+ Tips for Eating out

The Charente

The Charente is perfect for you to enjoy real France and La Forêt de Tessé is ideally situated for you to do as much, or as little, as you wish.

There are several small villages and towns nearby which offer a wide variety of amenities. To the north lies the quiet market town of Sauze-Vaussais, to the south the village of Villefagnan, to the east the larger town of Ruffec and to the west the village of Chef-Boutonne.

This is real France and at it's heart the Charente remains a rural community. When you're travelling to these places you will see lots of farms, many of which offer their produce for sale.
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+ Further afield

PLACES TO GO whilst at La Maison D'Hibou
Poitiers - Futuroscope - A FULL day out and a definite to do! Worth the 37 Euros (£25) each to get in (some discounts apply)
Jarnac - Courvoisier Distillery - A VERY hospitable and educational tour
Cognac - Hennesy Distillery - Excellent value at 5 Euros for 1hr 15min tour with a boat ride and a large brandy at the end.
La Rochelle -A great day out, plenty of shops (some very exclusive), fantastic restaurants and golden beaches (although be warned it can get very crowded in the summer).
Also @ La Rochelle - Try Fort Boyard - If you time it right you can take a boat trip out to the location of the Channel 5 TV series, prices vary between 35 - 60 Euros (£24 - £40) for a family of 4
La Rochelle top tip - Follow signs for Les Minimes. Park (free) near the harbour for the Aquarium and take the river bus to the old town (every 30mins in the Summer). There's even a McDonalds for those with withdrawal symptoms
Rouillac Market - Each Monday - Go and see a real French market, animals and all
Manot - Roumazieres - Confolens Take the Velo rail and pedal along to the destination of your choice. Manot to Confolens is the better route but be warned its longer and is uphill all the way home!
Mainfonds - Just south of Angloueme Montgolfier Ballon Festival (August) a great spectacle.
Genozac - Labyrinths and caverns, not recommended on a scorcher of a day. Also nearby kayaking and crazy golf.
Marais Poitevin - Coulon - Boat hire from the Prada stand (15 Euros for 1hr30min)

All the towns mentioned are a short journey away and together they offer a wide variety of shops, street markets and restaurants for you to enjoy. They also cater for numerous leisure activities such as walking, cycling, tennis, horse riding, fishing and canoeing and there are several public lakeside beaches that have children's play areas and BBQs.

Further afield to the north lie Poitiers where you will find the world famous Futuroscope theme park (30 minutes) and to the south the ancient Roman town now known as Anglouleme (30 minutes). Not too far further is the very pretty town of Cognac, with its famous distilleries hugging the shore of the Charente river and Saintes which has one of the oldest surviving Roman amphitheatres.

EATING OUT - A selection of our guests comments about some of the local bars & restaurants
Montjean - La Peruse Bar Very welcoming, one of the few pubs. After spending £50 they gave one group of guests free beer for the rest of the night. An impressive menu to tackle.
Villefagnan - L'Auburge de L'Etoile D'Or Decor a bit 70's but 10 Euros (£6!) a head for 4 courses and wine
Villers le Roux - Le Poivrier A popular restaurant with an owner who's right character

Ferme Auberge - A an absolutley fantastic traditional french farmhouse restaurant. It's really popular so you'll have to book.
Condac - A lovely watermill in a beautiful setting that has an excellent food and wine. It's known as a italien restaurant but the menu has a wide range of options. (If you want to leave the car at home the taxi back will cost around 60 Euros)
I'Isle-Jourdain - L'Hotel de la Paix (on the river) 4 courses 9 Euros (£5.50) and they do a range of snacks and crepes
Cognac - Loads of places to eat either in the square or down by the river.
Jarnac - Hotel de la Gare Full of French businessmen and very reasonable prices
La Torque Blanche - Ex resistance hiding place for the returing Cockleshell heros now a brilliant hotel and restaurant with an entertaining Maitre'D
Ruffec - Whiskey Galor - A superb menu selection with or without pizza and you can have a wee dram!

Further afield

To the east is the historic town of Confolens (40 minutes) and a journey north west along the D948 brings one to the large city of Niort (40 minutes). In the opposite direction is Limoges (80 minutes), a large city similar in size to Poitiers.

You can easily travel north into the Loire and south into the Dordogne. Each Department (county) provides a different view of France and you are only 2 hours from the coast at La Rochelle.

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