasn’t cooked properly and didn’t return.||3. Evening entertainment is geared only towards French speaking guests, with absolutely no attempt to incorporate or include and other nationalities whatsoever, this despite being able to translate the booking site to a number of different languages..||4. Evening entertainment may not actually go ahead. There is a board advertising what’s on, but quite often this will simply not happen.||5. Very poor lighting around the park at night, most lights don’t even work, which resulted in my stepping into one of the fore mentioned potholes and twisting my ankle very badly||6. No grill as advertised on site and booking, when booking 4/5 star, it states that you get a grill as part of your booking (still days this on the booking site, SS below). However you will be charged 40 euro extra per week at the camp for the grill.||7. Shocking internet, there is a charge of 15 euro per week or 25 euro for 2 weeks PER DEVICE, yes per device, so a family of 5 for 2 weeks need pay an extra 125 euro. What’s more, there is no phone/roaming service inside the camp site, however this miraculously returns as soon as you exit.||8. Final cleaning, there is a charge of 89 euro now for a final cleaning unless you want to do it yourself, however all they give you is a yard brush, a wet brush and a filthy rag.||9. Pool, although the pool is quite good, it can be extremely difficult to get a sun bed at times. This is because the residents of the other Sandaya camp sites are allowed in to use the facilities but you are NOT allowed into their camps to use theirs (I witnessed 2 men arrive at the camp one morning and place 8 towels on beds between them, they then left the park and didn’t return with their families for over 2 hours, while paying guests from this park had no beds and couldn’t enjoy the pool). This can also result in the pool becoming extremely busy at times and not suitable for younger kids ,especially when groups of 10-15 teenagers from other sites turn up.||10. Not allowed to use other Sandaya facilities, despite being told at booking time that we had full access to all the Sandaya camps and facilities, this is not the case, in fact we were stopped by a member of staff who was extremely rude towards us when trying to enter another Sandaya campsite.||11. Hidden fees, at displayed above after paying the full holiday cost you can be hit with fees of over 250 euro at the site depending on how many is in you party .|125 euro internet for family of 5|40 euro for grill|89 euro for final cleaning|45 euro tourist tax|With also 300 euro stopped from your card as a deposit.||Please don’t let this review dissuade you from visiting the Les Mathes/La Palmyre area which is truly spectacular with lots to do an see, there are many other really good camps on the area.||Will never stay at a...

I first visited this site with my touring caravan and children over 12 years ago and have been there some 5 or 6 times since. My latest visit was June 2012 where my wife and son stayed in a chalet. The site was quiet.I notice that many of the pitches previously occupied around the periphery have been plouged-up. I have been told it is because of a fire risk to the forest nearby.The owners seem to be developing another site nearby where an indoor pool is being built.||As regards this site, I notice that more of the pitches are now occupied by privately owned chalets . Many of the original hedge row boundaries have been ripped out and replanted to accomodate this change. It appears that some of the toilet blocks are to be removed.||The best feature on this site is undoubtedly the pool which for a campsite is massive. The pool terraces have been refurbished with a new surface and the broken sun-loungers repaired.||As is the case with most sites, there is plenty of activiity during High Season with animations,.||The clientele during Low season is almost exclusively French(owners), but during High Season about 15 -25 % are a mixture of English, Irish, Netherlanders, and Belgians. Thus the site caters mainly for French speakers.||The countryside is reasonably flat and cycling is easy, even for the unfit. There is cycling hire available on site but for a family it is expensive so take your own bikes.||Location is near the Cote Sauvage, ideal for sunbathing with a naturist section. The Gironde estuary is also nearby with sheltered and safe beaches.||If you are non-French and need entertainment then this site is not for you.||However, if you enjoy your own company and particularly if you enjoy cycling and walking it is a pleasant location especially low season.||There are different types, sizes and ages of accomodation. Mine was fairly new and comfortable. Be aware it does not have a cooker only a microwave. Take an electric extension cable with you - the sockets are always in the wrong place for appliances!||It is reasonably shaded by tall pine and oak trees although some were felled a few years ago during winter storms.||Would I go...