Charming 2 Bedroom detached property nr Brantome with heated pool

We thoroughly enjoyed our week in Grand Brassac. The property was very clean and tidy and Lizette and Craig were excellent hosts and always available when needed. The facilities on site (pool, zip wire, table tennis, bikes etc.) were a real plus as there was always something to do on rest days. The nearby canoeing and horse riding (detailed in the property information provided) were both excellent and good value for money. The local area is very beautiful with lots of interesting villages and small towns to visit.

We had a great time at grande brassac in le tournesol cottage. The cottage was more spacious than the photos suggest, clean comfortable and well equipped with very comfortable beds. the kids bedroom has some low beams but there was so much to do they literally only used it for crashing out in the evening. There was a lovely covered outdoor eating area where we had most of our meals. However the best thing about the stay for us was the amount of stuff for the kids. We borrowed the 5 bikes (our youngest is 10) on a couple of evenings and there are gems of little villages within a 10 mile loop. As well as this there's a pool table badminton kit table tennis and a good sized pool as well as the zip wire so our kids loved it. The other two cottages were occupied as well when we were there but no issues at all with noise etc. Lizette was a great host and provided a really appreciated welcome basket. It is out in the country so don't expect to be able to walk to a restaurant/boulangerie etc but there are plenty supermarkets etc within a 15 min drive. Brantome and it's Friday market is well worth a visit and for beginners like us allo canoes is not to be passed up. Further afield we visited sarlat and Bordeaux neither of which felt that far on the quiet French roads. As you may have picked up by now we loved it.

Easy to find a few km from Great Brassac. Cosy and as season changing (late Oct 16)the property featured a lovely log burner to keep off the chill. Loved the welcome pack which was a nice surprise and very helpful as arrived on a sunday when all shops shut. Yummy homemade cherry jam quickly got used. Owner very helpful and gave us lots of ideas of local places to visit. We were house hunting so didn't spend that much time sightseeing but did visit Brantome which was is a must.

This property has British TV which was great to catch up on the news etc. Would highly recommend this property.

We booked the accommodation quite late, having tried to book a couple of other places a bit further south and then having to wait almost a whole day for e-mail replies. This however was different Lizette the owner replied back in 30 mins confirming booking request and provided contact details for any queries.

We arrived at the property on the Saturday and she was on hand straight away to welcome us, explain how everything worked, talked through all the facilities etc. The property itself was clean, well maintained, and even better than the description on the website! The 2 bedrooms were much bigger than they looked online and were well furnished with loads of hangers (not always the case) the kitchen / lounge /diner was well laid out, a flat screen TV, DVD player and CD system were all provided. The mezzanine bedroom (off the lounge) would be great for a small child, although our 10 year olds used it as a reading room! and the private garden was larger than it looked in the pictures, at the rear of the property so nice and quiet with views over neighbouring fields. Also as the house was built into a slope parts of the rooms are beneath ground level meant it was nice and cool even with 36 degree temperatures.

Lizette thoughtfully provided a welcome pack of bread, homemade jam and wine. there were plenty of bikes to borrow (and helmets), the pool and surrounding area was great, plenty of sunbeds for all as well as seating areas to read a book and umbrellas for shade. Also a number of inflatables for the pool were thoughtfully available. the Zipwire was great fun - Craig provided instruction on the Sunday how to use it and our girls were on it practically every day. They also loved the dog Jacko the 2 cats and the 3 horses. A comprehensive visitor guide to the area had been created by Lizette and she was happy to help with restaurant bookings etc. and provide any advice.

Although in a lovely quiet area the place is well located for many local attractions, Brantome, Aubeterre, Riberac etc. all within about 30 mins drive on lovely quiet roads.

Overall a great property run by someone who puts effort into providing a quality experience. I normally always mention at least something that can be improved, had to rack my brains but the only thing I could think of was bigger wine glasses, the 175ml ones meant going down into the kitchen to get the white out of the fridge more frequent!

Had a great time and hope to return in the future

We have recently returned from a 2 week stay at Le Guichard and had a fabulous time. We have two boys aged 9 and 6 and there was plenty to keep them occupied whether it was making the most of the zip wire, archery or pool table but mostly splashing around in the pool with the friends that they'd made with families staying at the other 2 properties.

We stayed in Papillon and found the accommodation very charming, decorated in a typically French gite style. The bedrooms and private garden are a great size although next time I might be tempted to book one of the others (which I also had a sneaky peak around in) as the living space and kitchens were larger.

The local area is truly stunning with fields and fields of sunflowers all around you and the rural location makes it a great spot for star-gazing and woodland walks. I would also highly recommend trips to Lisle, Lac Jamaye and Brantome, well worth the drive (sat-nav essential!)

As everyone else has also mentioned Lizette is a wonderful host, really welcoming and a great source of useful local insights. Thanks for welcoming us into your home - we hope to see you again!