Places to visit within 30 minutes
Montguyon
A small original medieval town with castle ruins on the top of the hill, where they hold yearly Festivals and Folk concerts.
The concerts are by a collection of groups from all over who perform traditional songs and dances.
There is also a yearly Medieval festival with horsemen re-enacting battles and Jousting etc with a huge Firework display at the finish.
The town has many amenities such as Chemist, Doctor, Dentist, Banks, Post Office, and the usual Butchers, Bakers, etc, and a selection of speciality shops, as well as two or three Estate Agents and Insurance Companies.
There are 2 Supermarkets. Netto and the Intermarche which has a fuel station.
In the Intermarche you have, a Phone Shop, where you can top up your mobile phone, a Hairdresser, an Optician, and a Dry Cleaners.
There is also a large DIY shop with Garden Centre and an Electrical Appliance shop.
There are a few bars/restaurants, L'Ambic and La Poste are two of them, and the Intermarche has a Bistro which is open everyday and has two late evenings, Friday and Saturday.
Quite a busy little town with a twice weekly market, Wednesday and Saturday mornings, which mostly sells a good selection of fruit and vegetables.
Clothes and other goods stalls are sometimes there also.
Beau Vallon
Aire de Loisirs
A man made recreation park which is 5 mins away from Montguyon
There is a lovely large sandy beach with a lagoon to swim in. Part of the lake has Pedaloes, Motorised Boats and Water Cycles.
There is a picnic area and an adventure playground for children on the sand.
You can also take a leisurely walk around the lake which takes about half an hour and stop to have a look at the Hibiscus garden
There is a bar with an open air restaurant which serves a good variety of food.
Most of the food is cooked on a large outside BBQ. The restaurant has a roof but the sides are open, which can make it a bit chilly in the evening if there is a wind blowing over the lake.
There is also an indoor eating area which is mostly like a large tent, but cosy, and of course tables outside to soak up the sun.
The parking is free whether you are eating, having a drink or just going for a walk. The road in can be a bit bumpy with the ruts in the road, but if you take your time, it is okay.
Cognac
Famous throughout the world for its Brandy, Cognac has lots of distilleries.
Over 70,000 different varieties of local and ancient white wines of the Charente go towards the production of the Cognac.
The harbour in this river town, has barges carrying cargo of barrels and casks of brandy to all the different distilleries.
During the summer there are pleasure cruising boats which take you up and down the river to see where all the distilleries are, stopping off for wine/brandy tasting every so often.
There is a lovely park by the river and a paddling pool for the kids.
A visit to the permanent indoor market in the town, which is open all year round [except Sunday] and a street market on a Saturday is well worth a look.
The town also has a medieval chateau and lots of cobbled streets with plenty of shops and restaurants.
Aubeterre
Once an ancient fortress which has survived the centuries, Aubeterre has a rich architectural heritage with a fascinating ‘Monolithic’ church of the Troglodyte era as well as other ancient ruins and monuments
The narrow sloping streets run from the top to the bottom of the town. High up, there is the Chateau built in the 16th century at the entrance to the old fortress. Most of the streets are cobbled with little craft shops of pottery & ceramics hidden in the doorways. Not many shops other than craft and gifts. There is a good Nursery/Garden centre with a great selection of plants etc.
There are a few eating places and in the summer the square is set out with tables to eat out.
Aubeterre-sur-Dronne has a beach at the man-made lake and waterworld where you can hire canoes & kayaks.
Jonzac
Les Antilles
A tropical Swimming Pool with Sauna, Jacuzzi, and Fitness Rooms and a Casino nearby, only 5mins from Jonzac town centre.
You can swim indoors or in the outdoor lagoon. The pool area has 2 large pool areas with Waves and Rapids. There is also a small sandy beach indoors at the waters edge for small children to play on. The pool also has Slides, a Water Mountain and various other water features. Not much room for serious swimmers though, but great for the kids.
There is a restaurant which serves a good variety of food, or just sit and have a coffee or a cool drink.
There is a shop where you can buy swimwear and gifts. They also have an internet café and three or four Bouncy Castles which are supervised.
You can also take a walk round the Tropical Walkway to look at the plants that are growing, even Bananas.
Next door to the swimming pool is a Casino with over 70 tables with the usual Roulette, Black Jack etc. It also has a bar and restaurant.
Jonzac town centre is only 5 mins away with a Château you can visit. There is also a commercial shopping retail park with quite a variety of shops and a large supermarket called E.Leclerc. Jonzac town itself has quite a few shops and eating places worth a visit
Also in Jonzac is Base de Loisirs which is a large adventure park with outdoor Swimming, Play area Lagoon which is fed from hot thermal springs.
There is a Skate Park, Picnic area, Trampolines, Pedalos, Kayaks, Canoes and a Restaurant.
You can also take a nice walk around the park.
Chalais
The town of Chalais is quite a busy place with a Château which sits on the top of the hill overlooking the town.
You can have a meal here which is said to be excellent and not too expensive.
The town has a Monday morning market that takes over all of the streets and is one of the largest markets around. It takes a good hour or two to have a look a round it all.
It sells everything from fresh fruit and vegetables to fish, meat, bread, lovely cheeses and of course all the usual clothes, gifts etc, even furniture, plants and live, small animals, such as rabbits, birds, hens, ducks etc.
There is a huge variety of everything which makes it a very busy and popular market.
You will find a few Shops and Banks, a Post Office, Optician, and quite a selection of other shops, including the Bricomarche which is a DIY shop.
The Intermarche supermarket is right in the center. In it, you can find a Photographers, Wool Shop, and a Dry Cleaners, and it also has a fuel station and a car wash.
There is a Tabac/paper shop which sells UK papers, but they will be of the day before and not the same day and they have a good selection of UK magazines as well.
There are two Restaurant/Bars on the main street and a Pizzeria next to the Intermarche. La Tannerie Tearoom [rue d’Angouleme, along from Pharmacie] is open on Monday mornings serving homemade cakes and filled baguettes. There are one or two other places to eat, but not many.
Brossac
Holiday Village with wooden chalets and Restaurant.
Two lakes, one for swimming, the other for open air activities, Jet Skis etc, horse riding, nature walks and bike trails.
Guizengeard
Le Lac de la Sensation Frisson
There are two lakes, one for swimming and the other for the Jet Skis.
Around the lakes is a Quad Bike track and picnic areas and ample free parking.
The man made sandy beach has fine white sand, sun loungers for sunbathing and an open air shower beside the kiddies paddling pool.
A large restaurant serves food all day from 10am until 11pm at night.
The patio area has lots of chairs and tables for sitting outside.
La Roche-Chalais
Le Paradou - Parc de Loisirs
La Paradou has a large beach, although the sand can be full of pine needles from the trees at some times of the year, but is still lovely. It does get cleaned up each evening.
The activity area has ground trampolines and other trampolines which you get strapped into. There is a children’s safe play area with slides, swings and climbing frames etc. Also a pitch and putt golf layout.
There are several slides, one of which is water and lands you in a pool, the others are dry slides.
There is a restaurant with picnic style benches and a bar which also has indoor games such as table tennis and a ball tent with a climbing frame for the little ones.
A train takes you round the park which lasts about half an hour.
There is also a camping and caravan park on one side of the park
Montendre
Lakes and parks for having a picnic. Chinese restaurant in the park. Small town with shops. Good for night markets as well as weekly market.