Francais Bienvenue à Les Hirondelles Anglais

Experience the beauty and tranquility of rural France in our beautifully converted barn with private pool in the Charente.

Sleeps up to 13

***Bookings for 2024 being taken  ***

We look forward to welcoming you to 'Les Hirondelles',  our privately owned gite/holiday home. Our  stunningly converted detached barn offers 5 beautiful bedrooms, two of which are en-suite and situated in what must be one of the most stunning locations in the Charente with far reaching views over the countryside from every room and the stunning open sided covered patio. There are beautiful walks from the doorstep, a large garden leading off into the countryside, plenty of parking and private pool.

We are situated in the south east Charente region of France very close to the border of the Dordogne and are surrounded by rolling hills and woodland, maize and sunflower fields but only 2km from the pretty town of Montmoreau St Cybard, with all amenities including butchers, bakers, bank, post office, bar and a little restaurant and a large supermarket. The stunning town of Aubeterre sur Dronne is only 15 minutes away  with its unusual Romanesque monolithic underground church and voted one of the most beautiful villages in France. It has a variety of great restaurants, a wonderful river to swim in or you can sit with a chilled glass of wine or cold beer in the square watching the world go by.

The area has a wealth of charm and tranquility, from the South Charente with its echoes (but fewer tourists) of the next door Dordogne to the gently sloping vineyards of the wealthy Cognac producing West Charente.  Spend your time visiting the many wonderful local markets including Aubeterre, Brantome, Riberac, Chalais and Villebois Lavalette with its feudal chateau dominating the region from its hilltop. Villebois has a market every Saturday morning where you can enjoy a dish of fresh oysters with a bottle of Muscadet under the ancient and covered market square. The attractive hill town of Angouleme is 30 minutes away, best know for its stunning Romanesque cathedral, international comic festival and the Cirque de Ramparts held each year. Spend a day tasting the wonders of the great houses of Cognac and learn about the history and production of this glorious amber nectar. The stunning town of Brantome is just under an hour away where you can wander the cobbled streets, take a canoe around the island town or sit in the park with its huge trees and stunning plant life. These are but a few tasters of what our area has to offer, and if it all proves too much, take time out to relax by the pool with a good book and a chilled glass of wine taking in the breathtaking views around you, not to mention the utter peace and tranquility this gite offers.  

For more information for what to do in the area please check out our 'Activities' and  'Activities for Children' pages.

Les Hirondelles is a large and beautifully renovated barn, which includes all modern facilities, yet still retains the character features of huge oak beams, Charentais stone walls and is set on a hillside with the most stunning views.  It has its own large garden, with established fruit trees and has a fantastic open sided covered hanger as a patio, meaning you can sit out in the fresh air come rain or shine looking out far across the sunflower fields, woodlands and hills. The 10 x 5 m pool is totally private to the property and surrounded by a beautiful decking patio with sun beds and again those views!

Contact Details

For bookings or any other information at all please contact Toby and Lesley at contact@chezleshirondelles.com,  or telephone  +33 (0)545 248474 or text +44 (0)7906 570327

Cycling

The Charente is a fantastic area for cycling with rolling hills, well kept roads, fabulous countryside and lots of pretty towns and villages with cafés and bars for the obligatory coffee and cake. Bike hire can be arranged with www.bikehiredirect.com who will deliver quality bikes direct to your door. Please check out the following links to find out more about cycling in this wonderful area. Gallery / Cycling in the Charente.

Walking

There are some lovely walks in the beautiful surrounding countryside from right outside the door. Below are some links to GPX files in the Alltrails.com app, which you should be able to load into your mapping application in order to guide you on your way.                                 

This spacious and airy property includes the following features;

A light and airy entrance hall leads to the large open plan kitchen, dining and lounge area with patio doors leading out on one side to the covered patio and the other side to the pool.

Large comfortable lounge and dining area with exposed Charente stone walls, huge oak beams tiled floor. Double doors  lead  to the sun deck and pool area and there is a wood burner for cosy winter evenings. French TV, Satellite TV with all UK Freesat channels, plus DVD player and Wifi internet access.  

Spacious and well equipped dining kitchen (oven, dishwasher, washing machine, microwave, fridge freezer) with beamed ceiling and double doors leading to the huge open sided covered patio. 

Private, alarmed 10m x 5m pool surrounded by decking with views out over the countryside and plenty of space for sunbeds and tables

 There is a downstairs en-suite bedroom for anyone who may have trouble with the stairs as well as a separate toilet and hand basin.

 Upstairs there are 4 very spacious and airy bedrooms leading off a landing featuring huge oak beams.

The stunning master king size bedroom has an en-suite bathroom,  and there is a 2nd large king size bedroom.

