Of course there are plenty of reasons to take a holiday in France at any time, but right now there are five particularly good reasons why a holiday in France makes perfect sense.

The weak Euro and strong Pound

£1 now buys over 12% more Euros than last year. At time of writing this means that £1 will convert to just about €1.36 (tourist rate, bbc.com). What does this really mean, you may wonder? Well, a bottle of St. Emilion  that comes in at £10.49 at Tesco will cost you £4 in SuperU (€5.25) and at the other end of the basics spectrum, a petite boule loaf of bread will set you back 85 cents (65p), and this is proper bread from a boulangerie. So, (most of) the daily essentials covered for just £4.65! And with the European Central Bank about to start a program of quantitative easing, the Pound may yet yield more Euros in the months to come.

Cheap fuel costs

Everyone has noticed fuel costs coming down and here in rural France we’ve seen the price of a litre of diesel drop below €1. In France diesel is still about 30% cheaper than petrol and it’s now selling at around €1.05 a litre. That equates to 80p a litre and certainly makes the drive through France much cheaper.

Cheaper prices in the shops

French retailers are trying hard to persuade shoppers to buy and so now more than ever there are some great bargains to be had in the shops. It’s difficult to understand that so called ‘negative inflation’ can be bad (for the economy, at least) when shoppers can buy more for less…..

The first Charroux Literary Festival takes place in 2015

Charroux is based in the southern part of the Vienne region of the Poitou-Charentes. Attracting artists, writers, walkers and people wanting to enjoy the tranquil pleasures of this area, with its splendid Romanesque architecture in the undulating valley of the Charente river, Charroux is the perfect host for this inaugural literary festival that takes place in August.

20% off Brittany Ferries fares to France when you book one of our gîtes

We’re able to make the trip to stay with us here even cheaper through our association with Brittany Ferries and their Holiday France Direct subsidiary that means you can save 20% off your ferry crossing. A number of our recent guests over winter have been able to take advantage of this and pocket enough to pay the fuel to Vanzay and back to the ferry port!

With the case made for a holiday in France, why not make your base here in our gîtes, hire one of our classic Citroën DSs and spend a week or two exploring the area?