A new small-scale camping business has taken root in Normandy, offering visitors a mix of nature, leisure, and regional culture.
Located between Passais-Villages and Saint-Fraimbault in the Orne department, the mini-campsite “Les Rives du Bel Air” opened in April 2025 and quickly attracted strong demand during its first summer season.
The project is led by Philippe-Charles Havetz, known as Charly, originally from Armentières in northern France. His professional background includes experience in the restaurant industry, nursing, and later sales management in a carpentry company.
After visiting a friend in Orne, Havetz decided to relocate permanently in 2024. “One of my friends had bought a house in the Orne, and I came to spend my holidays there. I fell in love with the department and the Bocage de Passais in particular,” he said.
Havetz initially purchased a 3.2-hectare property, including a 1.4-hectare pond, for personal use, but soon turned the site into a business.
“Originally, it was to put down my van and spend my holidays there. I didn’t buy the van but a 3.2-hectare plot of land including a 1.4-hectare pond,” he explained. From there, the mini-campsite concept emerged.
The first season proved encouraging. “For my first season, the site was a victim of its own success. I filled up in July and August. It meets needs, and this makes local businesses work. What I appreciate is the contact,” Havetz told Le Publicateur.
“I make people happy by offering them a holiday in a place that respects the environment, the landscapes, the bocage, with trees, hedges, and also pitches out of sight.”
Currently open year-round, Les Rives du Bel Air offers fishing, pedal boats, and van or caravan pitches. A bilingual host, Havetz notes that “70% of my clientele is English- and Dutch-speaking. They are very fond of these quiet corners of France and Normandy.”
Plans for 2026 include expanding facilities with an educational farm that will feature Indian runner ducks, sheep, goats, alpacas, chickens, and mini-cows.
Havetz is also developing a food production unit to prepare regional specialties such as Flemish carbonade, potjevleesch, chicken in cider, and maroilles pies for local markets.
He intends to add new accommodations, including lodgings overlooking the pond where “people will be able to fish directly from the terrace.” Additional projects include a treehouse, a guinguette, and a bowling alley.
For business owners in the outdoor hospitality sector, the development of Les Rives du Bel Air underscores the potential of small-scale, niche camping ventures.
By combining traditional camping with added-value features such as agritourism, food production, and unusual accommodations, operators can diversify revenue streams and appeal to both domestic and international markets.
With a nightly pitch rate of €10 and equipped tent rentals at €30, Havetz is positioning his venture as accessible while enhancing the local tourism offering in Orne.