A third bedroom has a double and a single bed and there is a children's room with a bunk bed and 2 singles.

There is a large oak beamed half tiled family bathroom with bath, toilet, separate shower with sliding glass doors, and the sink sits on top of an old cast iron singer sewing machine base adding yet more character.

A cot can be provided upon request.  

Prices and Availability.

For prices and availability please contact Lesley and Toby to discuss your requirements. You can email us on contact@chezleshirondelles.com,  or telephone  +33 (0)545 248474 or text +44 (0)7906 570327 or +33 (0)637 717961

A booking form will be sent out to you and a non-refundable deposit of 30% is required at the time of booking. Full payment is due 8 weeks prior to your arrival together with a breakage deposit of  €300 (£250).  This is refundable within 7 days of your departure after a full inspection of the property has taken place. 

if you wish to pay by credit card please e-mail us and we will send you a PayPal invoice. You can then pay into our PayPal business account. Please note that this method of payment does carry a surcharge of 4%.

There will be a welcome pack on your arrival, full information and maps and guides to the area.  We will also supply a map of how to get here. Obviously we are happy to share our knowledge of the area with you and can suggest day trips and places of interest to visit to suit your requirements. 

Duvets, blankets, pillows and linen are provided. There is an additional charge of £4.00 (€5) per person if towels are required.

Pool towels are £4.00 (€5) per person.

The gite will be clean upon your arrival and there is a  €100 cleaning service charge which can be paid any time before your departure.

Bikes can be easily rented from the nearby sources.

We operate a no smoking policy inside the gite and request that parties staying in the gite do not smoke whilst inside the property.

We regret that we cannot accept pets.

Children.

There is a cot and high chair available at no extra cost.  There is a large and spacious garden for the children to play in. The swimming pool is fitted with an alarm.

Location

Les Hirondelles is situated at Fresignac, 16190 Saint Laurent de Belzagot, Montmoreau Saint Cybard, Charente approximately 30 km South of Angouleme and 100 km North East of Bordeaux.

For more information click the map button to open a viamichelin map at the correct location:     

Getting Here

Flights:

The three closest airports are Bergerac at 80km,(1 hr 10 mins) Bordeaux at 100km (1 hr 20 mins) and Limoges at 130km (1 hr 30 mins). There are flights to these airports from London Stanstead, Liverpool, East Midlands, Leeds-Bradford, Southampton and Manchester amongst others. 

Car Hire:

Car Hire is available at all airports and Angouleme as well as some other local locations. 

Ferries:

Caen is about 5  hours drive on the toll motorways. Calais is an 7 hour drive.

Rail:

There is a TGV station in Angouleme which is about 40 mins drive away. The train takes  2¹/₂ hours from Paris.

Further Information on the area.

The Charente is one of four departments making up the region of Poitou-Charentes with Charente-Maritime, Deux-Sevres and Vienne. Each area has distinctive features but all have a generous share of  river.  The French traditionally consider the Charentais as somewhat laid back, and a bit zany! With its well preserved yet domesticated countryside and virtually every food product available fresh from the woods, fields, rivers and nearby ocean, the Charentais is generally quite happy with his peaceful lot.

The bustling and historic walled city of Angouleme is well worth a visit with its unmissable cathedral to Saint Pierre.  After strolling around the ramparts, you can sit and enjoy one of the ‘Plat du Jours’ the many restaurants have on offer in the square or one of its winding mediaeval streets. Held in the third weekend in September is the spectacular Circuit des Ramparts, which is the only vintage car rally held inside a French town. Alternatively visit the Nautilus waterpark in Angouleme, an ideal place to "cool off" and have fun. Spend a day wandering around Cognac with it's ancient streets and mansions of the brandy merchants and take a tour around one of the major cognac producers such as Hennessy, Martell or Remy Martin. Here you will encounter cellars full of aging cognacs some over a century old, and taste some of the exceptional matured amber that is Cognac, described by Victor Hugo as “The Liquor of the gods”.

The Charente has one of the richest displays of Romanesque art with all variations represented, more than its fair share of stunning chateaux, activity lakes, not to mention its packed programme of top quality summer festivals and markets. Alternatively just take it easy and mosey around some of the traditional market towns and picturesque villages immersing yourself in French culture and taste some of the local food and wine along the way. 

These are but a few of the activities on offer in the spectacular region of the Charente. Explore to your hearts content, and we hope to welcome you soon to both the Charente and Les Hirondelles.

 Contact Details

For bookings or any other information at all please contact Toby and Lesley at contact@chezleshirondelles.com,  or telephone  +33 (0)545 248474 or text +44 (0)7906 570327 or +33 (0)637 717961