What is a French colonie de Vacances?
If your children (and you!) need a break, the French colonies de vacances are made for you.
The colonies de vacances in France are organizations (sometimes non-profit making ones) created to take care of your children and offer them a holiday at competitive prices, in order to enable all children to have a holiday.
During their holiday your children will be housed in a beautiful French property and will discover new regions, new people, new activities… with group leaders qualified to keep your children safe. Those group leaders have the BAFA (Brevet d’aptitude aux fonctions d’animateur en accueils collectifs de mineurs) which is a diploma that authorizes them to supervise children and teenagers in a holiday center.
Even if the term “colonie de vacances” is still used today; since 2007, the “colonies de vacances” or “centres de vacances” are now called “Accueils collectifs de mineurs” and are under the French laws of the “Minister de la Jeunesse et des sports et de la vie associative”.
If you are afraid that there is no colonie de vacance for your children, don’t worry because there are all sorts of different ones, at all prices, for all ages, so that there is something for everyone. There are colonies de vacances for 3 weeks, 2 weeks, 1 week, or even just for a week-end. There are colonies de vacances for the practice of several sports like basket-ball, football, tennis or horse-riding, some that offer different games; others are specialized in one activity only, like theatre, skiing in the French Alps, or sailing in the Languedoc-Roussillon; and interestingly some of them offer language courses.
The French colonie de vacances can be a good experience for your children because during their stay they will make new friends and enjoy activities they may not have tried before.
So, if you want to send your children to a colonie de vacances in France, it is very easy:
First you need to know what kind of activities your children want to take part in; what they like; how far away they want to go and for how long.
You can research websites online to choose the most appropriate colonie for your children. Some good websites include:
– http://www.capjuniors.com/index.php
But, be careful that the colonie de vacances you have chosen gives you its name, address, headquarters, phone and fax number.
Sending your children to a colonie de vacances in France has several advantages. It can be a good way for your children to:
– Go on Holiday with friends and peers
– Gain autonomy
– Discover the beautiful regions of France
– Discover a new culture
– Meet new people and talk French with them
– Try new activities
– And of course have a good time.
But it can also be a good way for you, parents, to go on holiday without your children or to plan your viewing trip to France.