Testimonial from our very first guest, Hedy

" My memories of Gourgé are very serene and restful. I have told everyone how wonderful a few days in your establishment would be.

I am going to attach your blog to emails that I write to my family and friends, and encourage them to at least SEE what I was raving about, so that they might consider going there themselves.

Thank you both ENORMEMENT again for the wonderful time I had at your place. I loved your Australian-ness, the hospitality, the beautiful food, the little notes, the peaceful and friendly environment, the castles and your accommodating kindness and friendliness.

I am so glad I had the time in Gourgé, it gave me the needed break between the tour, and my time in Paris which was fanastic also."

Hedy - Cleveland, Australia

Our Aussie BBQ....French style!

40 people enjoyed our Aussie BBQ. Our BBQ banana, aussie music and stubbie coolers were a hit. Come on aussie come on, come on....come on aussie come on! What are you waiting for?

Come on and have a fabulous holiday in the SW of France.

à bientôt

Peter et Donna

Summer Fun!

Every 2 weeks in Summer we have an event in the Gardens. Our first event, was dinner in the garden provided by Haley and Andy's Restaurant on wheels.

Great food, drinks and laughs were had by all 75 people that attended!

Our next event will be an Aussie/Français BBQ on the 10 July. This is guaranteed to be a fun filled evening with lots of entertainment!!

Aerial shots of our property, "au pont''. Many thanks to our friend Mike for taking them:)

So what are you waiting for?....Come and visit us!

à bientôt

Peter et Donna

OK! are YOU ready for a fabulous FRENCH country getaway?

Our first guest, Hedy. What a delight it was to have you stay with us.....
So much to tell and explain, however for the next couple of days we are helping our friend tidy up his 12th century Château, tower and cottage, so......it will have to wait until after that. His place is so full of history, encompassed with an incredible tranqil ambience. Wish you were here!!!!!

Quote of the week from my dear husband who opened up the shutters one morning in our bedroom and said "what a glorious, glorious morning.....the only bad thing is that I have to get out of bed to enjoy it!!" This is a man who has got out of bed at 5am for most of his working life in Aussie, and since living in Gourgé has never slept so soundly nor experienced such amazing dreams in his entire life. Such is the way of life here..

We are here to help you enjoy a fabulous French holiday, language and all.

So start planning!!!!! We have 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3 toilets, large day room, dining room with a fire place, seperate kitchen and one acre of land that touches the river. You can BBQ, fish, play boules, basketball, table tennis, darts, walk or cycle the many tracks that are available, or.... just totally relax in serene surroundings. We sleep up to 8 guests. If you want to visit us for a couple of nights while you are travelling around Europe, or stay for a week or so, we can accommodate YOU. The closest airport and train station is POITIERS, which is a 45 mins drive. You can contact us on donnapeterhein@orange.fr for any further information.

OK, so it may not be the most attractive building around...however, it is listed as pre-Nepoleon and we are very restricted to what renovations we can undertake on the exterior, because of heritage listing. As they say "beauty is only skin deep''.
Opposite us is one of the many weirs, and after a 5 minute walk, is the first of the walking trails across the river Thouet.
Below is the very historic village of Gourgé.
Now for the interior of the guest accommodation
Chambre 1
sleeps 2 with a large alcove for a cot or a sitting area

Chambre 2
sleeps 3-double bed and single fold up bed



Living room offers a large day bed

Dining Room/Reading Room has a large sofa bed and a beautiful old fire place for winter

à bientôt

Peter et Donna

Amazing photos of this area.....taken by our Aussie friend Frances

Our friend Frances, from Kingaroy in Queensland, stayed with us for 5 days whilst travelling around France. These photos were taken in Gourgé and within a radius of a 15 minute drive. It was extremely difficult to choose which ones to show you as there is so much history and beauty in this area. YES! we get to experience it every day!! Enjoy the journey........







Saint-Hilaire, the Church in Gourgé is one of the oldest in France. The site was first occupied in Gallo-Roman times. The village was mentioned as early as the year 889. The Calvary Cross in the cemetry dates from the 12th Century.




The horse drawn wagons go past
our place all through the summer months, and are such a delight to see.

Clycine (Wisteria bush).

Château jonc la roche-faton

Rapeseed crop

La roche aux enfants Château

Le chat

La forge à fer
Gilbert's farm (yes! it is English)

The city of Parthenay

The village of St Loop

à bientôt

Peter et Donna