first time with young kids, advice?
Discussion
Thanks for all the input. I definitely hear everyone on the potentially rowdy non-family atmosphere.
I like DS240's angle on it. We could probably drop in day trip style for both days.
We've done "picnic and hike around for 2 days" as a family for American LeMans races at Laguna Seca and it works out ok. I've got pics of my kids playing, wearing neon headphones, while cars dive down the corkscrew it the background. It's definitely not a "drink a ton and watch a race with my mates" style experience, but I still enjoy it.
The tip on getting grandstand seats makes sense. Thanks
I like DS240's angle on it. We could probably drop in day trip style for both days.
We've done "picnic and hike around for 2 days" as a family for American LeMans races at Laguna Seca and it works out ok. I've got pics of my kids playing, wearing neon headphones, while cars dive down the corkscrew it the background. It's definitely not a "drink a ton and watch a race with my mates" style experience, but I still enjoy it.
The tip on getting grandstand seats makes sense. Thanks
Personally I think you are making a mistake, even if you have done a similar thing in US.
I would humbly suggest that you set the recorder for the race, if it can accommodate that muc and just take the wife and kids on a lovely holiday, without even mentioning LM while you are away.
The bargain would then be that you then go away for the following event with the lads... win - win.
No moans on the holiday and then a special break with the mates... Might take a little longer to get there but probably worth the effort. Also if you live in England you can pick up another weekend race pretty cheap to fuel your needs.
>Martini...LB
I would humbly suggest that you set the recorder for the race, if it can accommodate that muc and just take the wife and kids on a lovely holiday, without even mentioning LM while you are away.
The bargain would then be that you then go away for the following event with the lads... win - win.
No moans on the holiday and then a special break with the mates... Might take a little longer to get there but probably worth the effort. Also if you live in England you can pick up another weekend race pretty cheap to fuel your needs.
>Martini...LB
lazz said:
Thanks for all the input. I definitely hear everyone on the potentially rowdy non-family atmosphere.
I like DS240's angle on it. We could probably drop in day trip style for both days.
We've done "picnic and hike around for 2 days" as a family for American LeMans races at Laguna Seca and it works out ok. I've got pics of my kids playing, wearing neon headphones, while cars dive down the corkscrew it the background. It's definitely not a "drink a ton and watch a race with my mates" style experience, but I still enjoy it.
The tip on getting grandstand seats makes sense. Thanks
I like DS240's angle on it. We could probably drop in day trip style for both days.
We've done "picnic and hike around for 2 days" as a family for American LeMans races at Laguna Seca and it works out ok. I've got pics of my kids playing, wearing neon headphones, while cars dive down the corkscrew it the background. It's definitely not a "drink a ton and watch a race with my mates" style experience, but I still enjoy it.
The tip on getting grandstand seats makes sense. Thanks
I am travelling with two (by then 22 months old) boys in 2015.
Plan is to rent a place within an hour of Le Mans and I will go in Saturday and back Sunday. The family will probably not travel. IMHO - if you are still here in 2016 bring the family to the Classic - my wife came in 2012 and loved it.
The other thing is I presume, but US based, you are not overly familiar with France - that might bring added stress on the trip.
Plan is to rent a place within an hour of Le Mans and I will go in Saturday and back Sunday. The family will probably not travel. IMHO - if you are still here in 2016 bring the family to the Classic - my wife came in 2012 and loved it.
The other thing is I presume, but US based, you are not overly familiar with France - that might bring added stress on the trip.
Edited by Irish on Sunday 5th October 21:04
Irish said:
I am travelling with two (by then 22 months old) boys in 2015.
Plan is to rent a place within an hour of Le Mans and I will go in Saturday and back Sunday...
The other thing is I presume, but US based, you are not overly familiar with France - that might bring added stress on the trip.
^ THISPlan is to rent a place within an hour of Le Mans and I will go in Saturday and back Sunday...
The other thing is I presume, but US based, you are not overly familiar with France - that might bring added stress on the trip.
Edited by Irish on Sunday 5th October 21:04
I camped off-site last year and parked in Rouge a short walk from the Panorama grandstand I had seats in. A much more civilised trip than the year before in a public on-site campsite which was a long way from the stadium. The only downside was the traffic on Saturday morning.
I found getting used to French driving less of a hassle after having a refresher the year before, the time before that was ten years ago. The US OP will at least be reasonably familiar with driving on the wrong side of the road! The idiosyncrasies of signs, signals and route finding maybe less so.
As some one who has been professionally involved with Le Mans 24hrs for nearly 20 years (please read my previous post) unfortunately LM24 it's not an ideal place for very young children or young families, as DS240 has said you could dip in and dip out use it a part of another trip. If it's Le Mans you want to experience go for the Classic in 2016 much more family orientated, you could even camping On-circuit.
