Parc de La Garenne

Parc de la Garenne stands on the heights of Villers-Saint-Paul, a village in the Oise of around 6,500 inhabitants, in the Creil urban area. Paris is 49 km away, Compiègne 28 km and Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport 34 km. Founded in 1975, the site has 150 pitches on 3.5 hectares and describes itself as a village-sized residential campsite.

The purpose of the place is clear: most of the plots are let year-round to mobile home owners, from 120 m². A fleet of mobile homes is nevertheless available to rent: three models of 17, 24 and 32 m², for 2, 4 or 6 people, bookable by the week or month. The campsite displays no star rating.

As for opening, the rule is simple: the site welcomes guests all year round, with a reception open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 12pm and from 2pm to 6pm. The rental mobile homes can therefore be booked in January as in August, from seven nights, with weekly and monthly rates published. It is an offer designed for medium or long stays: work in the area, a transition period between two homes, a pied-à-terre. The website does not offer touring pitches for passing visitors.

Creil station, served by the TER, is nearby, and the Villers-Saint-Paul halt connects to Paris-Nord in about 45 minutes.

Parc de la Brèche and miniature train in Villers-Saint-Paul, Chantilly castle 15 minutes away, Senlis 20 minutes away, tour of the Rivierre nail factory in Creil.

The site offers simple facilities, geared more towards daily life than leisure. There is a laundry with washing machine and dryer, gas bottles for sale on site, a play area with swings and a seesaw, and a basketball court. Each resident has a remote control for the gate, which allows entry and exit at any hour. A technical team works in the shared areas five days out of seven, and an on-call service covers the rest of the time.

The rental mobile homes are equipped with a kitchen with microwave, fridge, crockery and coffee maker, a living room with sofa, table and chairs, a shower room and a television. Some models have reversible air conditioning. The rental includes 100 kWh of electricity and 2 m³ of water per month, with any additional consumption charged. Bed linen, towels and cleaning products must be brought. Pets are not accepted in the rentals.

As for water, the campsite has a pool, open in July and August only. For the rest of the year, the useful services remain the laundry, the gas sales and the weekday reception. Everyday shops (bakery, pharmacy, tobacconist, fast food) are about 2 km away, and the Lidl and Intermarché supermarkets 3 km. The campsite advertises no restaurant, bar or grocery on site, and says nothing about heating in the washrooms or the rentals.

On site, the offer is limited to a few facilities: a basketball court, a play area for the youngest and the pool in July and August. The campsite mainly highlights the friendly atmosphere among residents and the calm setting, with no entertainment programme.

Things to do are mostly found in the surrounding area. In Villers-Saint-Paul, the Parc de la Brèche, laid out in 2004 and extended in 2014, has play areas, a fitness trail and a miniature train network, whose operating days attract more than 10,000 visitors a year. The village, awarded three flowers, also has a 12th-century church of Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul, at the transition between Romanesque and Gothic.

The south of the Oise then allows for fine day trips: Chantilly castle is about 15 minutes away, the medieval town of Senlis 20 minutes, Parc Astérix 30 minutes and the Compiègne forest a few kilometres. In Creil, the Rivierre nail factory offers a tour of the old works, followed by a creative workshop. Paris can be reached by train from the Villers-Saint-Paul halt in about 45 minutes, for sightseeing weekends from a quiet base.