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Sleeps 4 in 2 bedrooms plus infants |
 | Chateau de Gurat has two securely enclosed swimming pools, a 12m x 6m for adults and a 4m x3m paddling pool. Both are heated and open from mid April to end September. |
 | Massages and facials are offered by an English speaking therapist. |
 | Play barn has lots of toys and books available |
 | A lovely large sandpit close-by the gites acts as a social centre for babies and toddlers. Older children and parents enjoy the wooden climbing frame, 14ft trampoline (with safety enclosure, swings (baby and standard), boules, giant Connect 4, giant Jenga, archery, 5-a-side football pitch & mountain bikes (for hire). |
 | There are some Pigmy goats, rabbits, chickens, guinea pigs, cats for the children to admire. |
 | Massages and facials are offered by an English speaking therapist. |
 | The bergerie or play barn is the hub of our social activities, and an ideal place to retreat from the mid-day sun. Inside, there's table tennis, table football,pinball, a video & book library, lots of jigsaws & children's games. The mezzanine is set out as a kids "chill-out zone" where they can watch videos or for the younger ones - lots of Playmobil. In addition, a small selection of books and toys is placed in each gite. |
 | A wide selection of home-cooked meals, all made by Nicki using fresh local ingredients is available any night, delivered to the gite, ready to pop into the oven. Ideal for arrival night. Prices from 6-9 Euros per meal. |
 | Wifi available |
 | Aubeterre has a sandy river beach with grassed play area, cafe and restaurant. St Aulaye the same, but with water slides too! |
 | Equipment supplied includes: cots (with linen), potties, high chairs, changing mats, bed guards, stair gates, bath toys, baby monitors (with walk-about handset), bouncy chairs, microwaves, sterilisers, booster seats, hand blenders and night lights, plus plastic plates, cups and cutlery |
 | two cots and highchairs can be provided |
 | Trusted, ex-pat British babysitting can be arranged on request. |
 | A wide selection of home-cooked meals, all made by Nicki using fresh local ingredients is available any night, delivered to the gite, ready to pop into the oven. Ideal for arrival night. Prices from 6-9 Euros per meal. |
 | private terrace overlooking communal courtyard |
Arrivals and Departures:
Check-in time: 16:00
Check-out time: 10:00
Payment:
Reservation Deposit: 25%
Balance: 70 days prior to arrival
Capacity:
Sleeps: 4 + Cot sleeping infants
A quick flick through the guestbook at Gurat finds that, along with words like "fantastic", "wonderful" and "beautiful" seemingly on every line, names appear to be repeated time after time too. People return here like boomerangs and it's easy to see why. Parents, babies, toddlers, older children... everyone is well looked after here. From the huge sandpit, large heated paddling pool and play barn for little ones, to the tasty meal deliveries, pre-bookable babysitting, massages, additional housekeeping and sociable wine-tasting evenings for parents. Plus, the thoughtful list of nursery equipment. A holiday that is relaxing and enjoyable for everyone is pretty much a given here.
Let's not forget the scenery... Set in 14 lovely acres of woodland and meadows and on the edge of the pretty village of Gurat and just a few minutes drive from Aubeterre, officially listed amongst France's most beautiful villages, the six pretty gites, picturesque chateau are both wonderfully picturesque and convenient. They date back to the 15th century and sleep from 2 to 8 (plus cots) separately, or up to 40 as a whole. Inside, the interiors are a pretty blend exposed honey-coloured stone walls, original wooden beamed ceilings, tiled floors and simple furnishings, plus luxurious Egyptian cotton bed linen. All have furnished and secluded patios - perfect for enjoying long summer evenings.
Two-bedroom (double & twin) Jardin de Rose is a romantic and secluded cotatge set in its own walled garden and covered in climbing roses. The ground floor has a spacious open-plan design with pretty exposed stone walls, a comfortable seating area, dining table and country-style kitchen. Upstairs there's a double and a twin bedroom. Outside, the walled garden houses a dining table with chairs, parasol and BBQ. An archway leads to the communal courtyard with its huge toddler sand pit, play barn/games room and safely fences swimming pool, with separate toddler section.
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Chateau de Guarat is situated on the edge of the tranquil little village of Gurat which boasts a 10th Century Gallo-Roman church, 2 bars, post office and petrol station. Just a few minutes away by car are Villebois-Lavalette with its magnificent hilltop fortified chateau, and Aubeterre-sur-Dronne, officially one of "les plus beaux villages de France". Don't miss a visit to Villebois' market (Saturdays) and sample a dish of fresh oysters with a bottle of Muscadet under the ancient covered market square.
Pretty Aubterre's many artist's studios, puppet theatre and a museum of butterflies (all 12,000 of them!) are charming. It has a lively village square - perfect for people watching with a coffee or glass of wine in hand, plus a fascinating monolithic (subterranean) church. But, for many, the sandy river beach is Aubterre's main attraction in summer. It offers safe swimming, tennis, snacks and canoe hire The village has several excellent restaurants that are well worth booking a night or two's babysitting for.
For a true French gastronmique experience a visit to the Hostellerie-du-Perigord is a must - Chef/Owner Fabrice Morel is well-regarded for pushing the boundaries of French cuisine. Another popular restaurant in Aubeterre's market square is Paseo del Sol, formerly owned and run by "EastEnders" star Sid Owen, who earned a surprisingly good reputation for excellent tapas.
Getting There: Chateau de Gurat is approx. 90mins drive from the airports at Limoges, Bergerac, Poitiers and Bordeaux. Angouleme is the nearest airport at just 20mins drive away. It is served by Ryanair from Stansted. The nearest ferry port is St. Malo at approx. 5hrs 45mins drive away.
