Peter Friend, joint owner of the award winning B&B La Villa Mazamet in the Tarn shares his top tips. The villa has been named France’s top luxurious B&B for several years and, says Peter, there are lots of things you can do to make your own B&B have a better chance of success… Location Location […]
If you could start a new life in France, where would you go and what would you do? Out of the 4 million Brits currently living abroad, around 150,000 live in France. While the majority are over 55, according to an HSBC report, France is rated third in the world for families, partly because school […]
Bijou and beautiful in Brittany This pretty little stone house is situated in Morbihan, Brittany. This is a popular investment area and a thriving tourist destination with its warm climate and sandy beaches. The terraced cottage hides a secret – there’s a secluded fairy tale turret. Yes, it needs renovating but there is water and […]
My French House estate agents in France have been helping people to find their ideal home in France since 2014. The company was founded by Patrick Joseph who wanted to create the sort of agency that he himself would want to deal with. Passionate about French property, culture and lifestyle, having spent half his life […]
It’s not all about the house, when you’re looking for a vineyard property, the vines take centre stage… Vineyard properties in France Many of us have a romantic notion of owning some vines so we can produce our own wine to bottle and share with friends and family. It’s a trend that has grown internationally […]
Keeping horses in France is a popular past time. A hectare of land is enough for one horse, with good management, two horses, so the opportunities for home, land and potential stables, often converting existing outbuildings, are plentiful. Looking for properties suitable for keeping horses in France The cost of agricultural land averages around […]
With land prices currently very attractive in France, a steady flow of UK farmers are heading to France to expand their holdings. Whilst northern France is best for cereal growing, Brittany is prime for pigs. Poitou-Charentes offers huge tracts of maize and sunflowers, whereas the Limousin is famous for its attractive rolling cattle and sheep […]
Joanna Leggett, director of marketing and public relations at Leggett Immobillier explains the best ways to integrate into French life, beginning with the importance of learning the language and adapting to the culture. Every now and again, as I travel through France, I have to stop and pinch myself. I am actually living my dream! […]
In a referendum on 23rd June 2016 the UK electorate voted to leave the European Union and the world looked on to see what the political and economic impact would be. Though still in the “negotiation” phase, officially the UK will leave the EU on 29th March 2019. However, a transition period has been put in […]
Four locations are particularly coveted on the Riviera: Valbonne, Cannes, Saint-Tropez and Villefranche-sur-Mer. The perfect location for a holiday home on the French Riviera Valbonne, Cannes, Saint Tropez and Villefranche-sur-Mer are four of the Riviera’s most desirable locations. Each has its own distinct personality, as well as offering stable investment opportunities for international buyers. What […]
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I live part of the year in Provence and one day I was reading Le Monde and a headline about a “sexy politician” caught my eye. “Well, those are two words you don’t see together very often,” I thought. So I read the article and found out that there had been a poll asking French […]
It was lunchtime in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés area of Paris, and I was ravenous looking for a place to eat away from the usual tourist traps. I turned down a quiet street and saw the most unassuming bistro. In fact, I wouldn’t usually have considered going in but I decided to take a chance. As soon […]
Catharism has been described as “the most successful heresy in history”. In Languedoc, “Pays Cathare” signs dot the countryside. One cannot drive far in any direction without coming upon the ruins of a Cathar fortress. Who were the Cathars? “Cathar” is allegedly derived from the Greek word, katharos, meaning “pure”. The Cathars were also known […]
The people of Provence have been raising sheep for centuries. You see flocks of them all over the countryside, grazing under the watchful eye of shepherds. But Provencal summers are scorching hot and sheep have heavy wool coats so they’re moved to cooler pastures. The transhumance in Provence The answer to dealing with the heat, […]
There have been many famous families in history. Take the Curies, for example: Marie Curie won two Nobel Prizes and her husband, daughter and grandson each won one. Quite the talented family! And then there are the Wright brothers and the Brontë sisters. And let’s not forget those comic masters, the Marx brothers. But imagine […]
“They are NOT babies, they are chickens” remonstrated my French neighbour Jean-Claude. He had come to inspect the eight point of lay hens and two “babies” with which I had returned from the local street market. “I’m going to call that scrawny baby one Eaglet” I said “Non, non, non” came the emphatic response “You […]
“When I move to France I only want to have French friends”. This was a line in an email I received from a couple of Brits. They wanted advice on where to move to in France and this was one of their criteria. They also wanted to be near a town that has a market, […]
June 2005 was a difficult month for Peter Friend and his partner Mark. After a change of jobs, relocation and redundancy they decided they didn’t want the sort of stressful lives they were leading in marketing and business development for much longer. Considering their skills, passion for travel, good food and wine, setting up their […]