NEXT MONTH SEES the opening of Echologia at Louverné in the Mayenne area of western France.
It may sound like a sustainable living convention but it is, in fact, a new take on the traditional and much loved French campsite.
Echologia is one in “a natural, protected environment, spread across 68 hectares of a former limestone quarry”.
Abandoned 40 years ago, it has been redeveloped to offer a range of one-off “quirky” holiday homes, such as yurts and teepees, while surrounded by a series of lakes and thick forest.
Guests can swim in natural pools, take nature walks around the grounds or head out along the Mayenne river towpath, a 100km green lane for hikers and cyclists.
Echologia can accommodate 40 guests at a time, including those staying in its most unusual units, a cabin floating on a lake and only accessible by canoe. Another cabin sits in a promontory between two lakes.
Each holiday home has an organic toilet, a water tank and solar electricity, with separate washrooms nearby.
An organic breakfast is delivered to your door each morning and there’s a lakeside restaurant, too, offering seasonal, locally sourced dishes.
One night’s BB in a yurt costs from €80 to €100 based on two sharing. A night’s BB in a floating cabin starts at about €110 on the same basis.
Every Saturday people in the local community are invited to help out at Echologia, working on all sorts of projects from the restoration of heritage buildings to clearing footpaths, landscaping and tending the kitchen gardens.
So, for anyone happily ensconced in more traditional lodgings in Louverné of a Saturday, it might be a good day to go touring.
See echologia.fr