Useful Information

Travel
When planning your trip to La Petite Gravelle bear in mind that Charente Maritime is about half-way down the west coast of France. This makes it significantly closer to the mid-Channel ports such as Le Havre, Caen, Cherbourg and St Malo than the shorter crossings which arrive at Calais, or the Channel Tunnel.
Ferry departures from Newhaven, Portsmouth, Poole, Weymouth or even Plymouth (to Roscoff) may be more economical or offer the best timings. We recommend you consider the most convenient timings, the cost of the crossing, your fuel costs in the UK, fuel costs in France and Péage tolls in France. For example our family lives in the West Country and we sometimes travel from St Malo to Poole or Weymouth on the Condor fast ferry with trans-shipment in the Channel Islands - not the most obvious route at first glance!
Some routes/operators are kinder than others for larger or taller vehicles such as 4x4s and motorhomes so it is often worth checking on-line quotes.

Approximate driving times (add fuel, food and rest stops)
Calais to La Petite Gravelle:        7 hr (740km - Péage tolls €55.40)
Pros - easy motorway access to UK ports/tunnel, frequent crossing. Cons - furthest distance, most tolls in France
Le Havre to La Petite Gravelle:    5 hr (560km - Péage tolls €52.90, less via Caen/Rennes/Nantes)
Pros - easy access to Portsmouth, low fares on LD Lines. Cons - not the easisest of access to Newhaven for LD Lines
Cherbourg to La Petite Gravelle:  6 hr (568km - Péage tolls €11.50)
advantages - easy motorway access to Poole/Portsmouth, frequent crossings. Cons - extra travelling in France
St Malo to La Petite Gravelle:     4 hr 15m (407km - Péage tolls €11.50)
Pros - shortest time and least distance in France. Cons - times can be less convenient on Condor, costly on Brittany Ferries
Roscoff to La Petite Gravelle:     6 hr (545km - Péage tolls €11.50)
departs Plymouth, worth considering if you live in the West Country

Tolls from Cherbourg, St Malo and Roscoff are identical as the routes use free
Autoroute-standard roads as far as Nantes

About-France.com has a very useful list of cross-Channel ferry companies HERE
but does not give direct links for LD Lines  (Portsmouth/Newhaven to Le Havre/Caen)
or Condor Ferries (Weymouth/Poole to St Malo)

Driving
Driving in France is a much more relaxing affair than in the UK, as our traffic levels are a small fraction of those in England.
Outside of the big cities only on the three 'Black Saturdays' in July and August (when most of France heads for or returns from the coast) will you find significant jams, and then usually briefly and only on the autoroutes and main trunk roads. On most roads around La Gravelle you will normally only see a handful of vehicles.
Autoroutes are usually quiet and stress-free but are becoming more expensive. They are recomended for your to-and-from journeys, but our 'RN' and 'D' roads will be just as effective during your stay and will give you a better flavour of the area.
About France.com is very informative on motoring matters and
also provides current fuel costs etc.

Touring Motorcyclists
Touring motorcyclists are most welcome and although we are in a very crime free area of a largely low crime country your bike will stay in a locked barn adjacent to the gite - next to our BMW R1150R We well remember our touring days and will be able to accommodate most of your needs. We have essential tools and maintenance facilities and know some of the best local roads. Please call or email if you have any questions.

Parking and access
Car parking is on a very large grassy area outside the Gite, with very straightforward access whatever the size or type of vehicle. We do not specifically cater for Motorhomes but have no problems whatsoever with access and parking of our own 'Camping Car'.  Please call or email if you have any questions.

Free WiFi
There is free WiFi throughout the Gite on a secure network. The network key is included in the Information Folder awaiting you on arrival.
If you have Skype accounts you can then phone home free!

Please note that although our internet connection is normally quite acceptable we are some way from the exchange and our connection can, and does, fail occassionally.
We cannot therefore guarantee 100% connectivity.

Elecricity
All electricity is included in the rental for La Petite Gravelle - except for Winter Lets (1 October 2011 to March 2012) when it is metered seperately and charged at cost. See below for Winter let heating arrangements.
As all of our wiring is to French 'normes' all of our outlets are for French (and universal European) plugs. The French mains supply is the same as the UK and all English equipment will function normally. US equipment however uses a different voltage and may need a special converter.
Naturally all of our supplied equipment (kettle, toaster, hair drier etc) has suitable French plugs but we also provide a six-outlet 'plugboard' for UK equipment which is suitable for your camera, laptop, phone chargers etc. Unless you have very specialised needs French/English adaptors are unlikely to be needed.

