Families activities
Suggested stay
Have fun with your family in the Pays de Vire!
In the south of our beautiful territory, in the Virois bocage, is the national forest of Saint-Sever.
Go on an adventure in the Saint-Sever forest. L’Étape en Forêt offers unusual accommodations and outdoor activities (tree climbing, beach volleyball, mountain biking, playground, etc.). There are many hiking trails as well as 3 orienteering courses and a golf course nearby. Are you ready to have some fun?
Take a family walk in the middle of the 1500 ha to discover hardwoods and conifers. Numerous hiking, horse riding and mountain biking circuits will allow you to discover this natural site in complete safety.
The pond of the Old Castle
For a walk around the lake, fishing or learning about mountain biking in the woods, go to the pond of the Old Castle (Étang du Vieux Château)! The site is pleasant, clean and well equipped. Stop for a moment to discover a castle mound from the 11th century! Hungry ? No worries, you will find benches or picnic tables available on your way.
The Permanent Orientation Course
In the Saint-Sever Forest, you will also have the opportunity to do an orienteering course, an ideal leisure activity to learn navigating with a map while discovering the surrounding nature. The concept is simple, you have to find wooden bollards using a route map and validate your passage using the punching card provided. To check if you were in the right place, the punches must match!
There are 3 levels of practice in the Saint-Sever forest:
🔹 Beginner: To discover orienteering and learn to read a map. Approx. 3.2 km – markers 31 to 40.
🟡 Explorer: Allows you to get out of the way. Approx. 3.7 km – markers 41 to 50.
🔸 Expert: Circuit reserved for those who master the reading and handling of the map. Approx. 5 km – markers 51 to 60.
To get the route maps and the punching card, they are on sale for € 2.
➡ at the Pays de Vire Tourist Office in Vire Normandie – Tel. : +33 (0)2 31 66 28 50
➡ at L’Étape en Forêt, route du Vieux Château in St Sever-Calvados – Tel. : +33 (0)9 67 73 16 76
L’Étape en forêt, unusual accommodations and leisure activities
In the beautiful setting of the Saint-Sever forest, you will find the unusual accommodation and nature leisure area « L’Étape en Forêt ». On a vast 10 hectare wooded park, this is the ideal place for an unforgettable family stay.
Treehouses, lodges on terraces or on stilts, semi-underground lodges or simple camping pitches, choose the type of accommodation that will seduce you and let yourself be surprised!
The site also includes a wide range of nature leisure activities with a tree-climbing course made up of 40 workshops over 4 courses, from beginners to advanced.
You can also benefit from the mountain bike / electric mountain bike rental, go Nordic walking, archery game, enjoy the 3 play areas for children from 3 to 12 years old but also have fun by accessing the wellness area where you can enjoy saunas and Nordic baths (hot or cold).
On site, you will find the restaurant Le Géry’s which offers traditional “home-made” meals, with local and seasonal products. The menus are available from € 15 for lunch during the week, between € 15 and € 25 in the evenings and weekends, with the possibility of ordering à la carte dishes.
A large seminar room with a magnificent view of nature can be reserved occasionally for weddings, incentives, cousinades, baptisms or Team building.
Access to L’étape en forêt‘s website.
A little further:
For golf enthusiasts, Le Golf de Vire-La Dathée and L’Étape en forêt offer you an “unusual accommodation + Green Fee” package !!
The opportunity to perfect your swing over the 18 holes in a magnificent setting, backing onto the Dathée lake.
More information at the Golf or at l’Etape en forêt. Golf de Vire Dathée, La Basse Haye, Saint-Manvieu-Bocage, 14380 – NOUES DE SIENNE, Tel. : +33 (0)2 31 67 71 01.
Enjoy your stay in the Pays de Vire 🌿
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