Gîte in Charente-Maritime, France

Thouvenin details

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Thouvenin in summer

L'Ecurie's sunny terrace

The Pool

The new Boules area

The orchard at L'Ecurie

The new sunbathing terrace

Home description

This beautiful 18th Century house with separate gite is situated in the peaceful, ancient village of Migron, the heart of the Cognac/Pineau producing area, and surrounded by acres of vineyards and sunflowers. Spacious grounds with swimming pool (9m x 4m).

Accommodation detail

The Dining Room seats 10

The Well-Equipped Kitchen

Living Room with open fire

The Main Bedroom

The peaceful mezannine

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The house gets its name from a 100-year-old photograph taken when it was Hotel Thouvenin, in the days when the railway used to come to Migron. Before that, it was a typical Charentaise farmhouse dating back to the 18th century.

Thouvenin has four bedrooms situated upstairs:

• The principal bedroom is very large, with a super-king-size bed and door outside to a covered mezzanine area (perfect for a quiet drink before bedtime, or breakfast outdoors).
• The second largest bedroom, with its pretty limed-oak furniture, has a 5' double bed.
• The third and fourth bedrooms are identical in size and each has bunk beds with a single on top and a pull-out double underneath.

All beds have been bought with guests' comfort in mind.

• The bath and shower room are also situated upstairs, and there is a separate toilet downstairs.

Downstairs

• The kitchen is extremely well equipped with good quality utensils, plenty of pots and dishes etc, a large fridge/freezer, ceramic hob, multi-function oven, full-size dishwasher and washing machine.

The kitchen leads out on one side to

• The extremely spacious sitting room, which includes two sofas and further armchairs, large colour TV with all BBC and ITV channels as well as French television, DVD player, VHS player and a CD player. Wireless Broadband is available at no cost..

On the other side of the kitchen is

• The dining room, with a long dining table (seating for up to ten) and an 18th-century Charentaise stone fireplace.

Outside

The large garden has lawned, gravelled and terraced areas plus table tennis, a stone-built barbecue with chimney and plenty of outdoor seating and umbrellas. The 9 x 4m pool is 1.5m deep, and is security fenced for to protect younger visitors. A Boules area was built for 2008. There is a small attached gite which shares the pool and can be booked for larger parties: please ask for special arrangements.

About the location

The small village of Migron, with its pretty, 11th Century stone church, is perfect for those who don't want to be too remote, with a boulangerie, a butchers, a well-stocked mini-market, post office and a weekly grocer's van selling fresh local vegetables. Oysters and mussels are sold in front of the epicerie every Saturday morning.

The beautiful sandy beaches of Royan are just forty minutes away. Also within an hour's drive are Rochefort, Ile d'Oleron, La Rochelle and - just a bit further - the beautiful Ile de Re, dubbed the Cote d'Azur of the Atlantic Coast.

Attractions nearby include an excellent aquarium at La Rochelle, two nearby water parks (one with a lagoon and a 'river'), a zoo, La Vallee des Singes and, of course, Futuroscope. In Cognac, 20 minutes' drive away, there's a chance to visit some of the world-famous Cognac distilleries, and the beautiful old Roman town of Saintes, also 20 minutes away, has good shopping, good museums, a Roman ampitheatre and two cathedrals.

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

Activities near by

Adventure park, Bird Watching, Boating, Boules, Canoeing, Cycling, Fishing, Go karting, Golf, Photography, Rambling, Riverside activities, Sailing, Sea excursions, Shopping, Sightseeing, Swimming, Table tennis, Tennis, Theme parks, Tree adventure park, Walking, Water sports, Wine tasting, Wine touring

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

How to get here

Migron is situated between Cognac and Saintes, both of which are a 20-minute drive away. It is about half an hour off the A10 Paris-Bordeaux autoroute, coming off at St Jean D'Angely. It is about 4.5 hours from St Malo, 6 hours from Caen, and 8 hours from Boulogne/Calais.

The nearest airports are Angouleme (45 mins), La Rochelle (just over an hours drive) and Poitiers (1hr 30 mins drive), all served by Ryanair.

Also within driving distance are Bordeaux (1hr 10 mins), with British Airways and BMI Baby, and Limoges (2hrs 30 mins), Ryanair. 

By train, the nearest TGV station is Angouleme (40 mins drive away). 

Full directions will be supplied for all routes on booking.

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