Chalencey

Description of accommodation and area: The house is set in large grounds overlooking a valley and Le Chateau
de Marguerite de Bourgogne, close to a historic village with ancient wine making traditions and festivals dating from the Middle Ages. Although easily accessible by TGV, this lovely area of Burgundy is little known to foreign tourists. Accommodation is on the top floor of the house and consists of a sitting room with lots of books, two bedrooms and a bathroom.

The Cosmofil experience: They will share with you their love of their region and direct you to lovely spots known only by locals. Pascal would be happy to initiate you into local gastronomy. Depending on the season, they could take you mushroom, dandelion and blackberry picking. If you come in September, you will have the opportunity to experience the excitement of the grape picking season. Come in August and you can take part in the celebrations of La Vouivre, a local festival based on an ancient legend

Language support: Although Mimi is making swift progress learning English, your hosts will speak to you in French and give you all the support that you require. How about learning to cook some Burgundy dishes, all in French?

Reviews: My husband and I booked a 2 week stay in Burgundy in April 2008 with two French host families. We booked a week with each primarily to practise/improve our French. In order to maximise our time in their company we arranged to have our meals with them. Our second week was spent in the home of Mimi & Pascal and turned out to be especially memorable. You will find it hard to find a couple more generous, warm and friendly than this family. They spent a lot of time in our company speaking in French slowly and patiently. There was much laughter and sharing of time together with them, their family and friends. We went looking for Muguet plants in the nearby woods, accompanied them to the local market and watched Pascal cook some truly delightful and typically French dishes. They also arranged a visit for us to a superb local vineyard with private museum. It is a week that we will not forget in a hurry. We would not hesitate to stay here again and can recommend it highly to those who want to enjoy a real French experience as well as the opportunity to improve your language skills. Anne-Liese & Charles