Photographs

Meet the Staff!

Within a 15 minute stroll from the camp site you can discover the centre of Airvault, which today retains much of its Mediaeval charm with its covered market, underground spring, quaint streets and half timbered houses. The 12th century Eglise Abbatiale St Pierre, a gem of Romanesque architecture, is well worth a visit, as is the museum of traditional arts & crafts, housed in the former Augustine abbey.

As an aside, Voltaire , whose family once lived in the town, reputedly chose his pen name by inverting the syllables of the word 'Airvault'!

Read more about the town and its environs on www.cc-airvaudais.fr or visit the tourist office website http://www.tourisme-airvaudais.fr/ 

Despite our rural location off the main tourist track, there are many interesting places to visit within an easy drive of the camp site. A selection of these appear below. (Click on the photos to read more about each location) 

The  market towns of Thouars, Parthenay and Bressuire can all be reached within 25 minutes. Web links to each appear below:

http://www.francebalade.com/poitou/thouars.htm,  http://www.francebalade.com/poitou/parthenay.htm, http://www.ville-bressuire.fr/ 

Hopefully the following photos, taken over the course of a year, will give you an idea of the setting and ambiance of our campsite. A large amount of work was done on the trees last year, meaning that even the central pitches now have much more sunshine. As it happens, 2009 was such a hot, dry season, that this year our guests are asking for more shade!

The Thouet River lies approx 300 metres from the site and is a haven for both wildlife and fishermen. There is a 3/4 kilometre stretch of water with pontoons for the disabled, where it is possible to fish for pike, perch, zander, roach, bream, black bass, minnow, carp and trout, to name but a few. There are also wonderful walks along the river banks, through woodland and meadows, where you will find a diverse variety of wild flowers, butterflies and dragonflies. Look out for kingfishers and otters, not forgetting the montagues, hen harriers and buzzards as they patrol the skies above. It is also possible to explore the river by canoe - the Airvault Office de Tourisme organises escorted trips in July and August. More info on www.valleeduthouet.fr.

A few memories ........was it really so long ago..?

The start of the 2009 season heralded a few changes - new giant parasols to cover the terrace area, an outdoor kitchen that has given us the scope to introduce a grill menu (using additive free products from a local smokery), a new heating system for the pool and....most importantly.....some new arrivals on the bird and animal front! Other than that, we have a few more memories.......

From May to October we run a series of events, from French courses and walking holidays, to quiz nights, wine tastings, boules tournaments and speciality food evenings - to name but a few! Friday nights are barbecue nights, where you bring along your own meat to cook, but we do the rest...including frites, puds, wine and in-promptu entertainment! It's a great social evening! From May to September, we organise weekly escorted walks, leaving in the morning and returning to the camp site for a  lunch time Plat du Jour. Click on the photos below to discover more.