Carry on glamping: Europe's poshest, coolest camping experiences

Yurts, tipis, eco-pods, retro and gypsy caravans – there are now dozens of ways to enjoy the great outdoors without forgoing little luxuries like beds. Garri Rayner, editor of goglamping.net and holidaypad.net, selects some of the best

Belrepayre is a retro-style campsite situated near Mirepoix in the Pyrenees. Bring your own caravan (only vintage or Airstream models allowed) or tent. If you rock up in a vintage car (anything with 30 years on it), you'll get a 10% discount. Alternatively you can hire one of nine vintage Airstreams on site – from the Melody Maker, dedicated to 70s rock with record player, records and tapes, to the 1953 Silver Streak Clipper, decked out with 50s kitchenware and beautiful multicoloured curtains. There is a general store with fresh local produce and – apple of the owner's eye – the Apollo Lounge, an idiosyncratic Airstream diner. There are outdoor cinema sessions, yoga, table tennis and badminton facilities and retro disco nights. You can relax in the cedar

wood hot tub or the Mongolian yurt, or discover the countryside and farmers' markets. You're not given directions until you've confirmed your reservation – this ensures that the park remains a well-kept secret.
• Open May-September; pitches from €19 a night, Airstreams from €80 per night or €475 a week; +33 5 6168 1199, airstreameurope.com

Melusine Camping, Poitou-Charentes

This campsite, named after a fairy queen, has three romantic medieval-style pavilion tents with gardens in a wildflower meadow in western France. The tents are luxuriously furnished, with beds, cushions, Persian rugs, sheepskins and wooden storage chests. Outside, picnic tables, hammocks and firepits are provided, and there is a swimming pool with deckchairs and sunloungers. The closest town is Parthenay, which hosts a games festival (intownet01.cc-parthenay.fr/flip/portail) every July, where the whole town is given over to play – be it medieval, traditional or on a computer.
• Open May-September; from €250 a week for two people; +33 5 4963 3949, melusine-camping.com

Auvergne Naturelle, Haute Loire

Auvergne Naturelle provides luxury yurt-based accommodation on 20 acres of woodland and meadow within the Livradois-Forez national park. Owners Robert and Kathryn Harrison run the site in as eco-friendly a way as possible – the yurts, which sleep two adults and two children, are built from coppiced ash and equipped with low-impact lighting and composting toilets. Visitors can take courses in woodland craft, nature-spotting, bread-making and fire-making. There's a play area with rope bridges, secret dens and a fairy garden (no adults allowed).
• Open April-September; yurts from €130 a night or €700 a week; +33 4 7176 3853, yurtholidaysfrance.co.uk

Le Chato, Auvergne

Take your pick from an Indian pavilion tent, a Bedouin tent, a safari camp or a number of yurts, all within the walled grounds of a chateau. There's a strict no-cars policy on site (except Saturdays), so children can safely run riot and they'll love the go-carts and bikes, trampoline, small farm and treehouse. Each secluded encampment comes with its own terrace, so you can while away the days in peace. Le Chato is close to France's largest natural park, the Parc Naturel Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne, for hiking and cycling trips, and the nearby Gorges de L'Allier are great for bird-spotting.
• Open mid June-mid September; from €510 a week; +32 3663 0981, lechato.com

Cerza Safari Lodge, Normandy

Cerza is an exotic experience not too long a drive from Britain, where you can meet rhinos, wallabies and antelopes. There are six yurts in a Mongolian "village" but, if you need your home comforts, opt for one of the chic, open-plan, air-conditioned lodges by the lake. If something a bit different appeals, try a new "zoobservatory", where you can watch the siamang gibbons or gazelles through your window. You can also help feed the animals, and even stroke a rhino. All campers or lodge-dwellers have to buy entry passes to the safari park, but if you stay in a lodge for four days you will get two free passes. Warm fresh bread or croissants can be brought to your lodge every morning.
• Open April-September; yurts from €80 a night for two or €100 for four; +33 2 3131 8230 cerzasafarilodge.com

