You hope for a smooth season for your gîte (holiday accommodation) in France, but what happens when one thing after another goes wrong? How do you cope with challenging guests, swarming bees, arguments with your insurance and difficult guests. 

Unfortunately, that's the reality Neil and David faced this year with their gîte Domaine de la Banne near Belvès in France. 

We talk about their revenue, occupancy, costs, trust, safety and working and living as a couple. 

https://www.labanne.fr/

https://www.giteguru.com/

A live Q&A session gets the juices flowing, not knowing what people are going to ask about gîtes (holiday homes) in France! 

We talk about being bullied by the big websites, the pitfalls of renovations, pool considerations and much more. So if you're an expat wanting to move to France, or you've already set up a small business here, there's lots of gîte information here to get your teeth into. 

Thanks to Ben from Ibanista for moderating the session. Ibanista helps you with your move to France, like with long-term rentals, utility setup, and currency transfers.

https://www.ibanista.com/

https://www.giteguru.com/

A live Q&A session gets the juices flowing, not knowing what people are going to ask about gîtes (holiday homes) in France! 

We talk about being bullied by the big websites, the pitfalls of renovations, pool considerations and much more. So if you're an expat wanting to move to France, or you've already set up a small business here, there's lots of gîte information here to get your teeth into. 

Thanks to Ben for moderating the session.

https://www.giteguru.com/

Tracy and David wanted to move to Spain and open a B&B, but instead they remained in the UK and bought a gîte in France! That was in 2005, and they have built up a successful gîte business and a boutique agency representing other gîtes. 

We discuss the changes that Tracy has seen in the past 21 years, from the dominance of the platforms, to guests' expectations changing. 

Wow factors feature, as well as the challenge of Covid. 

https://www.holidaycottagesandvillas.com/

https://www.giteguru.com/

Natasha and Tony bought a large property in the Dordogne in 2024, the majority of which was just a shell. They opened 2 small gîtes whist renovating the rest, which they hope to open in 2026.

We talk about doing the renovations yourselves, getting discounts on building materials, their social life, who their guests are, and what they think of their new life in France - which you will be able to watch on TV next year!

I loved the fact that they were also so honest about the challenge living and working together in a new country, and what that has meant for their relationship.

https://latrilogiedor.com/

https://www.giteguru.com/

https://lemasdordogne.com/

Sven and Sandra bought a house in the Dordogne as a second home, but soon hit upon the idea of running it as a gîte when they're not there. But does it still feel like a home now?!

We talk about costs vs. investments, tv crews staying, joining the hunt, doing your own renovations, being the same target group as your guests, and how much money they made this year. 

Sven and Sandra has also given up their jobs to open more businesses connected to their gîte. 

https://maisonsaintblaise.com/

https://www.giteguru.com/

It's our turn to talk about our gîtes! We published this episode on the 10th anniversary of having bought Le Mas. A lot has happened in that time...

We talk about good guests and difficult guests, our renovation of the property, what's changed in the past 10 years, how running gîtes together has affected our relationship, the mistakes, the joy, the stress, profitability and what we've learnt about ourselves.  

https://www.giteguru.com/

Tom and his wife Emilie bought their gîte sight unseen in Emilie's father's village. Tom admits getting it ready for paying guests nearly broke them, but  the sense of achievement is obvious.

https://toumassou.com/

https://www.giteguru.com/

Elsa and her husband are in the process of setting up a gîte on her grandparent's old horse ranch in Sologne. We talk about why they came up with this plan, which involves moving with their baby daughter and dog from California, what their action list is for the coming months, values, bullying, marketing and target audiences and lots more. 

https://www.instagram.com/leclosdebauzy/

https://www.giteguru.com/

Suzie talks to me all about the two big gîtes she ran for 7 years, before deciding to sell the property and buy another French property without a gîte. She looks back, both with the rose-tinted glasses on and off, at her time as a gîter and has some great tips for others wanting to start out. 

https://www.giteguru.com/