Past Guest Ratings: * (6 guests)
*Rating collated since Feb '10.
All verified as genuine BFB guests who experienced the accommodation with young children.
Awards:
Fabulous hospitality from David & Nicky, nothing is too much trouble. The meals ...
Fabulous hospitality from David & Nicky, nothing is too much trouble. The meals delivered to our gite each evening were wonderful and there was no need to cook all week - bliss. Perfect for our one-year-old in the bergerie playing with the many toys. A great week!
Overall Experience Rating: 100%
Fantastic holiday. Toddler heaven which equals adult happiness! David and Nikki ...
Fantastic holiday. Toddler heaven which equals adult happiness! David and Nikki were very friendly and helpful.
Overall Experience Rating: 100%
David and Nicki are lovely and excellent hosts. Gurat was toddler nirvana and o...
David and Nicki are lovely and excellent hosts. Gurat was toddler nirvana and our girls loved the trampoline, pool and feeding the goats and sheep. Its a really sleepy part of France, which makes it a very relaxing place to explore with toddlers in tow. Also what amazing weather for May!
Overall Experience Rating: 100%
Perfect break for families with kids looking for a relaxing holiday....
Perfect break for families with kids looking for a relaxing holiday.
Overall Experience Rating: 100%
We absolutely loved Chateau de Gurat. It ticked every box for our 2.5 yr old - t...
We absolutely loved Chateau de Gurat. It ticked every box for our 2.5 yr old - toddler pool, indoor fully-equipped play barn, sandpit, trampoline, swings, slide, hamsters, other children to play with - and for us - lovely hosts (Nicki & David), nice pool, great gite and other like-minded souls who wanted their kids to enjoy themselves but also wanted to spend time with new friends and drink wine and eat nice food. I can't recommend it highly enough and can't wait to go back. The most relaxing holiday we've had since becoming parents.Overall Experience- Outstanding!
Perfect break for families with kids looking for a relaxing holiday. Overall Exp...
Perfect break for families with kids looking for a relaxing holiday. Overall Experience: Outstanding!
We have been to Chateau de Gurat twice and can recommend it without any hesitati...
We have been to Chateau de Gurat twice and can recommend it without any hesitation. It's the pefect family holiday. There is everything kids and adults could want for. The accomodation is superb and the owners so welcoming and helpful.
"Quite simply, it was the most successful family holiday we've had!" Mother and ...
"Quite simply, it was the most successful family holiday we've had!" Mother and Baby Magazine 2008
I have just got home from our stay at Chateau de Gurat and I have to say that it...
I have just got home from our stay at Chateau de Gurat and I have to say that it caters amazingly well for the little tots. I have just put my 2 to bed, and my little girl(2.5yo) is still talking excitedly about the place. I really didn't expect it to live up to the reviews, but it did, and in every way.
I highly recommend Chateau de Gurat, it was perfect for us and our 2 year old. T...
I highly recommend Chateau de Gurat, it was perfect for us and our 2 year old. They had everything she needed to make our stay a happy one. I would also highly recommend getting some of their evening meals, as they were delicious. We will definitely be returning.
This is a brilliant place to bring pre-school children: there's so much to enter...
This is a brilliant place to bring pre-school children: there's so much to entertain them. Our 1-year-old loved the rabbits and chickens, he spent hours in the sandpit, he enjoyed the paddling pool along with the Aquaplay toys (actually Dad enjoyed these more!). And when it got too hot outside, the cool playbarn was perfect. And for the adults, the wine-tasting evening was a great chance to meet the other guests. David and Nicki are very friendly and helpful hosts, and they made us feel most welcome
We would have no hesitation in recommending Chateau Gurat for a fabulous, relaxi...
We would have no hesitation in recommending Chateau Gurat for a fabulous, relaxing French holiday. Having just spent one week there with a 1, 3, 15 and 17 yr old we can say that all were kept amused and had a great time, particularly the youngest who delighted in the huge sandpit, indoor playroom (Bergerie) with toys and small pool. We loved the relaxed atmosphere and found David and Nicki to be perfect hosts. We have already reserved for next year!
We had a fabulous holiday, our children (aged 4 & 2) also had the best time. My...
We had a fabulous holiday, our children (aged 4 & 2) also had the best time. My eldest son experienced the holiday blues for the first time as we were packing to leave, as he didn't want to come home. A very peaceful location with beautiful views and a relaxing atmosphere, we were lucky that our fellow guests were also friendly and had children of similar ages. The fact there are only a handful of gites adds to the charm, and gives you confidence to allow the children some freedom to run about the place.
We'd just like to say that we didn't think we'd be able to have a relaxing an...
We'd just like to say that we didn't think we'd be able to have a
relaxing and restorative holiday with 18 month twins in tow, but 2 weeks
at Chateau de Gurat proved us wrong. All 4 of us had a fantastic, relaxing
and fun holiday. Thank you Gurat for your hospitality and BFB for
suggesting this magical place!
Great place, hosts and venue. Would recommend it to any family....
Great place, hosts and venue. Would recommend it to any family.
Owner Profile
We moved to the Chateau in July 2004, since then we have been working none-stop to create a special holiday destination for adults and little ones alike. We love the relaxed French lifestyle, the amazing fresh local produce (truffles, fois gras and sublime Bordeaux!), and of course, the weather!
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Life at the chateau is busy, busy, busy for little ones. From swimming in their own little paddling pool, visiting the chickens & goats, feeding the guinea pigs, digging in the huge sand pit, swing on the swings, sliding on the slide, jumping on the trampoline or just chilling in the play barn with a good book or video - it's none-stop. Until they go to bed at night, shattered and ready to do it all again tomorrow:)
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