4 star Eco-Friendly Holiday Home in Mouliherne, Maine-et-Loire - Les Vieux Auberts Reviews

Great place to be
It is difficult not to use superlatives when writing about Simon and Jackie’s gîte and about them as wonderful hosts. From the warm welcome to the very cozy and spacious rooms, which are superbly maintained and equipped, to the kitchen, which lacks nothing that is otherwise quite often missed, such as decent cutlery and sharp knives for all needs. There was simply nothing that we would have missed. The gazebo and ‘our’ part of the garden with its beautiful old trees did the rest to make us feel very comfortable despite the rather mixed weather during our stay. Simon and Jackie’s gîte is a WYSIWYG thing. It’s certainly and intentionally not a substitute for a trip to the playa del ingles and wild party nights. But it is the right place if you want to eavesdrop on the conversations of tawny owls and barn owls at night, and witness the flying skills of barn swallows and house martins and the songs of orioles and wrens during the day. How nice it was to walk through the grass, damp from dew or rain, right after getting up with a cup of coffee or tea and listen to the dense forest awakening to a new day. How fascinating it was to hear even the rain approaching in the trees from the gazebo. Add to that the poetry of Emily Dickinson and Ted Hughes, or the nature writing of Robert Macfarlane along with a glass or two of the superb Loire wines. The absolute silence and seclusion of Les Vieux Auberts made us very quickly forget the hustle and bustle of everyday life and completely come down. Yet it is so centrally located that many of the major attractions of this part of the Loire Valley can be reached quickly and easily in less than an hour. And although we were unfortunately only able to spend a week there, it feels to us like double or triple that time in terms of recreational value. We have already strongly recommended this gîte to our friends and will be very happy to return.

Patrick H.