Camping La Plage (AGL270)

The location is great, near centre ville, with lots of restaurants, shops and bars. The coffee and sandwich place in front of reception was excellent. Breakfast there was a good deal at 3,50, with good sandwiches, great coffee and service. The cleaning crew, people working around the campsite and maintenance staff were super friendly. WiFi was absent, and the mobile data was very poor, though that’s not the campsite’s fault. Cabin 225 was so bad I wouldn’t keep a dog there. The value for money was far below acceptable. We had to bring our own bedlinen and towels, or rent them for 14 euros a week. In our case, with 3 pax, that came to 42 for a day because I upgraded asap. The Bora Bora cabin (61) was nice, but had no bedlinen, towels, plastic bags or toilet paper. At least the walk back to cabin 225 did me good. Don’t count on calling reception, since it only takes outgoing calls. The lady boss was super arrogant and kept helping other people while ignoring me as I tried to sort out problems. One woman at the desk spoke English, but she was the exception. The reception ladies seemed not to want to be there and were constantly dealing with complaints, which they were creating themselves. I paid EUR 708,- for two nights in luxe cabins, one of them a dump. When I complained about the value and especially the service, they said this is not a hotel. Fair enough, but I expect decent service, bedlinen, towels and a pleasant stay for the same or a lower price.

The glamping tents were well equipped, and the people staying at the campsite were very nice. La Plage Argelès is a pretty little place, close to the beach, entertainment and restaurants. The toilets and showers were plentiful and clean. But we were on the Acacia side, and the next-door campsite played very loud music and had shouting over a microphone almost every night. With our 1.5-year-old, we had to keep walking around the area until 11 pm because it was like being in a discotheque inside our tent and she couldn't fall asleep. I would not recommend the glamping tents for small children or anyone needing to sleep before 11 pm. La Plage Argelès should mention this nuisance on its website. On checkout Saturday, reception wasn't open at 8 am, so we had to wait to leave. We hadn't been told beforehand where to leave the tent keys. There was also no communication when the snackbar that handed out the morning bread stopped operating after a few days. We understand it was another company, but campsite guests relied on it; they should at least communicate, or better, take over if it stops working. It could have been a great stay in Argelès, but sadly nobody really made an effort.

The beach is an easy walk, five minutes at most, and shops and restaurants are handy too. There’s a good-sized pool, and the mobile homes have all the equipment you might need. We felt very safe here. The campsite was clean and well run, and the multilingual staff were professional, friendly and helpful. Thanks for letting us leave our car on site on the morning or our departure. We hope to be back really soon!

We found the toilets, water taps and grey-water disposal hard to locate because the map they gave us wasn’t much help. WiFi cost €2.50 per day. The campsite is lovely and quiet, especially at night, and people were considerate. It’s pretty, private with its trees and hedging, and conveniently close to the beach, bars and restaurants. The snack bar wasn’t open, though, so we had to go out for bread and coffee. The pitches were small and a bit awkward to get into. The pool was lovely, but got crowded, and sunbeds with umbrellas were in demand. My main gripe was the shower and toilet block. It was very clean, but shared by men and women, and the toilet cubicle was separated from the shower behind it by only a thin plywood sheet. People washing dishes used the sinks right in front of the toilet cubicle. It was embarrassing, with too little privacy. The toilets had no seats or toilet paper, and the sinks had no soap or hand towels. Sink water was only ever lukewarm, while the showers were hot but small. Since the facilities were unisex, the door had to stay shut. The chemical toilet disposal point was in the last cubicle at the back, so you had to carry the waste a long way past other people using the facilities. Shared facilities are fine with me, but they should offer a reasonable amount of privacy, and these didn't. This let the site down. We’d been travelling for 12 weeks, and this was one of the prettiest little sites we’d stayed at. The restaurants and bars don’t make an effort to translate their menus into English, so without a little French it can be confusing. It doesn’t seem to cater to English speakers.