Le Pressoir

Camping Le Pressoir is in Petit-Palais-et-Cornemps, in the Gironde, in the Libournais area, in the heart of the Bordeaux vineyards. Saint-Émilion is about 17 km away (around fifteen minutes by car), Bordeaux about fifty kilometres and the beaches of the Atlantic coast about 1 hr 15. The site occupies a former wine farm, whose setting the campsite’s brasserie has kept.

Rated 4 stars, the campsite has around a hundred pitches for tents, caravans and motorhomes, as well as some forty rental units: 8 canvas bungalows, 28 mobile homes and 5 prestige-category mobile homes set along the rows of vines. The Libournais tourist office notes access for visitors with reduced mobility, and pets are accepted on site.

Le Pressoir presents itself as a campsite where you can stay throughout the year, and the tourist offices of the Libournais and Saint-Émilion also describe it as open all year round. It is not, however, a place designed for winter: the website mentions neither heated washrooms nor heated rental accommodation, and several services are reserved for high season, such as the shop open 7 days a week, the entertainment in July and August or the water area, announced from 15 June to 15 September.

Off-season, the campsite mainly appeals to weekend visitors to the vineyards, to people visiting Saint-Émilion and to caravanners and motorhomers touring the Bordeaux region.

Visit to the medieval town of Saint-Émilion, 17 km away, cycling or mountain biking in the vineyards.

The campsite offers free Wi-Fi throughout the site, a laundry room with a washing machine and a tumble dryer, a communal barbecue, and a small convenience shop and a bread and pastry service to be ordered the day before, both open 7 days a week in high season. You can also rent a fridge (€6 per day), bed linen (€15 per pair for the stay) or a baby kit with a cot and a high chair (€30 per week in high season).

The campsite brasserie, housed in the former wine farm, serves set menus, sharing boards and, in summer, a takeaway menu. Its wine list showcases the wines of the Libournais, including Saint-Émilion, Lussac and Pomerol. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week in July and August; the website does not give its off-season hours.

For swimming, a heated pool lined with sun loungers is complemented by a paddling pool; the water area is announced from 15 June to 15 September and is open to residents only. Pets are not allowed there. For relaxation, the campsite has a sauna, a fitness room equipped with treadmills, a weight bench and bikes, as well as massages and beauty treatments. Opening dates for these areas are not specified: it is best to ask at reception off-season, especially for the pool, which remains tied to the summer season.

For children, the Mini Club runs creative workshops, treasure hunts, team games and sports tournaments every morning in season. The campsite also has a bouncy castle, a large trampoline, slides and swings, as well as a small wooden hut and a sandpit for the youngest. Adults have a petanque court, a table tennis table, a fitness area and aqua aerobics classes in the pool.

In July and August, the entertainment team puts on themed evenings and dance nights: a Basque evening, a medieval day, an introduction to country dancing, disco, karaoke, shows, concerts, themed meals or a wine tasting. The programme is handed out on arrival and changes every year.

Around the campsite, you can go canoeing and kayaking, fish in ponds or rivers, ride horses or ponies, and cycle or mountain bike among the vines; bike rental is available nearby. The medieval town of Saint-Émilion, the local markets and a nearby water park round out the possible outings. Off-season, a stay at Le Pressoir revolves mainly around visiting Saint-Émilion and its vineyards, and cycling or walking between the rows of vines.