Les Roulottes Des Korrigans, Brittany

These luxury wooden gypsy caravans, known as roulottes, in Finistère (the far western end of Brittany) offer themed holidays based on fairytales, gold-panning, sport, wellbeing and Breton crêpe-making. On site you will find a spa and a traditional sauna, mountain-bike rental and a shop selling local organic produce. The property is close to the village of Brasparts, at the heart of the Armorique natural park.
• Open February-December; from €59 a night for two adults and two children; +33 6 8457 9624, roulottes-des-korrigans.com

Le Grand Bois, Rhône-Alpes

This 18th-century estate south of Grenoble has been transformed into a rural haven with a variety of accommodation, from rooms and apartments in the guesthouse to luxurious safari-lodge tents with real double beds, spacious tunnel tents which are more than five metres long and 25 pitches on the six-acre campsite. Facilities include a swimming pool, volleyball pitch, free Wi-Fi, barbecue and mountain bike rental. Hiking, cycling and motorcycling packages allow guests to explore the Vercors natural park.
• Open April-15 September; from €55 per room per night, €6 per pitch, €60 a night or €475 a week for a tunnel tent (sleeps four-five), and €95 or €650 a week for a safari-lodge tent (sleeping six); +33 4 7553 3372, legrandbois.nl

Simply Canvas, Aquitaine

Several gîtes and luxury safari tents are set on a five-hectare site in south-west France near Saint-Jean-de-Duras, a small village 20 minutes from Bergerac. The picturesque towns of Eymet and Ste Foy la Grande are a short drive away. Breakfast and dinner are served outside on long wooden tables or in the large stone barn, where you can also take refuge on rainy days. The six tents come with verandas, solar-powered lighting and separate bathroom. There is a swimming pool and a play area, and never more than 20 guests at a time.
• Open May-2 October; tents from €100 a day, €560 a week B&B (sleep four), dinner €15pp; gîtes from €500 a week (sleep four); simplycanvas.eu

Camping and Chalets Les Ormes, Aquitaine

Two adjacent properties in the Lot-et-Garonne department offer accommodation from luxury desert tents and revolving cabins to chalets and gypsy caravans. The five desert tents are pitched on solid wood floors and fully furnished, ranging from 25 to 50 square metres. The Tournesol is a revolving cabin for four that can be turned to face the sun at all times. There is also a 25-acre campsite with 100 pitches, tennis court and swimming pool. The 18th-century farmhouse at the heart of the property has two restaurants (one is children-only) and a shop.
• Open May-11 September; from €10 per pitch plus €8pp; desert tents/Tournesol cabin from €350 a week; chalets from €540 a week; gypsy wagons from €610 a week; +33 5 5336 6026, campinglesormes.com

Tipi Holidays in France, Limousin

These six furnished tipis set among woodland in the La Creuse region of central France make a good base for a week of outdoor activities including cycling, hiking, canoeing and fishing. The site is run on eco-friendly principles: all lighting is solar-powered and all produce is organic and locally sourced. Each tipi is set in its own secluded area of woodland, on a raised wooden platform, and sleeps four. Breakfast is provided every morning in the communal hall, and several times a week there is a table d'hôte evening meal.
• Open May-August; from €150 for three days, €300 per week per tipi (two adults and two children) including breakfast; vacanesdetipienfrance.com

Roulottes de Campagne, various locations

A selection of brand new roulottes, or gypsy wagons, for up to five people, can be rented from the same company in more than 60 stunning, mainly secluded, sites all over France. You can choose between four types of holiday (all with appropriately boho names) depending on the kind of break you're after – Natural Spirit, Village Spirit, Adventure Spirit and Hotel Spirit. If you fancy a trip away from it all, go for Natural Spirit, which tends to offer one stand-alone roulotte in the depths of the countryside, often on the banks of a lake or a river. Families may prefer the resort feel of Village Spirit, and the real glamper will love the gastronomy and service-with-a-smile of a Hotel Spirit wagon in the grounds of a hotel or B&B.