We can’t claim to be rushed off our feet most of the time – if truth be told running gites in Lot et Garonne is probably about as close to an easy life as you can get.
But there are a few days each year when panic sets in, and we spend the day rushing around [...]

In a comment on this blog yesterday somebody mentioned that they didn’t book gites where the owner lived on site, because of a bad experience where the owner had been forever hanging around in their garden, snipping hedges and cutting grass, while they were trying to relax.
To say the least, I can see this can [...]

Well after a couple of terrible weeks for weather things seem to be on the mend and today it’s a lovely sunny day. Not as hot as a June day should be, perhaps, but after two weeks of rain, clouds, wind and storms it’s good enough.
I did feel sorry for the people who stayed in [...]

Here’s an idea you might like – francethisway can put cash in your pocket!
Loads of you will be visiting France during the coming months. Our goal is to have complete coverage of all the places of interest in France, and to become the leading resource for people visiting the country. A challenge that is just [...]

The heading ‘a new life in France’ hardly applies to us because we are positively veterans of the process compared to the many more recent immigrants. But as the gite season is upon us we need to prepare ourselves for the questions that we get asked each year by a large number of the people [...]

Booking a gite or villa holiday in France (or anywhere else) can be a bit of a hit-or-miss affair, so I thought I’d offer a few practical suggestions on making sure you book the perfect holiday for yourself in the future. Sorry I forgot to write this sooner as promised. And I often use the [...]

Every year a lot of people stay in gites (holiday rental self-catering properties, for those who don’t know) in France. That’s good news for me of course because I’ve got two, and if they were empty all year I would be even poorer. Unfortunately most people prefer to pay more and come in August, rather [...]