Les Courtils

We were made to feel our children weren’t welcome. The host kept looking down on them as they played in the garden, even though they were behaving very well. In the morning, the table was set for five but not for the children sleeping in baby beds in the rooms we’d booked. We asked for chocolate milk for them, but they weren’t given cups. The host seemed irritated by the little ones. I wouldn’t recommend staying here with children.

We stayed with adults, and the owner had made a delicious apricot tart. The garden was lovely and we really liked the place and its decor. My one small regret: I’d have preferred loose-leaf tea to the paper bags so beautifully designed by Angers-based artist Richard Rack. 😅

The garden is especially pleasant in the sunshine, and the setting is charming. We were greeted so warmly and had a delicious breakfast. A lovely bed and breakfast, highly recommended!

The setting is exceptional and the decor lovely, but the welcome didn’t feel like the kind I value in our guesthouses and campsites, where people are accepted with their quirks and differences. I was there for work and couldn’t arrive after 7:30 pm. It was raining and stormy, and my car was badly parked, but the owner still sent me back out to reverse in the dark and park beside the house because the main house was theirs. The guest rooms are in a former barn converted into five rooms. There were no lights on when I got there, so I struggled to find my way around. My host didn’t seem concerned. I’d brought an Italian coffee maker and my own coffee, and asked if she could put it on the stove so I could take some to work. It’s my little quirk that helps me feel at home when I travel. She flatly refused. After hearing that I had a lot of luggage, I was told not to put my computer on the room’s piece of furniture, which I’d understood was for guests, or on the table beside it. Apparently that was private space, though I had to guess. The bill was lower than I expected, which was the one good thing about the night. Maybe it would be fine if you’re a typical French traveler, but I won’t return. I’d also rather spare my wife another fright. From her perspective, she must have thought I was weird, and she may well be right :-)