Julie and Amanda from West Yorkshire have holidayed in France many times, and love the countryside, the culture and the weather. With their teenage children off to university soon, they want to find a holiday home where they can unwind and relax, and maybe make a permanent move to in the future! Jean Johansson has 5 great properties lines up for their budget of £120,000 – but will any be perfect?
About the area
Lot-et Garonne is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France, named after the rivers Lot and Garonne. It is the main agricultural department of the Nouvelle Aquitaine region, with crops such as prunes, tomatoes, Buzet wines, Duras, melons, strawberries, asparagus. The region produces 70 different kinds of fruit and vegetables, foie gras, wine and Armagnac but is perhaps best known for the Agen prune where its orchards provide 65% of France’s production.
Festivals celebrating the departments culinary heritage include the tomato festival in Marmande, the wine festival at Duras and the Tourtière festival in Penne d’Agenais.
Direct flights can be taken from the UK cities of Bristol, London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham, Southampton and Liverpool. There are also flights to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Brussels. The A62 motorway that serves the area connects Bordeaux to the city of Toulouse. Sailing from the UK: the closest ferry ports are St Malo and Caen but you could also consider Santander which is just over the border with Spain.