Loire guestbook

What a lovely place to relax! We've had a really nice time in 'The Old Walnut Mill', wish we could have stayed longer. The house exceeded our expectations. We were particularly grateful for the incredible amount of information on local attractions etc.. The countryside is really pretty and every little village is prettier than the last. The swimming spot at Lesigny (and the bakery) were favourites , as was Azay le Ferron. Jim & Pauline - we are happy to be your first Irish visitors, we definitely wont be the last! We'll be recommending 'The Old Walnut Mill' to friends and family back home.

We have thoroughly enjoyed our Loire Experience, the Walnut Mill is a lovely old building that has helped us blend into a rural life. We have enjoyed the facilities new and old inside and outside the mill. It has been lovely to sit out both at lunchtime and evenings in the courtyard with local fare and of course a bottle of wine.....It has been lovely to walk along to the boulangerie and to eat at the local restaurant. the mill has been an absolute haven as we struggled with temperatures 28/33* ....It was great to visit chateaux first seen 26 years ago plus new ones, Langeais (very worthwhile) and Usse. But the greatest pleasure has been our local wanderings to La Guerche,La Roche Posay ,Angles sur l'Anglin , Preuilly sur Claise and many other local villages. As well as local walks up into the woods behind the village....A big thank you Pauline and Jim for your kindness and consideration ---enjoyed sharing the Barrou music festival with you.

Thanks for a lovely stay and for your thoughtful preparation for us with a toddler. We really appreciate the care and consideration that has gone into making the house a great base to explore the area and so pleasant and comfortable. It was great to see the house at Le Grand Pressigny as well - we are so impressed with all that you have achieved.

The house catered for everything we could ask for and more! To have a phone and internet access to home contacts was a real bonus especially as our daughter had not been well. All the material supplied was very informative and helpful.

We have had a wonderful time for this our first trip to the Loire Valley. The Walnut Mill is a lovely home away from home, most welcome as we'd spent the last 6 weeks in hotels. It has been especially nice to be able to have simple home cooked meals and a comfy lounge room....You have been extremely generous hosts...All the reference material and your great websites were a great help for us 1st timers! Thanks so much for your warm welcome. Hope we can catch up again someday either here or in Australia.

An oasis of village calm nestled in countryside that holds many wonderful surprises. Barrou and The Old Walnut mill proved to be an inspired choice. The cosy rustic charm promised by your website was fully realised. We will recall our times here over the years and urge our friends to share the warmth of your welcome and the extent of your concern that your guests enjoy their Loire Valley Experience. We are particularly appreciative of the friendship you offered and the manner in which you readily made your home our home. We wish you every success in the future and look forward to meeting you both again down the track.

Our first experience of a cottage stay in France and what a standard has been set! We expected a key and a place to eat - hopefully somewhere to cook a meal occasionally. What we got was not only a home ( a theme running through all comments so far) but extremely generous and delightful hosts; Although busy working on another house Jim & Pauline’s main concern was that everything should be just right for us. The Old Walnut Mill, a fine house in itself, is fitted with everything to make for a relaxing stay artistically decorated with their personal collection of artefacts, always warm and welcoming. In fact we were torn between all the delights offered by the ample ‘home tourist office’(great info.in house) and the desire to enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the village Barrou style. As if that wasn’t enough there is a stunning collection of CD’s and DVD’s chosen with discrimination. Barrou itself grows on you, so that at the end of one week, it’s good to think there is another to go – then what a pity! that was not enough. No need to cook really, although there are full facilities, as there is a very French style restaurant serving terrific and great value lunches and dinners AND a top class(or ‘hatted’) restaurant ‘La Promenade’ close by which served a truly amazing meal .

Perfect fine, crisp days and as a bonus , an organised local walk with baguettes and 'le vin' served halfway.

We had Pauline and Jim’s help in hiring a local car at ‘Super U’ and with that we visited chateaux at Loches, Villandry and finally Chambord – all very different and delightful. Apart from driving we enjoyed walking around or biking to nearby villages. It has all been wonderful and a real taste of life in rural France. I so enjoyed the various markets on offer where we bought which we didn’t mind sticking on our waistlines ever ! –who cares!

Thanks so much for the great help before we arrived ,the transport, recommendations ( even down to which books to read!) and the lovely touches in the house itself - and you put on lovely spring weather. Cannot imagine we won’t be back and will certainly be recommending this or any other place of Pauline and Jim’s. Enjoy!

Thank you so much Jim & Pauline for a gorgeous week in this fabulous part of France...we had such a lovely time. The Old Walnut Mill and Barrou were exactly what we'd hoped they would be and more...we were all enchanted and sad to be going. Thanks again.

There are not enough words in my dictionary to describe our visit to the Walnut Mill house in Barrou. The four of us adventured out each day at 9.30 returning by 6.00pm or shortly after. The history of the Loire was begat by all of us. Today (22nd) we toured the museum at Le Grand Pressigny --its a treasure!. Our cameras are filled with treasures and our friends and family will pleasure all and hear of each and every single one! No 'au revoir' - we may be back. Thank you for your kind hospitality we had a perfect Loire Valley holiday.

A lovely 'home from home' in a delightful area of France. Definitely the best equipped gite we have stayed in over many years - I would recommend it to anyone. This comfortable home is warm and welcoming - keep up the good work - we have really enjoyed our stay.

