gracejoan3

I know what you are saying..you want a nice place, not a basic thing. Do look at the www.vrbo.com site for areas that you are interested. There will be all kinds of places as to quality and niceness. Also www.gite.com You will see by the # of $ signs which amounts to the quality. Don't be put off by the word gite.
I had a terrible time in finding something to my liking in Brittany. Most of the places seemed to be what I call basic..places for the summer with the kids. I spent untold hours and looked at hundreds and hundreds. I had about given up. I finally found 2 nice two bedroom places that meet my needs! I think they must be the only 2 places in all of Brittany..at least for 2 B/R!! I have 2 locations for 2 weeks each as Brittany is large.

Good luck to you.........

StuDudley

We've stayed in 3 different Gites in Brittany. Last year we stayed at a 3 bedroom/2 bath place near Penvenan, with a large living/dining room & a large kitchen. It was very nicely furnished. It had a fabulous garden. It was only 75 paces from the ocean & had nice views out to the ocean from the dining room. We rented it for 610E per week in Sept. It's one of the nicest Gites we've ever stayed in. The owner died in late '06, and her son took over responsibility for renting the Gite. I could not find it on the Gites-de-France site today, so I suspect it is now off the market.

In '01, we stayed at a 3 bedroom 2 bath place near Dinan that was part of a large old farm complex with a private lake out front. There were several gites in the complex. Another renter fished daily in the lake & gave us several trout to cook for dinner. We also stayed in a 2 bedroom/2 bath modern place near Pt Aven. The place was very spacious with excellent kitchen & living room facilities.

They were all rented trough Gites-de-France. I have a Gite book for only the Cotes d'Amour dept in Brittany, and it lists over 1,200 gites for rent. There are PLENTY of gites to rent in Brittany - we saw signs everywhere last Sept.

Stu Dudley

hopingtotravel

bookmarking

gracejoan3

Stu,

I looked at them all!! Did not like any of them from Gites de France.

As previously said, I finally found what I liked. Prices were more than you indicated you paid, which also indicates that something must be better, nicer about them.

We all have are priorities and choices to make. I am particular where I stay. I like the same amenities that I have at home.

StuDudley

There are over 4,000 Gites in Brittany & you looked at them all??

Stu Dudley

gracejoan3

Stu, It certainly seemed like it! I was only looking in the areas where I wanted and preferred no larger than 2 bedrooms, but started looking at larger ones...I quickly found out to look at whatever they had re stars or $ signs for some sort of guide and quickly learned to byupass those wither the lesser number.I really don't even like their guide or their site.

Definitely the www.gite.com site seems to have more of the nicer ones. The www.holiday-rentals also has nicer ones. I think that is where I found one where I will be staying.

I am very satisfied with what I finally found. Nice places with everything that I want and in the areas that I want.

To each his own.....

StuDudley

>>I really don't even like their guide or their site.<<

I would certainly agree with that. They recently upgraded the software from non-functional for some depts to barely functional. You used the same methodology that I use to select a gite - location & price for 3 to 5 wheatie gites. We really only need a 2 bedroom place, but usually end up with 3 to 4 bedrooms because they are usually nicer & larger. We also prefer open kitchen/living/dining room configurations because they make the living area seem larger.

I've seen a few Gites-de-France places listed on other sites for 50% higher rental prices - including the one we've rented in the Luberon (Provence) twice.

Stu Dudley

JeanneB

bookmark

kosciusko

I rented a Gite based on what I had read on Fodors Talk and especially people like Stu Dudley. The place we rented is in Orschwhir which is south of Colmar, but is a fantastic location. I would highly recommend this type of rental to someone who is looking for a local experience. Kosciusko

Ashjen

I know this is an old line but just wanted to say thanks to Stu and others, I have distilled and what you said and just booked a gite in Dambach la Ville for our trip. Thanks for the input. A

StuDudley

Glad my write-ups have helped

Once you've "slowed" your vacation down a bit, & have stayed in Gites - you'll rarely ever want to stay in a hotel again.

We leave next week for 5 weeks in Gites - Tailloires on Lake Annecy (2 weeks), the Jura (1), and Doubs (2).

Stu Dudley