AH, those marvellous memories of camping holidays: rain drumming on a canvas roof; damp clothes; lumpy ground; beans with everything; plastic plates; mud in the scrambled eggs; matches that won't strike; artesian wells beneath the groundsheet; swarms of Scottish midges; angry Welsh farmers; Cornish beaches veiled in grey drizzle.

After 30 years of pitching tents in the dark and packing them up again as a force ten gale roars in from Lundy and Fastnet, I was persuaded to sample the kind of camping where someone erects the tent on your behalf in a nice warm country, supplies the crockery, cooker, fridge and beds, and has a bottle of the local red wine standing on the table awaiting your arrival.

The idea is for campers to use expansive, comfortable and fully equipped tents as a base from which to explore the delights of rural France, returning to the site as evening falls to cook exotic meals and drink more wine while the crickets sing beneath the pine trees.

Not surprisingly, it's an idea that works. And while France does not necessarily guarantee exceptionally good weather all of the time, let me tell you there is a world of difference between lying in a comfortable bed listening to a sub-tropical thunderstorm crash above the forests, and lying in a damp sleeping bag, catching drips in billycans as a drab Scottish sky relentlessly empties itself.

Mark Hammerton Travel is a holiday company that specialises in comfort camping. Forget those Boy Scout weekends of muddy groundsheets and smoke-blackened sausages - I'm talking top-notch accommodation in some of the most beautiful regions of France. I'm talking swimming pools, tennis courts, bars, restaurants, shops, canoeing, pony-trekking, caving, walking and many more activities - all based within, or organised from, a chain of Mark Hammerton camp sites.

Most of the sites are situated along the Brittany and Atlantic coasts. However, the latest site to be added to the Mark Hammerton list lies about six miles east of the medieval town of Sarlat, in the Dordogne, beneath the shady native forest of Le Moulin du Roch.

In common with all continental holiday complexes, for those seeking a relaxing break with plenty of sun, there is no need to leave the site. The tents - or the mobile homes for those demanding even more comfort - come equipped with sun loungers and barbecues, as well as the furniture and facilities of a modern home. But for the inquisitive, the Dordogne offers an almost unlimited range of activities, tourist attractions and excellent restaurants supplying local wines and delicacies.

Sarlat with its narrow streets and informal restaurants; Domme with its ancient walls and breathtaking views across the Perigord region; La Roque Gageac, a remarkable village which clings to the cliffs of the Dordogne; the Lascaux caves, famous for their prehistoric paintings of buffalo and bison; Les Eyzies, the greatest centre of prehistory in France; and the medieval cliff city of La Roque St Christoph, to name a few.

Those seeking something a little more adventurous can take a guided canoe trip down the Vezere from Montignac, stopping on one of the many islands or at one of the ancient villages along the way; or for the less adventurous, a boat trip down the Dordogne from La Roque Gageac, where the guide will deliver, in impeccable English, a history of every one of the five chateaux you pass.

Sun, sand and sea? Mark Hammerton holidays offer flexibility as well as comfort. Campers can book for one night at a site, or book for 14. With a little planning it is possible to travel around most of the Atlantic seaboard using the camp sites.

For the second week we headed for L'Oree du Bois, a large site beneath the native pines of the Foret de la Coubre, near La Palmyre, on the Gironde.

The Gironde has a more commercial, more touristy, atmosphere about it, with first-rate surfing beaches, mile after mile of golden sand, and the seaside resorts of Royan, La Palmyre and St Palais, all with excellent seafood restaurants.

A half-hour's drive takes visitors to the wind-swept beaches of Ile d'Oleron; an hour's drive to the distilleries of Cognac or the delightful harbour-side cafes of La Rochelle.

Away from the tourist centres are the quiet villages of maritime France - Brouage, with fortifications almost unchanged since the 18th Century; Talmont, with its clifftop church and streets decked with flowers; Le Chateau d'Oleron, its massive ramparts thrusting out into the Atlantic; Ile Madame, an island community which can be reached by causeway at low tide.

And at the end of the day, when you've showered off the sand, dined on succulent seafood and drank the local wine, you can lay in your bed, safe in the knowledge that if it rains during the night you will be warm and comfortable - not cold, wet, and thoroughly miserable.

FACTFILE

For further information, contact Mark Hammerton Travel at 90-94 High Street, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN1 1YF, or ring (01892) 525456.

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