We're considering a self-drive holiday in the Argeles/Perpignan area this summer. The plan is to sail early Wednesday and stopover in Paris for a couple of days - then make the drive down in one go on a Saturday morning.

Having checked a few mobile home companies (Keycamp, Siblu, etc), it seems the cheapest 7 night stay is around £1,000 to £1,200.

Because of the cost (there are only 3 of us including a 15 year-old), we have expanded our search to include hotels and are considering Novotel and Mercure hotels on a B&B basis for a total of £600-725 (although breakfasts at 11 euros each do seem a little steep!) - both in Perpignan Nord I believe.

I'd be really grateful for any views on whether these hotels would be a suitable base for exploring the region. We're not beach lovers but prefer sitting around the pool. We're also planning to venture across the Pyrenees to Spain, and maybe as far as Barcelona?

So, I suppose I'm looking for a view as to whether the above hotels would pass for 'holiday hotels', or whether they're more designed for the French equivalent of our UK sales reps and their overnight stays?

Any other useful tips and suggestions for travelling down and what to see and do in the area would be much appreciated.

Many thanks.