The local area and nearby attractions

The area

A gentle 5 minute stroll take you into the sleepy hill top village of Fontaine Chalendray, where there is an ancient village church set amongst pretty village houses. 

Regular street markets and supermarkets are to be found in nearby villages.  The nearest shop, cafe and bars and restaurants are to be found in the next village of Néré, which is about 2 miles away.  Other nearby towns are Matha (15mins), Aulnay (15 mins), Cognac (30mins), Angoulême (45mins) and La Rochelle (1hr).

 The west coast of France is famous for its mediterranean climate, long sandy beaches, glorious islands and stunning coastlines, from La Rochelle and Rochefort (50mins away) down to Talmont (the village of flowers) approximately 1 hour away.

There is a lovely lake, Le Gours, approx 10mins drive, perfect for a picnic, in which you can fish and it has a designated area for swimming.  Thought the summer they open a small refreshment area offering food and drinks

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There is a local bakery delivery service 3-4 days per week.

The Charente Maritime region is famous for its beautiful scenery, stunning countryside, riverside villages and sun drenched sandy beaches.

The forest of Fontaine Chalendray and Aulnay are 5min drive 10 mins by bike away - an ideal place to ride and walk.  Bikes are available to hire, delivered to your door.

Local towns

Cognac - Famous for its drink, has tours of the cognac houses, boat trips, festivals, markets, lovely shops, many bars and restaurants to relax and enjoy superb cuisine and fine wines.

Saintes - Another lovely town set on the banks of the Charentaise River with a real French feel, boat hire, street markets, shops and lots of restaurants, festival and lots more - well worth a visit.

La Rochelle - A fantastic seaside city, boasting night markets, street entertaintment, a huge choice of restaurants and attractions, in this lovely old historic port.

Markets and Brocantes

There are numerous markets and brocants local to the area, taking place throughout the year.  Cognac, St Jean d'Angely, Ruffec, Aigre, Mansle, Jarnac, Chatelaillon, Pons, Saintes, Pont l'Abbe, and our nearest town Aulnay have markets selling local produce and general goods regularly every week.

La Rochelle have a daily market in the town centre, offering fresh fish and produce.

Nearby Matha offers on the 1st Friday of every month, a very large market taking up most of the town.

Macqueville have one of the few night markets open between 6pm - 11pm.

Surgeres hold a vast outdoor market for fresh grown produce and livestock every third Tuesday of every month.

Rouillac have one of the biggest markets in the region on the 27th of every month, closing many of the roads though out the town, selling everything from local produce to tractors!

Attractions

Maison du Cognac: There are anumber of big-name Cognac houses in both Cognac and Angoulême.  You can arrange to visit Hennessy, Courvoisier and Remy Martin to name only a few.  There they can give you a tour of the houses that produce the famous Cognacs they are known for, take a train ride around the vineyards, and have tasting sessions demonstrating how their Cognacs compliment a range of canapés prepared by specially trained chefs.

Les Antilles Water Park in Jonzac is an indoor aquatic centre in Jonzac, one of the largest in Europe, offering swimming, slides, toboggans, indoor beaches, a spa and a great restaurant.

Futuroscope theme park is approximately 1 hour away offering a range of activities, including rides, 3D films, 4D effects taking you everywhere from surfing gigantic waves to whizzing into outer space, and more.

Paléosite in Saint-Césaire is the site of a 1979 archaeological dig where you can dig and enjoy exhibits which tell of how the Neanderthals lived.

There are many museums nearby, ranging from the Comic Book museum in Angoulême, to the Musée Napoléon on the island of Île-d'Aix, where the man himself lived.  There is a working light house in La Rochelle boasting stunning views… if you can manage the 257 steps!

There are several zoos in the area, including La Vallée des Singes (The Valley of Monkeys) where you can enjoy gorillas, chimpanzee, bonobos and squirrel monkeys. 

La Rochelle has an aquarium consisting of 12,000 marine animals. 

The Zoo de la Palmyre near Royan has flamingos, cheetahs  elephants, the rare white rhino, penguins and polar bears to names but a few.

If you fancy something smaller, Dampierre sure Boutonne have a sanctuary for the 'du baudet du Poitou', a type of donkey found only in this region of France.

Aubeterre-sur-Dronne have a beautiful underground church, hand carved out of the cliff face in the 12th century, throughout which you can take a tour.  The town itself is officially named as one of the most beautiful in France.

You can visit many châteaux around the area, for example Rochefoucauld, Marennes and Dampierre sur Boutonne.  The Château de la Roche Courbon is known as Sleeping Beauty's Castle and has beautiful formal gardens.