Camping International du Roussillon

Camping International du Roussillon is located in Salses-le-Château, on the D900, about 1 km from the village and a few minutes’ walk from the fortress. It lies between Perpignan and Leucate: the coast at Le Barcarès and Leucate is 18 km away, the Spanish border 50 km, and a supermarket 9 km away in Claira, with a small convenience store in the village.

Rated 3 stars, the site is shaded by nearly 200 pines and, according to its website, offers 150 bare or serviced pitches, an area reserved for motorhomes and caravans, and a park of mobile homes with 2 or 3 bedrooms, from 30 to 38 m², all air-conditioned and fitted with a terrace and garden furniture. Sixteen owners also live here all year, which does not count towards the holiday offer but gives the place real life outside the main season.

The opening rule is clear: the campsite welcomes guests all year round, with reception open daily from 9am to 8pm, for mobile homes as well as pitches and the motorhome area. The shower block in the motorhome area is heated in winter. The pool, however, only opens from June to September, the catering from 2 May to 31 October and the entertainment in July and August.

Off-season, the target guests are motorhome travellers stopping over, weekend visitors to the Roussillon and monthly stays, for which a sliding-scale rate is advertised on request.

Salses fortress 15 minutes away on foot, open all year round, walks around the lagoon complex, visits to Perpignan, Collioure and Leucate.

Reception is open every day from 9am to 8pm and also handles mail: letters to be posted are collected at 10:30am and incoming mail is kept at reception. The sanitary block has a 7 kg washing machine (token at 5 euros), and the motorhome area has two washing machines, a dishwashing area, separate toilets and a shower block heated in winter, with one cubicle adapted for guests with reduced mobility. Wi-Fi is charged across the whole site: 5 euros a day, 25 euros a week, 50 euros a month.

For food and drink, the campsite has a brasserie with a terrace facing the pool, open from 2 May to 31 October, a bar open from 9am to midnight with takeaway ice cream, a bread and pastry depot from 9am (preferably to order) and, in July and August only, a grill rooftop overlooking the pool. A travel cot can be rented for 16 euros a week, and a set of bed linen for 15 euros.

The water area has an unheated pool with a maximum depth of 1.68 m and a paddling pool, with sun loungers and a bar nearby; it is open from 10am to 8pm from 1 June to 30 September, weather permitting. Outside this period there is no swimming on the campsite: the sea is 18 km away.

On the campsite itself, entertainment is mostly a summer affair: in July and August, an evening pétanque game brings players together on Tuesdays at 6pm, with a case of Roussillon wine for the winning team, and a music evening with a themed meal takes place on Wednesdays at 8:30pm (paella, fideuà or Catalan picolat at 13 euros, concert or karaoke). Children have a playground and a pétanque court is available.

On foot, the village of Salses and its fortress are about 15 minutes away. This fortified building can be visited all year round, from 10am to 6:30pm from 1 April to 30 September, then from 10am to 12:45pm and from 2pm to 5:15pm from October to March; it is closed on 1 January, 1 May, 1 and 11 November and 25 December. The Font Estramar and the Salses lagoon complex, a Natura 2000 site rich in birdlife, can be explored on foot.

Through the seasons, you can head out to Perpignan and its monuments, Collioure, the sand liner Le Lydia in Le Barcarès, the cliffs of Leucate, the Sigean reserve, or the beaches along the coast.