Kitchen facilities
The spacious, traditional farmhouse kitchen is well equipped for all your needs. It is furnished with long farmhouse table chairs & benches. Highchairs and booster seats for kiddies are available. The walls are exposed stone, and the original flagged floor and oak beams have been retained. You have a dishwasher, washing machine, large fridge-freezer, microwave with grill, gas cooker, coffee-maker, toaster & kettle, and all the crockery & utensils you will need.

External facilities
La Vieille Maison is set within the owners 5 acre property, most of which is available for your use. Our heated, saltwater pool is 13m long, and has a deep end of 2m. We have a large games room in the barn with table-tennis, table-football, darts, games-chest & bikes for you to explore the surrounding lanes. You have garden table, benches & chairs, sunloungers and BBQ, and the gravel driveway provides a perfect "petanque" surface. We even have "Mini-furniture" for les petits!

Special features
Courtanne Gites is located in the peaceful French countryside in the beautiful "Coeur du poitou". We are nestled between the traditional market towns of Sauzé-Vaussais and Chef-Boutonne. An hours drive takes you to either historic Cognac, exciting Poitiers (with its Futuroscope theme park) the wonderful coastal city of La Rochelle with its stunning beaches, seafood restaurants and views over the harbour to the islands of Ré, Oleron and Fort Boyard, or lovely historic Angouleme with its shopping centre and ancient buildings. We are surrounded by attractions such as ancient abbeys & churches, zoo's, Melle's silver-mines, and the "Vallée des Singes" is a must-see day out.
All 3 gites at courtanne are detached from eachother to allow each its privacy, yet are close enough to allow a friendly, family atmosphere, ad get-togethers when they are rented together by large groups or families. (max capacity 22)
Visit our website www.courtanne-gites.com for further information and video's

Local activities
As well as having so much to do at Courtanne Gites itself; swimming, walking, bike-rides, films, badminton, bird-watching, pétanque, football, cricket, kite-flying in the field- & so much more, you can take a leisurely trip around the surrounding countryside on a horse-drawn hayride with one of our local farmers. We have a very good equestrian centre in the next village, which takes beginners as well as more experienced riders. We are close to 2 swimming lakes which are supervised in the summer holidays, and we have a few indoor and outdoor swimming pools in nearby towns-one of which is a 4m deep diving pool! We will be happy to book your table at any one of the many resturants in the area, and there are often fairs and "brocantes" in local villages to find your holiday souvenirs and sample to locally produced pineau and cheeses.

Nearest beach: 100

Nearest airport: 80

Nearest port: 350

Nearest supermarket: 6

Location
La Vieille Maison is the largest of Courtanne Gites' 3 holiday gites. Rated 3 stars by the "CDT". Set within the owner's 5 acre property in the heart of France's beautiful Sunflower region. Recently renovated, it boasts a wealth of original features, yet has all mod-cons. Original "potagere" oven, oak beams, exposed stone walls, flagged floors, washing machine, dishwasher, luxurious power-shower bathrooms. linen provided (not pool towels). 13m, heated, saltwater swimming pool. free bike-hire.

La Vieille Maison has a large, traditional lounge, full of comfortable furniture. (one of the sofa's is a "convertible" double bed). It has a woodburning fire, original "potagere" oven, Hi-fi, satellite TV, local French TV, DVD player, video player (we have a large film collection you may borrow-free of charge).
There is also a phone-using SFR mobicarte stsyem-pre-paid credit available in most newsagents, post-offices etc.
Internet/e-mail access available.

There are 4 bedrooms upstairs in La Vieille Maison. The front 2 are double bed rooms which look out towards the swimming pool and over the gardens. Each had double bed, and one has a double sofa-bed. Each room is large enough to have a child-cot in. The 2 rear bedrooms have 2 sets of bunks in each, and are large enough for child cots too. Hairdryer provided, as well as a milti-3 point plug adaptor for charging your mobile phones etc. All bed-linens are provided.
There is an upstairs & a downstairs bathroom, each with loo, sink and luxurious multi-jet power-shower with basin deep enough for children's bathing. Your welcome pack includes soap, shower-gel & shampoo sachets. Towels are provided (not pool towels)