domainedesblanchescolombes

Thank you everyone for your lovely words of reassurance and good luck! After giving in and going to bed at 2am I was back up this morning at 7am to finish the weeding, set the pool robot going and lots of other little last minute bits and pieces. I've forced myself to stop now , make lunch and relax - if it ain't done now it ain't gettting done! The dog is very confused as to why he's not allowed in 'his garden', I tried explaining to him that the guests will not appreciate large and muddy holes in the middle of the lawn but he's having none of it! Leo - This is our first season and our first guests. Our property has been previously run as a gite complex and Chambre D'hote but we took over in March. Surfice to say what was sold as ready to rent has needed a total overhaul to get it up to scratch! So we hope that what proved to be an enjoyable stay for someone last year will truly be an exceptional experience this year!

Tomorrow our first guests arrive. They really are our first guests as this is our first season open! This is the first time we have lived in a foreign country, the first time we have spent 24 hours a day with each other for longer than 7 days, the first time we have ever worked soooo long and sooo hard! Since arriving in France in early March we have smashed, built, painted, scrubbed, tweeked and finally 1 gite is ready (only 3 more to go) for paying guests. Well I say ready, we still have a million and one things to do - i feel like i have not slept in a year and we are both walking around like zombies - 17 hour days do not agree with me! I have all of my fingers and toes crossed that everything will go smoothly tomorrow - if it doesnt I think I might cry :( Right, back to sewing cushions....

Dogs more than welcome (much more agreeable than some of the children I have come across!)

You have just summed up my every fear and I havent even started yet! My first 'gite' season begins on 11th May and I know that everything that you have spoken about will be running through my mind! I feel that I may be about to turn into the grumpy old woman to your grumpy old man and i'm not even old either! Can't wait for the ride to begin!

We have recently bought a gite complex in the Dordogne, 4 gites & 2 Chambre D'hote bedrooms. We began our search for a property less than a year ago and mainly used sites such as http://www.green-acres.com/ and http://www.classic-french-homes.com/. Once we had identified the area of France we wanted to be we found a local immobilier who began to search for properties for us. Perhaps you should make sure that you are known to as many local immobilier's as possible? Hope this helps.