Large Country House, Full of French Charm

La Maison Dieu details

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View of La Maison Dieu from the front garden

View of front garden

Croquet on the lawn

Lunching outside

Home description

This former convent (hence the name "Maison Dieu") is full of French charm, with painted shutters and period features. Its location within a small rural village in Pays de la Loire makes it a wonderful venue for a peaceful family holiday. For families the large, enclosed garden is great for many hours of hide and seek, croquet and splashing around in the paddling pool.  There is also a barbecue.

There is a lovely dilapidated ancient cottage in the garden where you can have a good game of table tennis and also find the logpile available for the wood burning stove in the kitchen and open fire in sitting room. 

There are bikes kept in the wine cellar that work but they are old so use at your risk.  There are tennis courts and horse riding facilities in the local villages as well as a fishing lake (summer only).

At the back of the house there is a 'secret' overgrown kitchen garden which is slowly being renovated. 

External features

• Barbecue
• Garden
• Scenic views

Accommodation detail

La Maison Dieu from garden

View of courtyard and front garden

View of sitting room

View of summer dining room

View of kitchen

View of one of the twin bedrooms

View of double bedroom

Dining area in kitchen with wood burning stove

View of the library

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Inside this classical French house there are a range of large downstairs rooms with high ceilings and period features all overlooking the gravelled courtyard and garden. 

These include:

Ground floor

• Summer dining room - a large family dining room with plenty of room
• Kitchen/dining room - a large well equipped kitchen with a dining area and a woodburning stove
• Sitting room - with a large open fireplace
• Library - a well stocked library and sitting area for reading, or watching DVDs and videos
• Bathroom - large room with WC

First floor

• Master double bedroom - a palatial room
• Two twin bedrooms - large rooms with room for cots or fold up beds

There are two cots and two fold up beds available at the house.

All the rooms have shutters.

About the location

Locally there is a range of activities available that cater for most tastes. In the village, boules can be played in the square immediately behind the house. An organic bakery opens its doors on Fridays otherwise the nearest baker is about 4 minutes away by car in Ancinnes. There are also a range of fresh food markets held in nearby towns each week. A village football pitch (5 mins walk) is available for use past some donkeys and chickens.

The surrounding countryside has some wonderful walking country (Alpes des Mancelles and Foret de Perseigne), charming villages and a variety of interesting places to visit, including chateaux open to the public. Brocantes (the French equivalent to flea markets) during the summer are a cultural activity not to be missed.

Alencon is the birth place of St Therese de Lisieux (whose house can be visited), has a museum in a lovely 18th building containing paintings and an exhibition of lace that made the town famous. The nearby city of Le Mans (40 mins) not only offers the well known 24 hour racing circuit but a stunning Cathedral surrounded by the lovely old part of the town and of course the food markets.

There a few restaurants in the surrounding villages, a particularly good one in Mamers called 'Ma Maison' and many more in Alencon.

It is advisable to have a car for visiting local villages and forests, but there is public transport to the towns if really needed.

See Local guide and map for information on nearby towns and facilities.

Activities nearby

Badminton, Boules, Cycling, Fishing, Golf, Horse riding, Shopping, Sightseeing, Swimming, Table tennis, Tennis, Walking

See Activities and attractions for more information on nearby activities and places of interest.

How to get here

Ports: La Maison Dieu is perfectly situated to take advantage of any of the ports, be it Caen (1 hour 30 mins), Cherbourg (3 hours) or Calais (3 hours 30 mins).  This makes it easily accessible by ferry or by Eurotunnel. 

Airport: Otherwise you can fly to Paris and drive down to Pays de la Loire which takes just over 2 hours. 

Train: The train from Paris to Le Mans is approx 1 hour.

See Local guide and map for information on nearby towns and airports.