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Home Page - Owners Page - North France - Central France - Middle France - South West France - South France
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B & B France - Cottages Gites Villas - Brittany - Normandy - Loire - Burgundy - Charentes - Limousin
Auvergne - Rhone-Alpes - Aquitaine - Midi-Pyrenees - Languedoc - Provence
NORTHERN FRANCE BBC average monthly weather Cherbourg
We take northern France and just split into Normandy and Brittany. Whilst parts of the rest of Northern France are perfectly pleasant, Picardy particularly, there is quite a lot of industry and most people going on a summer holiday or winter break head for Normandy and Brittany. Whether for a long rent or short rent, bed and breakfast for a few days, in spring summer autumn or winter, Normandy & Brittany have sandy beaches, beautiful coast and welcoming green inland.
Normandy is where our ancestors come from and geographically it really is like parts of Britain. Climatically similar too. Rich green pasture led to camembert, the apple orchards to cider and Calvados, Fecamp the home of Benedictine. Normandy has its own architectural style with old half timbered farmhouses, the place names to conjure with include Dieppe, Le Havre, Rouen, Giverny, Honfleur, Deauville, Caen and Bayeux. Then you have the Normandy beaches of Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword and round the coast to Cherbourg and Mont St Michel. Normandy is the place for a cosy cottage or converted farmhouse.
Normandy Tourist Office BBC 5 day weather Caen
Brittany, named Little Britain in the early middle ages by invading Franks, with the Bretons considering themselves almost a nation apart from France. For the holiday maker, with family, who doesn’t want to spend days in the car this is where you have a long coastline of golden sandy beaches, wildlife filled estuaries and small fishing villages. The place names of Brittany, Brest, Quimper, Vannes, St Malo, Rennes and Nantes, technically now the Loire, are not so familiar but the coastline of Brittany is. Brittany is a place for family holidays.
Brittany Tourist Office BBC 5 day weather Vannes
CENTRAL FRANCE BBC average monthly weather Paris BBC average monthly weather Lyon
We take central France to be the Loire, that is the coastal and near coastal stretches of Loire, the Loire valley is the middle inland parts of the Loire and then across to the famous Burgundy. A lovely place for a winter break or bed and breakfast in spring and autumn. An even better place to rent a cottage, villa, manoir or chateau for a couple of weeks or even a long holiday rental.
For holidays this is two areas, firstly the area around Angers, the capital of Anjou, and Saumur with Le Mans close by, and secondly the coastal Vendee.
Around Angers and Saumur are the troglodyte dwellings carved out of soft shell stone.
The Vendee is known for the Atlantic coast with long beaches and small resorts. Like Brittany, this is family holiday land.
Western Loire Tourism BBC 5 day weather Angers
Here we have the famous chateaux on the meandering river as it runs through Torraine, the heart of France. Climatically the Loire valley is where France becomes warmer, where the white wines are light and crisp, where you have the ancient cities of Chartres, Orleans, Blois and Tours and where outside the cities you can feel life slowing down. Here is an area to rent a classy villa or cottage.
Loire Valley Tourism BBC 5 day weather Orleans
Burgundy is a peaceful rural area, yet one of the richest regions of France. Rivers and canals, the names of Nevers, Auxerre, and Dijon but above all Burgundy and Beaune alongside Beaujolais and Macon. The true home of Pinot Noir, Gamay and Chardonnay.
Burgundy Tourism BBC 5 day weather Dijon
MIDDLE FRANCE
A fascinating mix of coastal west of Poitou Charentes, the land rising as the Limousin stretches towards the massif central, the Auvergne is the heart of the massif central and then the Rhone Alpes across the other side of the Rhone valley as you approach the Alpes. Such a diverse area can be great to explore staying for bed and breakfast in a guest house in each area.
Below the Loire and above Aquitaine, the Gironde and Bordeaux, the Poitou Charentes has Poitiers, Angouleme and La Rochelle as its main cities. It is a lighter, brighter area. Warm air, sunflowers, afternoon peace and quiet, yet you have the dunes and pine forests of the Atlantic coast.
