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Host rating
100 %
Last replied
27 Feb 2023
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76
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Description
Steve and I (Jane) have been living in France for 20 years and have moved to our rural idyll. We have an old farm house, perfectly habitable but in need of some refurbishment; a derelict cottage in need of total renovation; a workshop fully refurbished and ready to go plus 1.4 hectares (about 4 acres) land, lakes and orchards requiring tlc.
Located in the Sunny Vendee we are just under and hour from La Rochelle, Les Sables d’Olonne, Nantes, Poitiers and surrounded by beautiful, typically French villages.
We tend to host Workawayers for 2 weeks in the first instance, as after a fortnight we need a bit of us time, it's not just Workawayers, we're the same with family and friends as well. We do however have friends nearby who run a smallholding and also host Workawayers, so if you wanted to be in the area for longer, check out their profile:-
Experience Farm Life in Rural France, search under Poitou Charente.
In exchange for 25 hours per week Monday to Friday or, if you prefer to help a longer day for 4 days 25 hours between 9:00 and 6:00 Monday to Thursday we will provide:-
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner with wine and/or beer with dinner plus tea and coffee with cakes and/or biscuits. We should also like to say that whilst our meat almost all either home produced, or obtained from friends with a similar ethos to ourselves i.e. home reared in a welfare friendly environment, we are meat eaters. As a consequence, although we do eat vegetarian meals once or twice a week, we are not able to cater for vegetarians or vegans.
Accommodation can be either in our guest bedroom, or in one of the eco lodges in the grounds depending on availability & season. The lodges (see photo) have a bedroom with a proper bed, a dining area (though you would still take your meals with us) with a fridge, kettle etc and a deck with comfy chairs. We also have 2 small bedrooms above the guests communal kitchen which we also use for our Workawayers when we have guests in both lodges or single Workawayers. There is a shower and toilet block by the house.
We would be happy to collect you from a local train station if required.
We would anticipate that most of the help would be outside to take advantage of that sunshine, retreating indoors if it gets too hot or decides to rain.
We have quite a lot of terracing which needs repairing/rebuilding and land to clear so help with:
Clearing woodland
Clearing vegetation
Preparing the vegetable garden
Tree felling and logging
General gardening
General building work
Housework and cooking – but only if you want to!
Obviously instruction will be given should you require it.Types of help and learning opportunities
GardeningDIY and building projectsAnimal CareHelp around the houseGeneral MaintenanceCultural exchange and learning opportunities
At the weekends we are often out and about visiting local attractions, beaches and fêtes, there are several of these which usually involve eating, drinking and dancing the most notable of which is on 14 July, Bastille Day. You would be most welcome to join us on these occasions.
We currently keep chickens for eggs and breed Marans chickens and rabbits for meat. We also keep bees and if you are interested and would like to help with bees or animals you would be very welcome. Various preserves will also be made throughout the year and helping with their preparation is also an option. I think it would be fair to say food is a passion with us, we produce our own sausages, salami, hams and bacon; we make cheese, brew beer and smoke our own fish and meats. Currently we have friends who keep free range pigs, sheep and goats from whom we obtain most of the rest of our meat. If you have an interest in learning these skills let us know and we’ll see what we can do.
One of our greatest pleasures is eating a plate of food that has been produced entirely by ourselves. Knowing everything that has gone into your food and that it has made very little impact on the planet is quite amazing. We try to live in a sustainable manner, that is, producing what we need with minimal impact on the environment.
We cannot say we are 100% there, but in our previous house we were 90% self-sufficient in fruit and veg and the main reason we moved is to enable us to produce our own meat, which we are just embarking so that's a start. We are always trying to find ways of reducing our carbon footprint, minimising waste and recycling what we can. Having said that, we don't believe in making life too hard, and feel that it is possible to be responsible whilst still enjoying life's little luxuries. So come and join us, have some fun and perhaps learn some new skills.Help
We have quite a lot of terracing which needs repairing/rebuilding and land to clear so help with:
Clearing woodland
Clearing vegetation
Preparing the vegetable garden
Tree felling and logging
General gardening
General building work
Housework and cooking – but only if you want to!
Obviously instruction will be given should you require it.Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: FluentAccommodation
Stay in the house or lodge depending on availabilty and season
What else ...
At the weekends we are often out and about visiting local attractions, beaches and fêtes, there are several of these which usually involve eating, drinking and dancing the most notable of which is on 14 July, Bastille Day. You would be most welcome to join us on these occasions.
We are no longer smokers but are happy to host smokers so long as they don't smoke in the house or lodges.A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
Maximum 5 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (38)
The house is situated in a very beautiful landscaped garden. I watered and fed the plants everyday. My main work is cleaning around the holiday chalets for the new season. We had regular… read more
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The house is situated in a very beautiful landscaped garden. I watered and fed the plants everyday. My main work is cleaning around the holiday chalets for the new season. We had regular… read more
From our first day of work everything was explained to us perfectly. No… read more
Whilst staying with Steve and Jane we tackled new tasks which we hadn't done before and always felt appreciated for anything we completed.
The meals were always delicious - something we looked forward to… read more
They welcomed us into their home and looked after us very well, the accommodation is nice and comfortable with your own separate toilet and shower.
They both have a wealth of knowledge and all the tools and equipment required to complete the tasks we were asked to do.
We helped in the garden, digging potatoes… read more
Thanks so much for… read more
They welcomed us into their home and looked after us so well.
They have a wealth of knowledge and are well equipped with tools to complete any task they offer up.
It was a pleasure to work for them and we only wish we could have done more as we really felt we got the best end of the deal.
They are both… read more
I came to get a bit of practical experience with stone-wall building and even though I found it very difficult Steven was very patient with me and let me try it out. I also made… read more
They were our first Workaway and they made the beginning of our long trip just wonderful, all expectations were surpassed and… read more
The work was varied, from pointing a wall with limestone mortar to weeding to helping fell and log trees. Steve showed me how to use a chain saw!
I helped Jane with her veg garden -weeding, digging and harvesting! I also did a little work in the green… read more
Jane and Steve are kind, generous, knowledgeable and skilled. If you're interested in running a small holding, learning how to preserve garden produce, acquiring some building skills or thinking of relocating to France, I… read more
Arriving at Steve and Janes was like falling headfirst into a fairytale. Their property was one of the most beautiful sites I've laid my eyes on. Gorgeous ponds filled with adorable ducklings, overflowing veg patch, countless fruit trees, bees, rabbits, homebrewed beer and aperitifs, amazing star-gazing, it's a little… read more
This was my second time staying at Steve and Jane’s (first time being the previous May). Although that alone should be an indication of how great of a workaway it is there, I will gladly go into detail. The property is beautiful and spacious, and always has a varied amount of tasks to do. I did everything from beekeeping, cleaning,… read more
Connor and i had a great 3 weeks with Steve and Jane in the summer of 2013. The food was great ! something I'm sure we both certainly enjoyed. We built a small bridge and worked with Steve in tiling the roof of one of the out buildings. A truly great experience, i do hope we may cross… read more
with Steve and Jane are. The second is how amazing the food is! Steve
and Jane take great pride in the meals they serve and it really shows.
Honestly the best meals we have had so far! The work is varied and
challenging so always keeps you busy. We were both left… read more
I stayed in one of the Eco lodges and really liked it- private, clean, well equipped and near the… read more
Steve and Jane are very interesting people who shared their… read more