Information
Description of facilities:
Flat screen TV with British free-to-air satellite channels, DVD player and music system with CD player & i-pod dock, and WiFi. DVDs, CDs, books and board games are provided for those rare rainy days - small children are also catered for with suitable DVDs and books.
Description inside property: To take full advantage of the woodland setting and the south orientation, the main living accommodation is on the first floor. On the ground floor,there is a small garage which provides secure storage for bikes & surfboards.
On the ground floor, the entrance hall leads to two bedrooms, a bathroom with shower over and a separate toilet.
The first bedroom is a twin with a large wardrobe and small chest of drawers. There is a bed guard available to provide sfaety for any small child sleeping in this room.
The second bedroom is a double, with Victorian-style bedstead, built in wardrobe, and a drssing table with mirror over.
Open tread stairs from the entrance hall lead to the main living accommodation on the first floor. There are sfaety gates avialbe for both the groundfloor hallway and the top of the stairs.
On the first floor is the main living space with kitchen area (oven, hob, microwave, dishwasher, washing machine, fridge-freezer), open–plan to the large living room, which has a sofa, easy chairs and a formal dining area with limed pine table and 6 wicker dining chairs. Windows on three sides and the south orientation of the house floods the living area with light from morning to evening.
French windows open onto the covered terrace with which has wooden garden dining furniture and two chair hammocks. There are external stairs from the terrace to the to garden.
The master bedroom is off the living-room, with a king-size bed and large built-in wardrobe, with hanging space and shelving. There is an en-suite shower room with walk-in shower, double hand basins and a separate toilet.
All of the bedrooms have bedspreads, pillows and duvets. Bed linen (including linen for the cot) and towels are provided, with a weekly change. Weekly cleaning is also provided.
Description outside property: The upstairs terrace has a table with 6 directors chairs as well as two hammock chairs for relaxing with a book, or just having a siesta.
There is a plancha - a spanish-style gas barbecue - in the garden, and the decked area has two recliners and two deckchairs. There is an outdoor shower.
There is offstreet parking for two cars.
The beach is a 5 minute walk over the dunes.
Description of eco friendly facilities
The Beach House is a low CO² timber-framed house, commissioned by us 7 years ago to sit sympathetically among the pine trees and maritime oaks of the site. It is built from timber from the pine forests of the Gironde, with good insulation throughout and double glazing.
Although there is electric panel heating, this is only needed occasionally - the house warms quickly even in the testing conditions of January 2009! The same design keeps the house cool in summer. Low energy light bulbs and energy efficient electrical appliances have been used wherever possible.
We use ecological household products and encourage our guests to do the same. As many of the trees have been kept as possible and the back garden area is a "wild garden" with nest boxes. There is a "dry garden" border in the front garden. We intend to harvest rainwater in 2010.
Additional Information
Description of local area and activities: SOULAC is a charming family resort on the Gironde coast. The town centre dates from the 19th century with many period villas, and UNESCO Heritage Site 12th century church on the pilgrim route to Compostella. The main street has a range of shops from beach toys to glamorous clothing and home décor. The Cinema occasionally shows English language films.
The beach stretches as far as the eye can see – offshore sandbanks make it safer than the well-known surfing beaches to the south. Like most French beaches, there are children's beach clubs during July and August, and life-guarded bathing areas. Closer to the house (a few minutes walk through the dunes) are the “Piscines”, shallow pools formed by the concrete beach stabilisation works of the 1940s – these are very popular with families with small children. The area is mostly flat - dunes and pine forests, with lots of walking and bike trails. A cycle track starts right by the Beach House, running 5 miles through the forest to Pointe de Grave, port for the car ferry to Royan. The GR 8 also passes the Beach House.
Surfing and bodyboarding lessons are available at Soulac Surf Club, to the south of the town, where there is also a skate park. In addition to the cycle tracks mentioned above, there are more challenging mountain bike tracks. Bicycles and roller blades can be hired in the town. Other sports available in the area include tennis, horseriding and sky-diving.
Soulac is a wonderful base for birdwatchers, as it is on the main spring migration route and is only 5 miles from the LPO's Pointe de Grave migration camp. Streams of swallows pass overhead, and there is always the chance of spotting raptors such as peregrines, hobbies and ospreys. Marsh, Hen & Montague's harriers, black kites, storks, egrets, and waders nest in summer on the nearby Gironde estuary marshes, mud flats and neighbouring polder fields. Hoopoes, nightingales, owls, cuckoos & longtailed tits, as well as red squirrels and bats, can be found in the wooded gardens and forest surrounding the house.
Soulac has a supermarket and a covered market in the town centre open daily until 1pm. There are restaurants to suit all tastes in Soulac, - our favourites are the Pile d'Assiettes in the town centre and the very informal Brasserie de la Plage on the beach.. The renowned Medoc vineyards (and other tempting restaurants) are less than half an hour's drive away. Gambas are farmed at nearby St Viviende Medoc and served fresh at the Guingette de la Plage, at St Vivien-Plage. You can also buy them to cook, or already cooked, at the several gambas farms in the area.
Soulac is just 20 minutes from the closest of the famous Medoc vineyards - be sure to make time for some wine tasting. The Maisons du Vin in St Estephe and Pauillac offer a chance to learn more about the reasons why the grand crus are so good.