In the 19th century, Thouvenin was the station hotel. The railway has long since gone and quiet has returned to the village. The mezannine area, fully undercover and accessible from the ground and first floors, has been converted into a private café/bar, capturing the feel of a stylish, but lost era. Its louvred wall provides dappled shade even at the height of summer.
The village Pretre’s cassock hangs on the hatstand alongside the Gendarme’s cap, beside thirsty travellers’ luggage awaiting their departure. It is furnished with tables and sofas and the hand-crafted zinc bar has both a fridge and a freezer hidden within it. It’s a fabulous spot for breakfast, or leisurely enjoying a good book out of the sun and the perfect place for a late-night drink at the end of a relaxing day. We can even arrange to stock the bar before you arrive!
The pool, recently refurbished, is 9m x 4m, with a level floor and full steps and heated by solar panels. It is fully enclosed with childproof gates to protect younger guests and has plenty of sunloungers. The large garden has lawned, gravelled and terraced areas. Thouvenin's covered terrace has a dining table, bar area, table tennis and a stone-built BBQ with chimney. Thouvenin's boules area, surrounded by a lavender hedge is the perfect location, next to the barbecue for drinks as the sun goes down.
Thouvenin has 4 bedrooms - the principal bedroom is very large, with a super king size bed. The 2nd bedroom, has a 5' double bed, and the 3rd and 4th bedrooms are identical in size and each has bunk beds with a single on top and a pull-out double underneath. The family bath room and an additional shower room are situated upstairs and a further toilet is downstairs.
Downstairs, the kitchen leads out on one side to the extremely spacious sitting room which includes two sofas and further armchairs, large TV with BBC/ITV channels as well as French television, DVD and CD players. Free wifi is available.
On the other side of the kitchen is the dining room, with a long dining table (seating for up to 10) and an 18th-century Charentaise stone fireplace. The kitchen itself is well equipped with a large fridge/freezer, ceramic hob, multi-function oven, full-size dishwasher and plenty of pots, dishes, etc.
Up to 25% off Brittany Ferries travel is usually available on all bookings.
The small village of Migron, with its pretty, 11th Century stone church, is perfect for those who don't want to be too remote, with a boulangerie, a butchers, a well-stocked mini-market, post office and a weekly grocer's van selling fresh local vegetables. Oysters and mussels are sold in front of the epicerie every Saturday morning.
Excellent markets can be found nearby on just about every day of the week - in Saintes, Cognac, St Jean d'Angely, Matha, Burie, among others. Brocantes (or flea markets) are held in local villages on most weekends, and artisans fairs - such as the annual Foire aux Vins in Migron held in June - are frequent throughout the summer. Migron and the surrounding area is excellent for cycling - miles and miles of level countryside with virtually traffic-free routes through vineyards, fields, woodland and villages.
Other activities include river trips, antiques markets (large brocantes held in surrounding villages regularly throughout the summer), visits to chateaux, churches and museums, walking, cycling and birdwatching (74 hectares of lagoon nature reserves in the area). Sport and leisure in the area include golf (18-hole courses in both Cognac and Saintes which are 20 minutes away), horseriding, all types of fishing, tennis (including a court in the village), canoe-kayaking (boats to hire at various places along the Charente in Cognac and Saintes), and plenty of space in and around the village to kick a football.
The region is littered with historic villages, cosmopolitan cities and some of France's most beautiful beaches with miles of white sand. Its not a heavily populated area, with a real sense of space, but with good motorway links that makes travelling quick and easy. It's a wonderfully varied landscape, with seemingly endless vineyards and sunflower fields stretching to the horizon all around our village. Head towards the coast though and you encounter beautiful sea marshes, packed with wildlife and a bird watcher's paradise.
And then there are the islands.. Ile de Re, home to celebrities and feeling more like Greece than France... and Ile d'Oleron a two-mile ride across an amazing bridge and miles and miles of undeveloped beaches backing onto pine forests. And if you want a taste of them all there's no better than the preserved steam railway that runs throughout the summer. The beautiful sandy beaches of Royan are just forty minutes away from the house and those islands just a bit further. Also within an hour's drive are Rochefort and La Rochelle with its historic port, world class aquarium and fantastic shopping.