This is a family holiday area of camping and caravans with the islands of Noirmoutier, Re and Oleron. Inland the Charente river and the gentle hills of Cognac. Inland is where to rent a modernised farmhouse, villa, gite, cottage or house.
Poitou-Charentes Tourism BBC 5 day weather Poitiers
The Limousin, where water comes from, or more particularly the limousine wrap around cape after which early enclosed cars were named. In fact the Limousin does have its fair share of rain coming onto the rising hills from the Atlantic, but this provides the warm lush environment where the beautiful tan brown Limousin cattle and forests of oak thrive. Real rural France with the exquisite pottery of Limoges, the tapestries woven at Aubusson and the Rugby players of Brive la Gaillarde. Here again is cosy cottage and farmhouse country.
Limousin Tourism Meteo123.com Limoges
Next is the Auvergne, a holiday zone for the rugged. Of course you have Clermont Ferrand, Vichy, Aurillac and Le Puy but the Auvergne is the central uplands of the massif central. This is a densely forested area with rivers and valleys slicing through the ancient volcanic uplands. Mostly above 1,000 metres in height the open land is just thousands of acres of sheep grazing.
Auvergne Tourism Meteo123.com Clermont Ferrand
From Lyon down the Rhone valley is pretty industrial but as you go east you are into the foothills of the Alps. The main cities are Bourg en Bresse, Annecy, Chambery and Grenoble but for most of us this is the area of France for skiing in winter and alpine walking in summer.
Rhone-Alpes Tourism BBC 5 say weather Grenobles
SOUTH WEST FRANCE BBC average monthly weather Bordeaux
We take South West France to include Aquitaine and Midi Pyrenees. An area from the Pyrenees and Basques country through Gascony below the mighty Garonne though the vineyards of Bordeaux and St Emilion, the woodlands of the Dordogne, the rolling countryside of the Lot et Garonne and down to the vibrancy of Toulouse, the gentleness below and the valleys of the Lot, Tarn and Aveyron above.
This is the area of the 100 year war with the fortified bastide towns, Monpazier, Monflanquin, Eymet, Duras and even little Levignac.
An abundance of bed and breakfast guest houses, and properties for short rent or long rent some for long winter rental.
Aquitaine, the old England in south west France. The Basques in the south with Bayonne and Biarritz and across to Pau below the Pyrenees. The huge expanse of pine forest of the Landes with Dax and Mont de Marsan in the centre and the open sands of the Atlantic coast. You are more likely to camp or caravan than find a gite or cottage on this coast. The Gironde with Bordeaux, St Emilion, Entre Deux Mers, Medoc et all is the wine buyers paradise. Also Bergerac, Duras and Marmande produce proper wine using Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and a little Cabernet Franc. Even the whites of Sauvignon and Semillon are a delight. The area from Perigueux south of the Limousin, through the Dordogne and Garonne is a continuous delight to the eye with a super climate, quiet pace of life and small communities each with their own towns and markets. This is where you rent an old farmhouse and sometimes a cottage.
Aquitaine Tourism BBC 5 day weather Bordeaux
To the east of Aquitaine but similarly gentle and peaceful. Still with fortified bastide towns marking the 100 year war. The towns of Tarbes and Toulouse, Albi and Auch, Cahors and Castres and Rodez in the Aveyron almost stamp their authority on the area around. In the north are the valleys cut into limestone, to the west the rolling hills of Armagnac in the Gers and to the south the foothills of the Pyrenees. As with Aquitaine this is the area for summer holidays and for winter breaks. There is some but not so much camping and caravanning here. Many gites of all types. Here you can rent a gite or a cottage for couples, families or even large groups.
Midi Pyrenees Tourism BBC 5 day weather Toulouse
SOUTHERN FRANCE BBC average monthly weather Marseilles
This is the area around the Mediterranean. From Roussillon in the west, the Pyrenees people half French half Catalan, through Cathar country, the vineyards of Languedoc round past the ancient centres of Avignon and Aix en Provence into new Provence and the French Riviera of the Cote d’Azur. Move around and stop at a bed and breakfast or take a longer rental to relax and enjoy the simple warmth.
