gîte en sud Ardèche

The garden and covered terrace with its built-in barbecue were a real pleasure, and we often had breakfast outside. The apartment is simple but well equipped: a big fridge with a generous freezer, stove and oven, microwave, coffee maker, towels, and bedding. There’s one bedroom with a double bed and a single, plus a sofa bed in the living room. We stored our shoes in the entryway. We only watched the French TV channels once, and brought a laptop for films. Wi-Fi was about 50 Mbps, fast enough for that. We first stayed with Alain for a week in March while motorcycling and hiking in the Ardèche, then booked the apartment again for three weeks in September. The key handover went smoothly both times. Alain is friendly and lives upstairs, but we had peace and quiet and rarely saw or heard him. He speaks a little English as well as French, and we got by fine with our limited French. We parked the motorcycles and trailer in the courtyard, and our car in a small dead-end lane outside. Alain offered us his garage, though we didn't use it. The town center is a few minutes away on foot, and a large Super U with a gas station is on the edge of Ruoms. Ruoms is a very central base for exploring the Ardèche region. His four dogs are really friendly and easy-going. They welcomed us like family in March, and recognized and greeted us warmly when we came back in September. They kept a close watch on the property, so we weren't worried about the motorcycles. We’ll stay with Alain again in 2025 and are already looking forward to it!

The walk around the Cirque de Gens is magnificent. We got a friendly welcome and plenty of useful advice for exploring the region. An excellent place to stay.