Our new brochure features 14 outstanding locations, in destinations as diverse as the heart of Normandy to the sun-dappled Cote d’Azur. You can see the brochure online or request a copy.

New savings include up to £125 off holidays in July and August for early-bird bookings made before 31 January 2011.  Easter seven-night holidays are available from only £265 for a family and Whitsun week holidays from just £340.

Our 14 holiday villages range from the large and lively to beachside and rustic. Every siblu village has free children’s clubs, evening entertainment and lifeguarded pool complexes, with guaranteed full facilities from May 21 to September 11.

Each Siblu village is a great base for exploring the local region, where families can discover France and find incredible beaches and seaside towns, wine routes and fairytale chateaux, historic monuments and dazzling attractions.

Domaine de Kerlann, in southern Brittany. has free children’s clubs, indoor and outdoor pools, a children’s splash zone and a variety of sports. If you book before 31 January, a seven-night holiday departing 16 July 2011 starts from only £583 for a family staying in a standard two bedroom holiday home. The price includes an early-bird discount of £103.

La Reserve, in the south-west region of Aquitaine, sits on the edge of Lake Biscarosse and has its own sandy beach which gently slopes into the waters. There is a vast pool complex with indoor and outdoor swimming, free children’s clubs, sports and bike hire. Seven-nights start from £1,147 per family from 23 July 2011, including an early-bird saving of £121 for bookings made before 31 January 2011.

Le Lac des Rêves is a sun-basked rustic siblu village located close to the cosmopolitan city of Montpellier. The parc has swimming and toddler’s pools, waterslides and a Jacuzzi, all overlooked by a sunny restaurant terrace and bar. Holiday homes are available from only £1,134 for a family, for seven nights from 6 August. This includes an early-bird saving of £123 for bookings made before 31 January.

You can find out more about all of our siblu villages on the siblu website. If you really want to enter the mood, take a look at our French website for added ooh la la!

Well, it is true that you don’t get as much for your pound as last year, but a holiday to France is still much cheaper for a family than a stay in the UK.

And the pound has fallen against all currencies, so it’s worth less against the dollar, lira and dirham too.

For a family going on holiday, the key things to remember are that:
1/ France is the cheapest foreign country to travel to (Dover to Calais ferries are really cheap), and
2/ you’ll get more value from a holiday in France than by staying in the UK

Let’s look at the facts:
The weather is better in France
When it rains in the UK, you have to pay for your kids to go swimming, visit the cinema, go to an arcade. France is much further south and the weather will be better, so your children get their kicks from using the swimming pools, water slides, tennis courts, football pitches, basketball courts, kid’s clubs that are all included as part of your holiday cost – there’s no need to pay extra.

And of course the big beaches, picturesque towns, striking coastline, gorgeous countryside are absolutely free too.

And the cost of travel is heading downhill
Nick Trend in the Telegraph reported recently that the cost of getting to France is much less now than in previous years. In 1992 Dover to Calais fares for a family with car were around £300. Now, if you can travel midweek, siblu will include the same crossing in our holiday cost. Travel at the weekend and the extra cost starts from just £24 each way.

Restaurants are cheaper in France (and the food is better)
If you want a family meal in the UK for around £12 each, you’ll have to head to a chip shop, burger joint or greasy café. If you want the same in France, just look out for the menu de jour at most restaurants where you’ll be served with a delicious two or three course meal, with lots of fresh, local specialities. You can eat a seafood platter fit for a king in France priced sensibly because it is normal fare.

Self catering is fun, easy and saves money
One of my favourite things about France is the farmer’s markets, which sell locally grown fruit and vegetables, have stalls that are filled with seafood and offer a wide range of meats. Visit to one of these and you can stock up with lots of food for your fridge. If you think that cooking sounds too much like hard work then check out our siblu food pages, or the Destination Cooking website, for lots of ideas for tasty meals you can prepare quickly and easily in your mobile home.

Don’t believe the surveys
The Post Office has got it in for France.  Each year they publish a survey which says prices are on the up. There latest results said a bottle of Heineken beer costs £3.81 and coke costs £3.34 – well I’ve never seen them that high. I always expect to pay a bit less in France for alcohol, cheese, bread, fruit, veg – most things that I want when I’m on holiday. As with all countries, go for the local specialities and you’ll get the best deals and best quality.

And wine deserves its own paragraph
Know more walking aimlessly up and down the wine aisle at your local supermarket, in France you can buy wine directly from the domains where the vines are grown and the drink is produced.

Many offer free entry and wine tasting and the best are in the Loire Valley, Bordeaux and Languedoc.

And to pop the fizz into your UK return, stock up on Champagne because there is lots more choice and good bottles cost around a tiny €12.

You’re even sneaking in a bit of free language learning…
…and the kid’s don’t know it. What better way to back up, or even kick-start, your children’s interest in a foreign language than to have them mixing freely with real live foreigners? After a couple days playing football or splashing round a pool in the company of French children, “bonjour, je m’appelle…” will be second nature to your youngsters.

What are your tips for getting the best value out of your holiday?

A recent survey from the Co-Op Travel group shows that holiday prices to Turkey, Spain, Egypt and the US are increasing by up to 40% (and an average of 20%). At siblu, we have seen a rise in bookings because families are choosing lower prices in France.

For example, a seven-night family holiday to siblu’s Le Bois Masson holiday parc in the Vendée, on the west coast of France, starts from just £999 departing 26 July. The price includes Dover to Calais ferry travel, swimming pools, children’s clubs, sports facilities and evening entertainment. The same break cost from £1,007 in 2008.

A stay on a holiday parc in France is outstanding value for money and the activities and facilities are included, so there’s no need to pay extra to keep the kids entertained.

Prices to other package holiday destinations are increasing because the big holiday companies have reduced the number of breaks they are selling.

Those price rises in full:

These figures are based on research by the Co Op Travel group and based on 2 adults and 1 child for a 7-night holiday at  half board