Manoir de la Vente de Rouville

I'd give this place a miss.

The garden seemed like a selling point in the photos, but most of it is on a slope and not suitable for children. The only level patch is part of the wellness area, which you can use only by booking and paying, something we hadn’t been clearly told. When our children wandered in by mistake, our son was sternly gestured at and told his father would have to pay. Later, his toys and soccer ball were taken away, so he couldn’t play on the lawn, which had only a few shrubs and no flowers. There were dog droppings around the garden too. At about 8:15 p.m., before it was even dark, a neighbor scolded the children for briefly playing outside and said he expected complete quiet on the weekend because he’d worked hard. We found that attitude hostile and unrealistic for a holiday rental with young kids. The pool also needs to be reserved and paid for, and children aren’t meant to use it. We only learned this after booking. The advertised jacuzzi wasn’t available at all. We also felt guests who spoke French fluently received noticeably warmer treatment than those who didn’t. In our experience, the owner later denied or misrepresented negative feedback publicly, including what happened when our children were playing. The place has potential for people looking for quiet, but it didn’t work for our family. The atmosphere felt distant rather than welcoming, and we can’t recommend it. Inside, the studio and apartment were functional and had the basic holiday-home amenities, but there were no wardrobes for clothes or large mirror for getting dressed. Cheap laminate flooring also took away from the authentic feel. The rustic house has character, though it needs paint, renovation, and better upkeep inside and out. A plastic showerhead broke while we were using it. It was fixed quickly, which we appreciated, but it pointed to poor maintenance. There’s a small fountain below the rooms that can be calming during the day, but it kept running at night and disturbed our son’s sleep in the studio.

At 9 p.m., after we arrived with a wedding to attend the next day, the owner told us to leave because bringing our four-month-old baby meant there would be a third person. My husband had only put the suitcase in the room and asked where the baby could sleep. We would have used the stroller or car seat, since the baby takes up almost no room, but the owner was rigid and seemed worried someone might come check on them. The welcome had already felt bad from the first discussion about masks and parking. Her husband refused to let us stay, mocking us, and she wanted to charge the full price as well. No one apologized or helped us find another solution. As we left, he said he’d have to disinfect everything again, though my husband had only rolled the suitcase around and touched nothing. Being thrown out like that was disgraceful. Some people really should change careers.

We spent just five hours at the gîte, had no breakfast, and took a shower. You can’t even change the temperature without paying extra, yet the “hostess” took €15 from our deposit for cleaning. The light fixtures were dusty. After such a dreadful welcome, that charge felt completely unfair. How do these people still call themselves hosts? Run for your lives!