In the heart of the Loire Valley, ten minutes from the fortress city of Chinon and the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud, located in a tranquil valley with spectacular views, this just renovated, 18th Century stone barn is new to the rental market as of April, 2011. Many of the grand Chateaux of the Loire Valley: Villandry, Chenonceau, Usse, Azay-le-Rideau and Saumur are easy half-day trips. For cycling enthusiasts, we are less than a kilometre from the main bike route through the Loire Valley; and for food and wine enthusiasts, the Loire Valley, is known as the 'garden' of France. We are surrounded by the vineyards of Chinon, Bourgueil and Saumur which produce some of France's finest wines and best values. From its famous chèvre, the mushrooms of the troglodyte caves of Saumur, to the white asparagus grown in sandy Loire soil, the region offers a rich bounty. Your hosts, former restaurant owners from San Francisco, are available to cater meals and conduct local food and wine tours.

The Loire Valley, also known as the 'Garden of France” has been blessed by temperate weather and good soil. Here, France’s royalty built a thousand chateaux, some of the world's finest, and a short distance from Paris. In 2000, UNESCO added the central part of the Loire River valley to its list of World Heritage Sites. In choosing this area that includes the French départements of Loiret, Loir-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire, and Maine-et-Loire, the committee said that the Loire Valley is: 'an exceptional cultural landscape, of great beauty, comprised of historic cities and villages, great architectural monuments - the Châteaux - and lands that have been cultivated and shaped by centuries of interaction between local populations and their physical environment, in particular the Loire itself.' A visitor to the Loire Valley will find a region of France still mostly unspoiled by over-population or current fad. Fortunately, Peter Mayle wrote 'A Year in Provence' not 'A Year in the Loire.'