Cuando llegamos a vuestra casa, en un pequeno instante lo comprendimos
todo, habia una nota que decia « bienvenidos a vuestro hogar » y asi
ha sido durante estos dias. Gracias por habernos acogido tan
fabulosamente, sois encantadores. Gracias por la informacion sobre
todo lo que podiamos hacer (en espagnol de « a pie » diriamos que
vaya »currada que te has pegado » con comodidades y atenciones nuestra
estancia en la casa.

Nos llevamos a Valencia, el paisaje, las imagenes, los olores y
tambien la sensacion de haber « estado en casa ». Nuestros hijos asi
lo expresaban cuando volvemos a casa ? Y cuando terminaban nuestras
experiencias en el loira volviamos a ella.

Gracias con el corazon

We've had a brilliant honeymoon at the Old Walnut Mill, it's a shame we couldn't have stayed longer. Thank you so much for all your help when the car broke down. Thanks also for going out of your way to make sure our son had all he needed here. Good luck with your next project and hope to see you again in the future.

It couldn't be better!, the house and courtyard thoughtfully prepared for a pleasant stay. The beautiful setting of Barrou village and your warm hospitality made our time here unforgettable. The children were charmed by the house the first glance as well and the collection of books went in line with their imagination of very special places. All our trips were unique and full of French experiences which will be with us a while. Thank you for a wonderful week and all the best for the future.

We have had a fantastic holiday, what a lovely place to stay. Christopher enjoyed playing with the Lego and fishing down on the river. France is a lovely country. We enjoyed our visit to the Safari park and our visit to Futuroscope. Jim & Pauline are lovely people and we hope to come back in the future. Many thanks for allowing us to stay in your property.

Fantastic week, great wine, superb vineyards, great base and place - we all felt at home and the DVD & CDs were second to none! Le Promenade restaurant is excellent.

June 2009

Thank you Jim & Pauline for a wonderful two weeks. Your home is wonderful - we wanted for nothing - you really have thought of everything- and more! The 'Old Walnut Mill' was a great find on the internet but in reality it is much bigger and really does have the 'wow' factor. We look forward to returning...

Di & Andrew Wood, Stoke on Trent, UK

April 2009

What a wonderful time we have had, Jim & Pauline you have been thoughtful and attentive to our needs-including clothing for my husband due to lost baggage! Your home is lovely, we have been most comfortable and warm with the fireplace going every night. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we lost track of time --thinking and wishing we had one more day. Off to Paris we go and the serenity and peacefulness of here will be only a warm memory. My mother was comfortable-so nice to have spacious rooms and comfortable surroundings.

Debbie,Stu & Ella,Kitchener,Ontario,Canada

October 2008

What a wonderful 'French' experience our family has had staying in the 'Old Walnut Mill'. Being so far away from home and travelling in such small accommodation over the past weeks ,we were overwhelmed with the cottage. We are particularly grateful for how Jim and Pauline were in regards to accommodating a family travelling with children! Our three children not only enjoyed visiting the many tourist attractions but were always keen to return to their 'home' to construct and design with the 'awesome' amount of LEGO. Thank you Jim & Pauline for providing us with a true 'French' experience and for making us so welcome.

Brad,Donna,Toby,Gabi,&Jesse Griffith Dungos,NSW,Australia

September 2008

We stayed here for three weeks with (firstly) family-our three children from London/Delaware, USA and then friends from the UK. The 'Old Walnut Mill' was like a 'home from home' we found that we wanted for nothing......Overall with all our guests we ate and drank far too much and had an exceptionally relaxing holiday. The weather also treated us kindly with blue skies and sunshine and only 2 rainy days in three weeks! Many thanks to Jim and Pauline for the Old Walnut Mill.

James & Jean Taylor, George,Cape Province, South Africa

...Its a pity that we have to leave but we hope there will be an opportunity to return here someday.

The Old Walnut Mill is like a tardis - you open the front door and its many rooms open up to the traveller. It has been a terrific place to spend the week relaxing, experiencing the beauty of the local countryside and enjoying the village atmosphere.

Having spent two days travelling it was wonderful to receive such a warm friendly welcome from Jim & Pauline--they really have thought of everything, from routes to places of interest to every home comfort in the house. Thank you Jim & Pauline it has been a wonderful holiday

Thank you Jim & Pauline for providing such a well equipped holiday home with such character. We enjoyed being able to explore, via our tandem, some of the lovely towns and villages nearby--we will always remember those sunflowers!

What a find! Our very own 'Old Walnut Mill' with secluded courtyard all to ourselves for 2 weeks.......we have had a wonderful holiday and would like to thank Jim & Pauline for their attention to every detail.

Our family had a wonderful holiday in the 'Old Walnut Mill'-Jim & Pauline have made a beautifully organised home with fantastic reference material and more than comfortable accommodation, We will always remember the fun we had learning and playing 'Petanque' with you and your neighbour David. You are truly excellent hosts!

Jim & Pauline have made the 'Old Walnut Mill' a home of French charm and Scottish efficiency ....thank you for for giving us the opportunity to share something of your new life and to sample the 'Loire Valley Experience'

A visit to the 'Old Walnut Mill' is something to savour, larger than it appeared and well furnished it soon became a real 'home from home'......We wish continued success to Jim & Pauline-but not too much --we don't want to have difficulty rebooking.

What an amazing place-I had a very interesting and busy trip. I loved the house and the special touches Jim & Pauline made that say 'WELCOME'....I hope to come back some day.