Our journey to France hasn’t been without its twists and turns but we’ve made it and we can’t wait until we are able to open our doors to guests. It’s so tranquil, quiet and restful here and with the woods all around we guarantee woodpeckers by day and owls by night for company, not forgetting the frog chorus from Claude’s pond in the woods when the frogs get a little – ‘amoureuse’ shall we say. Renovations to the French Country House have begun!
Our French Country House, which incidentally is named ‘La Maison Blanche’ is situated in a tiny hamlet. It’s just a very short walk from the little town of Saint-Romain-de-Benet in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the Department of Charente Maritime, on the Atlantic west coast of France. Living here we are officially known as Saint-Rominois!
We live next to three natural springs, ‘Trois Fontaines’ as our name suggests. One of the springs is directly opposite the house. A tiny track winds its way into the village between the woods and the fields. In summer the fields are planted with either sunflowers or maize. The swathes of bright yellow sunflowers are a sight to behold and stretch as far as the eye can see.
Following the track and just a 10 minute stroll you will pass the second natural spring and picnic area. This track leads on to the square of Saint-Romain-de-Benet. Our lovely little village has a patisserie, a boucherie, Simon’s bar- which is also our post-office, coffee bar, tabac, newsagents and shop. Of course there is the grand architecture of the Mairie or ‘Town Hall’ too. However, the beautiful XII century church of Saint Romain with two unusual round domes and a square bell-tower takes pride of place in the village square.
On our doorstep and literally minutes away is the beautiful Abbaye de Sablonceaux. A former Augustinian monastery, it was established in 1136 by William X, Duke of Aquitaine. We are 20 minutes from the coast and the wonderful sandy beaches of Meschers, Royan and Saint-Palais-sur-Mer, 45 minutes from La Rochelle and 1 hour from Bordeaux – need I say more!
Airports
There is so much to see and do very close by and nearby airports in La Rochelle, (1 hr 15 mins), Bordeaux, (1 hr 15 mins), Poitiers (1 hr 30 mins), Limoges (2 hrs 10 mins) Nantes (2 hrs 15 mins).
We’ll be opening for bookings before you know it and we now have a Painting Holiday planned – click here for information. Keep an eye on this website and follow our French Country House renovations as they happen and subscribe to our mailing list.