'Le Mans 24hrs is not an ideal place for very young children. However if you and the family are really keen to attend the best way to do this is buy a couple of general entrance tickets for your wife and yourself (children under 16 are free) and stay off circuit in a hotel and travel in by train then use the tram from the station to the circuit. A suggested itinerary could be to travel by Eurostar from London to Paris, have a day or so in Paris and then travel to the circuit on Sunday to see the closing stages of the race'
'Le Mans 24hrs is not an ideal place for very young children. However if you and the family are really keen to attend the best way to do this is buy a couple of general entrance tickets for your wife and yourself (children under 16 are free) and stay off circuit in a hotel and travel in by train then use the tram from the station to the circuit. A suggested itinerary could be to travel by Eurostar from London to Paris, have a day or so in Paris and then travel to the circuit on Sunday to see the closing stages of the race'
Have a look at the camping at Chanteloup.
http://www.chateau-de-chanteloup.com/
Great for the wife & kids with enough car content to keep any petrol head happy. You can disappear off to the circuit, which is about 25-mins away, to catch a bit of racing and they get a great holiday.
http://www.chateau-de-chanteloup.com/
Great for the wife & kids with enough car content to keep any petrol head happy. You can disappear off to the circuit, which is about 25-mins away, to catch a bit of racing and they get a great holiday.
As someone who lives here I am wondering if your marriage would stand a trip to Le Mans with wife and three very young children. This is nothing like Daytona or Sebring (and I've been to both) being far more basic. Please take me seriously here, because this is not a place to camp en famille with such young children. Your wife won't be prepared for the state of the showers and toilet blocks, (let alone the amount of toilet paper and disposable nappies you'll need), the children won't sleep for the noise, and there is a distinct probability of diarrhoea for the youngsters due to a change of regime. Far too much stress to make this an enjoyable trip. You would need to be off-site, and if you haven't yet booked a hotel you'll be lucky to find one now, but there are a number of B&B's still available. I'd also consider talking to Guy at White rabbit since their camp site (and a caravan can be arranged on site) is very private and secluded but not far from the circuit. But if you want my advice talk her into letting you come on your own or put the whole thing on the back burner for another five years. You just might stay married that way.
Echo Lowdrag save I live in Blighty
I would not entertain going to LM with anything less than the most sensible 5+ year old and certainly it would have to be 1 adult per under 15 (depending on maturity).
LM is not a place for very young children. I work there and get a car pass into the centre and an '8' pass which is almost as good as it gets if you aren't a race driver or run the ACO etc. Even with those at my disposal I would run a mile from taking three children of such a young age.
If there really is no stopping you I would say that the minimum I would require would be a hotel off site and a campervan/caravan on site.
I'm really not a kill joy and remember too well the tears shed when dad said he could not take me to LM in the 1980's and early 90's. Apart from it always clashing with exams it really is not a place that even the most racetrack savvy of young children should be taken to without 1 on 1 full time back up. It can appear the calmest most "WTF were they nannying about" place at noon on a Wednesday but come the evening, or worse Saturday morning, and you will understand.
I would not entertain going to LM with anything less than the most sensible 5+ year old and certainly it would have to be 1 adult per under 15 (depending on maturity).
LM is not a place for very young children. I work there and get a car pass into the centre and an '8' pass which is almost as good as it gets if you aren't a race driver or run the ACO etc. Even with those at my disposal I would run a mile from taking three children of such a young age.
If there really is no stopping you I would say that the minimum I would require would be a hotel off site and a campervan/caravan on site.
I'm really not a kill joy and remember too well the tears shed when dad said he could not take me to LM in the 1980's and early 90's. Apart from it always clashing with exams it really is not a place that even the most racetrack savvy of young children should be taken to without 1 on 1 full time back up. It can appear the calmest most "WTF were they nannying about" place at noon on a Wednesday but come the evening, or worse Saturday morning, and you will understand.
grumpy said:
Most men who take their wives/girlfriends/partners seem to do so for one of two reasons, they have no mates to go with or they are under the thumb, "your not going unless I go to"
Point of order Sir,My Mrs is happy to let me go off on a 4 day stag weekend with some very disreputable brokes but would leave in a heartbeat if I told her she couldn't come to LM. (She divorced the man who told her to sell her first TVR...)
lazz said:
The tip on getting grandstand seats makes sense. Thanks
Mmmm....once you are in the grandstand at least you have a seat but getting there can be a nightmare. The crowds behind the stands are milling back and forth are huge and it becomes quite a squash. The ACO doesn't give a s
t about crowd safety as the relitively narrow service road where everyone walks is also used for mopeds, electric buggies vans and cars.Also, the French are a nation of smokers and in public it's not banned so the chances are you will sit next to or close to a smoker/smokers and that is not where I would choose to put young kids.
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