Loire Valley Llama Farm Stay

Climbing out of bed in a luxury glamping tent to the nearby chatter of friendly llamas sounds like a uniquely lovely way to start the day, and even more so when it is in the heart of one of France’s most charming rural regions, the infamous Loire Valley; the Garden of France. 

The family friendly & pet friendly Loire Valley Llama Farm Stay between Le Mans and Tours offers visitors two Lotus Belle tents on their 17 acre farm with llamas and hens.  All of which are happily free range, and friendly to visitors; this place is not some large commercial farming venture, it is a blissfully peaceful, little rural idyll, with a mixture of pastureland, woodland, (as well as a lake and a stream), and somewhere where the welfare of the farm animals (and the farm guests of course!) comes first.

Note: The llama farm is a small intimate affair, with just two tents available to rent, so booking ahead is advised!

The Accommodation:

They have two clean and comfortable rooms at the farmhouse; a double and a twin (one double and one single) and outside in the gardens there are two spacious, nicely furnished, tents offer ‘back to nature’ escapism without the need to sacrifice comfort. The tents have room for up to 4 or 5 sharing, and are made up as either a double bed with a pull out day bed converting to another double, or a King size bed with two single beds. All of them are proper, framed, beds with Egyptian cotton bedding and you’ll find them reliably comfortable every night.

You’ll have an insulated PVC layer on the tent windows for the winter as well as a mesh layer on the windows and doors to keep you cool and keep the mosquitoes at bay in the summer.  Plus, from late September, wood log burners are installed in the tents keeping them perfectly warm and cosy. Within 50m you’ll find the renovated barn where the shared bathroom facilities are, and include 2 separate toilets and a shower room.

Outside of the tents there is a private seating area plus also, a little farther away, a large communal dining area next to the well equipped outside kitchen. There you’ll have everything you need for cooking yourself; fridge, microwave, kettle, cooking utensils, pots & pans etc., as well as a wood fired barbecue and a Weber gas barbecue.

If cooking for yourself doesn’t appeal, the friendly owners, if given notice the day before, can also provide you with meals: A French breakfast (bread, croissants, Pain au chocolat, butter, jam, farm eggs, cereal, fruit, fruit juice, natural yoghurt and tea & coffee) can be taken in the farmhouse kitchen/dining area or delivered to your belle tent for 10 EUR pp., and in the evening you can order up a home cooked spaghetti bolognese for example, plus apple crumble with ice cream and a glass of wine or cold drink for 15 EUR pp.

Outside in the gardens adults and children can enjoy a splash around in the evening sun, or an invigorating early morning swim in the swimming pool, and can also pass the time inside in the games room which has PS4 games, puzzles and a book exchange.

THE FARM:

The stars of the farm are the small herd of Llamas, 5 girls and 2 boys who spend their days grazing peacefully in the field, wiggling around in their dust bath or gathering around for chatter amongst themselves whilst chewing the cud. The highlight of most visitors stay will be joining the owners at 8am to feed and check the Llamas in the stable, and all farm stay guests have the opportunity to book a mini Llama trekking experience with the owners compliments, with the full llama trekking experience available for an additional cost. Also on the farm, as mentioned above, are some hens and Clint the resident farm cockerel.

THE LOCATION:

France may have something of a reputation internationally for historical splendour, style and tremendous gastronomy but within France itself the Loire Valley; the Garden of France and/or the Cradle of French Kings, has an equal reputation. There are magnificent chateaux to be admired, great food and wine to be sampled, and miles and miles of beautifully idyllic countryside to be explored.

The llama farm is just outside the little village of Lavernat, roughly half way between Le Mans, with its famous race track, and the very historical, very beautiful city of Tours. Nearby towns include Chateau-du-Loir and La Lude which offer some nice cafes, restaurants and shopping.

You’ll find plenty of activities in the local area, nearby Vaas has the River Loir running through it with canoeing and swimming accessible from the shore by the bridge there, while the Lac de Varennes at Marçon offers more extensive water sports, with children’s play areas, water slides and a barbecue zone.

The Valle du Loir a Velo is an internationally known, 320km long, cycling route, a section of which passes within just 10 minutes of the farm, and with bike hire available in the local town it can make for a lovely day out for even amateur cyclists. Horse riding too can be arranged in the local area, as can fishing.

Tours Airport is just 45 minutes away, but travel is also relatively easy from other airports such as Nantes, La Rochelle and Paris.