Heating
Electric heaters are provided on the ground and first floors but are unlikely to be needed during most Spring, Summer and Autumn season holidays (although the cost is included if needed).
For Winter lets (1 October 2011 to March 2012) electricity is metered and charged at cost but we provide a starter pack of oak logs, kindling, firelighters and matches for the log-burning stove. Further supplies are readily available at local supermarkets. The Gite is very snug on a winter's evening with the log-burner ablaze!

What's happening in Charente Maritime?
Try this link for forthcoming events in Poitou Charente.

Markets
There is usually a market somewhere near...! There is a list HERE - the listing is by 'departement', La Petite Gravelle is in Charente Maritime (Departement 17), but not too far from the western edge of Charente (16) and the southern part of 'Deux-Sevres (79)

Weather
It is of course impossible to forecast day-to-day weather accurately, but it is possible to make some sweeping generalisations.
Charente Maritime is reputed to be the second sunniest part of France, second only to a small part of the French Mediterranean coast and this is the overwhelming sensation here. We are far enough south that there is real heat in the sun at any time of the year.
In the early part of the year we consider the weather to be about 6 weeks ahead of the UK. March is a little unpredictable. It can be very warm on some days although a cold, but often sunny, spell is quite possible as is a short wet spell to start the crop growth. Spring is usually really here by April with sunny days and mild temperatures and by May there is real heat in the sun and the weather is fairly settled. By June we expect the days to be like an English July - temperatures in the mid-20s, plenty of sunshine and the odd rainy day. Normally July and August are very hot and sunny with temperatures in the high 20s and frequently in the low to mid 30s. The sunflowers are in bloom and rainy days are very rare statistically - most of our meagre summer rainfall is in the form of short-lived thunderstorms. The evenings are usually quite balmy, and as we are an hour ahead of UK time we have an additional hour of daylight to enjoy them.
We think of September as part of Summer rather than Autumn. The first half of the month is often like August but just a shade cooler, although temperatures in the 30s are not uncommon in the first two weeks and sometimes remain there for the great classic car racing at nearby Angouleme during the third weekend.
By October Autumn has usually arrived - a bit like a very nice English September - and the leaves have turned into a spectacular display of red and gold. It can still be very warm (we have been to the beach in October) but obviously not so reliably.
Charentaise winters are quite varied, some quite mild days are interspersed with cold snaps which give the sharp frosts the vineyards need. Temperatures change rapidly - a cold snap with temperatures around zero giving way to a sunny 13 degrees in a day or so... but La Petite Gravelle has a very effective log-burning stove to keep you snug whatever the weather!

Our Neighbourhood
La Gravelle is a tiny, traditional French hamlet with a population of less than 20 people who make up a friendly, helpful community which has welcomed us and our guests with open arms. La Petite Gravelle is not part of a Gite 'complex' and is, in fact, the only Gite in the immediate area.

As far as anyone knows most of the buildings in the hamlet date from the early 1700s, although one is believed to date from the end of the 1600s and another is thought to be a 'late' addition in the 1800s. There are a couple of the usual 'romantic ruins' but the hamlet is in the hands of owners who care about its history, tradition and appearance and who are working hard to preserve it.

We have not been able to establish the origin of the name with any certainty. It could refer to the gravelly crossing of the River Nie a few yards from the Gite, which was an 'abrevoir' or cattle watering point, or it could refer to the 'gravelle' which is a precipitate during the wine-making process. Investigations continue...

The area is very rural and agricultural and tractors seem as common as cars. The traditional Sunflower ('tournesol') crop floods the countryside with vivid yellow flowers in the height of the summer and there are vineyards wherever you look, but impressive fields of tall, golden waving maize, almost flourescent yellow oilseed rape and occasional vivid blue flax add to the colour palette There is less livestock farming than before - with several abandoned communal 'laiteries' bearing witness to the shift to arable farming - but you will still encounter well-cared-for vaches providing Charentaise milk.

Our hamlet is too small to support its own cafe/bar but you'll find a good choice at St Jean d'Angély, Matha and Aulnay with a selection of restaurants ranging from traditional French, through excellent Breton Crepes to Pizzas and Chinese. The nearby village of Paillé has a small bar and a cafe popular with the locals. All are 10-15 minutes away, but don't forget that 10 minutes driving in France is nothing like the UK - on a busy day you'll see, maybe, two cars while driving from Paillé or Aulnay to the Gite.
 
 
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