Roussillon inland has Carcassonne, an unbelievable sight, the soft rugged beauty of Corbieres country and ruined castles where the Cathars were persecuted. The coastal strip with Perpignan and Narbonne up to Beziers is full of life. Even more so as you come round into the Languedoc with Montpellier almost rivaling Toulouse and Nimes guarding the south. the coast itself is long open and sandy. In Corbieres and Carcassonne you are very obviously in gentle south west France but by Montpellier you are into the bright light south.
Languedoc Roussillon Tourism BBC 5 day weather Montpellier
At the mouth of the Rhone the cities of Arles, Avignon, Aix and Marseilles are worth visiting for the Roman remains, some say the Camargue should be visited others just see the flatness and industry. Behind the coastal Riviera you have the hills and smells of Provence, the lavender and the pines, the mountains and the pastis. All the colours are sharp and vibrant. This is where you rent more of a house than cottage. A cottage in the north, a farmhouse in the southwest, but a house here.
On the Riviera itself, sheltered from the fierce winds you have all you expect from a long established playground. Here you are not usually going to rent a house or cottage and certainly not a farmhouse. Here it is an apartment. Provence for holiday rental riviera style.
Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur Tourism BBC 5 day weather Nice
International Cottage Accommodation Directories
Australia Stayz Australia holiday accommodation. The best for Australian holidays, accommodation in all regions and all states
Greece Crete Crete Direct has country houses, villas and apartments for holiday and longer rental in north west Crete
Ireland B n B Ireland Ireland's Premier Bed & Breakfast and Guest House Directory. Good quality easy to use site
Italy Rome accommodation Vacation apartment rentals in Rome apartments offer up to 70% savings over hotels in Rome
Italy Small and charming, generally family run, accommodation throughout Italy
Italy Tuscany Accommodation - Holiday homes for vacation Rental in Tuscany
Italy Tuscany & Umbria Gorgacce Vacation Rentals Farmhouses and apartments for holiday rentals on Tuscany Umbria border
New Zealand Cottage stays for all types of accommodation in New Zealand. Town houses, beach houses, mountain cabins
United Kingdom Cottages UK is a dedicated directory of cottage rental accommodation for holidays within the UK
United Kingdom B & B Exporer is an efficient easy to use site for bed & breakfast, guest house & hotel accommodation
United Kingdom Devon Devon Holiday Cottages is a good quality informative site about accommodation and about Devon itself
South Africa Bookabed South Africa is an accommodation network and Bed & Breakfast Bureau throughout South Africa
Estate Agents for France
Aquitaine Dordogne Bergerac 7 agents in 7 areas, Brittany, Dordogne, Charente, Haute Vienne, Aveyron, Gers, Toulouse
Aquitaine Lot et Garonne Duras Family run English estate agents 23 years in Duras, 15 years with French estate agent
Limousin Creuse Marcon Immobilier, part of Century 21. A top quality regional French agency with local English staff
Languedoc-Roussillon Pyrenees-Orientales Perpignan Mark Sayers, or Louise are the helpful people for finding your new home
Property Finders for France
Languedoc Rouissillon Arieges Cathar Castles Classy website for property in Aude, Arieges, Herault and Pyrenees Orientales
Poitou-Charentes Vienne Civray Papillon properties, with 9 years experience, know the area and agents from the coast to Cognac
Provence www.ardechepropertyfinder.com Property finders based in the centre of the Ardeche and also good for Southern France
Finance Finders for France
UK Based Hampshire Knowledgeable, informative, fast and helpful are the hallmarks of Ian Mullis of French Mortgage Connection
France Based Indre et Loire Bags of UK experience, in France since 2000. Very helpful personable couple Carole & Tony Bayliss
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Which French Holidays is part
of
Fast Effective Solutions Limited
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PO41 0QW
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email petershee@fastsols.co.uk
telephone 00 33 553 644 443
P J Shee BSc FCA
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Which French Holidays
Perreau
Levignac de Guyenne
47120
France
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