anyhow will still like to visit it.
Thought that you were having a âsenior momentâ there Harry 
Anyway as with lots of things here and elsewhere in France, well worth the visit if you get the chance !
Thatâs about 4 hours away from meâŠmy nearest chateaux is in JosselinâŠwhen my kids came to visit we went on a guided tourâŠwe would have visited the doll museum too but my daughter is freaked out by dolls and weâve not done that yetâŠHereâs me and my second eldest at the base of Josselin Castle on the footpath by the canalâŠwith thanks to an English tourist who offered to take a photoâŠx 
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gutted as im driving up to cherbourg soon and was planning to visit on ym return. too far out for that though
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The very lovely 14th century Chateau de Bonnu , privately owned and not far from me, open for conducted visits 3 days a year, booked well in advance !
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This is the website of our nearestâŠthe guided tour we went on was conducted in English but there are many other parties and other nationalities catered forâŠyou can only visit the ground floor as the family who own it occupy the other floorsâŠx
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Looks lovely Helen 
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3 days a yearâŠ??? Imagine thatâŠ! I think our nearest tries to remain open out of season tooâŠIâve not tried to visit out of season as have only been there when my kids visit and their visits are limited by Ryanair flights from East Midlands to Dinard stopping around the end of September first week in OctoberâŠno Sunday flights this year eitherâŠdonât know why they would cancel Sunday flightsâŠ??? AnywayâŠone of my daughters has just booked her flight along with her new boyfriend who I havenât met yetâŠcounting down the daysâŠ! x
Love the ink 
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Thankyou⊠weâve all got inkâŠmy daughter in this photo has a back pieceâŠthe tree of lifeâŠmagpiesâŠrainbows and a memorial to the baby she was carrying when this photo was taken and was stillborn at 18 weeksâŠmy son has both arms inked so far one black and shade and the other colourâŠheâs now contemplating what he wants on his back and chestâŠmy eldest has ink on her backâŠone thigh and one upper armâŠwe are all a work in progressâŠx
Hello Stella,
Advice:
- for a b&b to give a living wage it needs to be within 45 minutes drive max of a major tourist site or two. Get a map, find the sites, draw 45min circles, and the intersection of most will give you your ideal b&b location.
- go to booking dot com and reserve a couple of nights at b&bs in your ideal location. You will get detailed local advice and an idea of standards and rates⊠and probably some leads for properties.
- b&b is a business which relies on french custom, (if you are going for year round earnings) if you canât deliver what the french want, theyâll hammer you in the âreviewsâ, so get yourself prepared very very well (language, cuisine, and habits) know your clientele, know how to price the services you are offering.
- If possible, try and find a b&b which will train you. In summer many b&bs could do with a free pair of hands, and youâll learn more than you could imagine.
- enjoy the ride - it will be bumpy at times - making friends will help enormously and help you avoid the inevitible winter isolation syndrome.
Regards
Richard
Regarding estate agent sites⊠Ignore those sites. Go to the village, integrate yourself, and proposals (better value proposals usually) will come flying in.
Donât look in at the beginning of summer when everyone is expecting to sell at high prices to Parisians and foreigners, wait until the end of the season, when owners start becoming more âflexibleâ.
Hi Richard,
Thank you for your tips on running a b&b and buying a property. Very useful information, much appreciated!
It will probably be the end of summer by the time we are likely to be sold, hopefully sooner fingers crossed! We will need to look at short rental property whilst we look for our ideal home .
Do you live in the area? Or run a b&b?
Regards sightseeing, we havenât done much of that, apart from the Dordogne river, and driving around to get a feel for the area. We ahe aware Dordogne is a big attraction for tourists, but not f other areas. Will need to do some research then plot map as you suggest
Hi Stella
I see you have had hundeds of helpful comments. We lived in South Norfolk for over 40 years before moving to the Hautes-Pyrénées in 2014. Our daughter lives just outside Bungay in Earsham. She speaks excellent French having lived and worked here in the past, so if you wanted someone local to practice your French with she might well be willing to help. Send me an email jonathanbarclay@free.fr if you would like to be put in touch.
Hi Stella, we are living in the Uk just outside Bungay in Mettingham and signed and got keys for our holiday home in Dept 65 Hautes Pyrenees near Tarbes last week. Over again end of this month. Canât wait!!
Hi Jonathan,
Yes everybodyâs so helpful, including you! Thats lovely, if you daughter doesnt mind. We live literally across the Fen from Earsham and have lovely views of the church! I will be in touch by email. Thank you, kind regards
Hi Natalie, wow, so close! You must be thrilled to bits! Do you fancy meeting up for a coffee to share your experiences? I see Mettingham has a cute looking coffee shop
Hello Stella,
Well - I cant agree more with the plan. We bought a house about 10 years ago, in the countryside near Saint Clar and Lectoure. We wanted the sun AND the airport not so far away. I couldnât help thinking that if you wanted a good house for a gite AND a garden etc - when you come over look at our house. It has fab views and a pool plus a pigonnier. Here is a link for some photos:
We put it on the market about a month ago at 398,000 Euros, but without agent fees, we would be better able to negotiate. Anyway - just let me know if you would like to look at it. We have moved to a wonderful nearby town, so we are still in the area and loving it. I have a friend staying at the house in order to show it for me. My husband is now retired and we are here nearly all the time. Our children have left home as well, and we have loved the gardening at the big house but have wanted to go travelling now. The weather has been very easy to live with - I love it. Seasons but with a short sharp shock of a winter.
Let me know if you want to see the house sometime.
All the best with your move and the area you have chosen looks perfect and look at the âGersâ its also a wonderful part of France with many lovely villages/towns to choose from. For us, proximity to the Toulouse airport and for guests coming, the wonderful Lectoure, Agen and Auch Fleurance area has been delightful.
Here is the area link.
Alex