Getting ready
preparation for your holiday
You have booked with us, and it won't be long before your holiday comes round. We get asked lots of questions as the holiday prep begins. We thought we'd create a website page that can help you with your plans. France has some historic oddities about bringing your own bedding and kitchenware. We have aimed to modernise this.
What you don't need to bring
You can see the full content list of each cottage here, but at a glance the following ARE INCLUDED:
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Bedding and pillows
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Bath towels
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Pool towels
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A hairdryer (one per cottage)
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Iron & ironing board
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Tea / Coffee / Sugar
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Cooking oil
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Salt & pepper
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Hand soap
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Kitchen towels
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Kitchen cleaning products
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Toilet paper
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Bin bags
What you do need to bring
We are self catering holiday accommodation. Experience shows us that some things are best provided by you. Here's a checklist of what to bring:
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Toiletries (except hand soap)
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Food & drink shopping
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You
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Your passport
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Taxe de Séjours in cash
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Cottage breakages deposit taken on arrival by card €200
Travel plans
You may not have made your travel plans yet. Take a look on our Travel page for information about our location and the various options available to you.
A car is essential. Towns, restaurants, shops and attractions are all a short drive away. Car hire is available at all airports and train stations.
passports
Some important info for anyone with a UK passport travelling into mainland Europe. Guests of ours have been badly caught out - and subsequently blocked from travelling. In its wisdom the UK had been issuing 10yr passports and adding a few months (either adding remaining months from old passports, or trying to manage their future workflow).
Now Brexit is with us UK passports must have at least 3 months remaining on them - BUT AS IF IT IS PRECISELY A 10 YEAR PASSPORT. So please go check your passport. Ignore the expiry date. Take the issue date and add 9yrs + 9 months. If that date is beyond your return date the airline will refuse your travel.
We've heard of at least a dozen examples of this, all spoiling a holiday/wedding/bank balance.
Remember - IGNORE THE EXPIRY DATE FOLKS.
Supermarkets
Many guests like to take a trip to the supermarket on the drive in to us. Remember we provide a small hamper designed to get guests through a first breakfast (especially for those who arrive in the late evening). It contains tea/coffee/milk/sugar/eggs/bread/butter/jam and wine!).
There are two medium sized supermarkets near to Cottages de Garrigue, Carrefour Contact in Sigoulès and Carrefour Contact just outside Eymet. Just tap on the links to view on Google maps.
There are two hypermarkets in Bergerac, both within 5 minutes of the airport. E Lerclerc is to the south west and Intermarché is to the east.
Planning activities
We are very lucky in that the surrounding area has a huge amount to offer tourists. You can plan ahead or go with the flow, but remember everything happens at a slower pace here.
One hard lesson to learn in rural France is that typically lunch in restaurants is 12noon-2pm. If you arrive at 1.45pm it's likely you'll go hungry. Conversely, shops and attractions will typically close for lunch, so if you turn up for a chateau tour at 11.30am they will let you know you only have half an hour. For an easy life it's better to go with the flow.
Take a look at our Region page for ideas. The cottage guide book, when you arrive, has a long list of our restaurant recommendations, plus practical information about ATMs, fuel stations, shops etc.