A major player in the French family holiday club sector, the Marseilles-based company, founded in 1960 as an association, has grown steadily without ever abandoning the values that guided its creation.

Today, the company offers light all-inclusive holidays in the mountains, on the ski slopes and by the sea through its 17 Villages Clubs, offering nearly 9,500 beds and welcoming nearly 120,000 customers each year.

With the target of sharing responsible holidays, Villages Clubs du Soleil works daily to be environmentally, socially and societallyaware. The group's commitment is also reflected in its governance model : the company is 99% owned by 2 associations: Villages Clubs du Soleil and Renouveau Vacances. This system allows it to grow while remaining close to its associative roots.

The year was 1945. The Villages Clubs du Soleil adventure began over a game of cards in St-Bonnet in Champsur, in a family holiday house that was a member of a network of associations that helped families go on holiday. In those post-war days, few families could afford it, despite the introduction of paid leaves in 1936. The idea came up that day: to gather collective efforts to manage a larger holiday establishment, allowing to welcome modest families. In 1960, the Club du Soleil association was created. Its aim : to manage holiday centers and develop leisure activities in working-class areas. The foundations were laid. The story begins. And it has been going on for more then 60 years.