Do you fancy a very quiet French countryside holidays but with the city chic design of East London ?

Then I recommend Chateau de la Couronne between Charentes and Périgord,  near Angoulême where we stayed a couple of years ago.  The hotel had opened the year before and the owners were really welcoming and nice to us. I see from Tripadvisor that reviews are still very good.

Live the rockn’roll life in a French chateau

Nicky and Mark, the British owners have restored and decorated this castle in the middle of a quaint French village in a designer meets rockn’roll style.  If you know Shoreditch in East London, that’s the vibe you get,  in particular in the lounge which operates a honesty bar policy.

Space is wonderful : expansive bedrooms, big bathrooms, huge breakfast room, a vast courtyard and of course  a very nice pool. There is also a billiard room, a cinema and a music room so perfect to entertain the children!

Only niggle is the lack of restaurant and at the time, the village didn’t offer much choice but the owners can advise you on local restaurants you can drive to and since you are near the Périgord, there are some very good ones.

I must confess that one day, we sneaked a picnic in the room and did our own version of room service as we both wanted to be able to drink and not to have to worry about driving home after.

Have you done some things like that that made you feel a bit guilty ?

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My tips for families

• all rooms are really big and can accommodate an extra bed. We had the one with the two baths (suite 2 I think) which was bright and airy.
• you can also rent the château as a whole and actually that’s what they now prefer during July and August
• ask Nicky and Mark if they can lend you some bikes as they had done for us. Do your own version of Le Tour de France, it is really golden fields, green hills and relaxing bird singing around there !
• for a day excursion that will delight the children, go to Le Futuroscope. It’s 1h45′ from the Château and is the French equivalent of Discovery World, all great attractions around the topic of science

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Details

• 9 bedrooms
• From 185 Euros
• Website