Les Chalets de l’Heronniere

Les Chalets de la Héronnière are in Chef-Boutonne, in the south-east of the Deux-Sèvres, at the heart of a 21-hectare wooded estate where wildlife and plants are left undisturbed. The Marais poitevin, Cognac, the Futuroscope, La Rochelle and the Puy du Fou are each about an hour’s drive away, making the place a quiet base for exploring the Poitou.

This is not a conventional campsite: the offer rests on twenty wooden chalets arranged around a fishing pond, one of which is adapted for visitors with reduced mobility. The model on offer sleeps 5 to 7 people, with two bedrooms, a kitchenette, a living room with a sofa bed, a shower room, a separate toilet and a covered terrace facing the water. Rates start from 60 € a night. The estate does not display a star rating.

As for opening, the owner distinguishes two arrangements: from April to November, all types of stay are possible (weekend, short week, week, arrival any day), while for the rest of the year the estate remains open for monthly rentals. This formula is therefore aimed at those who need accommodation for several weeks in winter, for example for a work assignment or a building project in the area. The chalets have heating, but the covered pool is only open in the warm season.

A function room overlooking the pond completes the site for weddings, family reunions and other family celebrations.

Walks on foot or by bike on the routes around the estate and nature trail on site.

The estate brings together on one site everything needed to stay, swim and relax without getting back in the car. The covered, heated pool is accessible every day from 10am to 8pm during the warm season; the website pages give slightly different periods (from 1 May to the end of September, or from April to All Saints’ Day), so it is best to confirm the dates when booking. Swimming is under the supervision of parents.

A chalet specially fitted out for wellbeing houses a jacuzzi, a sauna and a massage room, with treatments à la carte. Access to the jacuzzi and sauna costs 50 € an hour for a group of up to four people. As this facility is enclosed and heated, it may suit stays outside summer, subject to availability.

The accommodation offers high-speed Wi-Fi at no extra charge, a kitchenette with coffee maker and microwave, garden furniture and a private terrace. The site also offers a bread drop-off point, a catering and takeaway service, picnic baskets, a shared tumble dryer, a bike shelter and bike hire. Heating is on the list of amenities. For children there is a swing, games and a sports field; the car park also takes coaches and pets are accepted. The grounds are closed at night, which is reassuring for long stays.

On site, fishing takes up a good part of the day: the pond, a closed body of water, holds carp, pike, perch, eels and roach, and the herons that frequent the neighbouring woods bear witness to the richness of the water. A shaded, floodlit petanque court regularly hosts tournaments in summer, and there is also a mini-golf course, a table tennis table and a games room.

A nature trail lets visitors spot the wildlife and plants of an environment comparable to that of the Marais poitevin. Children can go and see the island where sheep, chickens, swans, ducks, pigs and calves live, as well as the two Shetland ponies, Pompon and Julie. On foot or by bike, many walking routes start from the surrounding area, through woodland, along streams and past hamlets and villages of the Deux-Sèvres.

For day trips, the estate is an hour from the region’s major sites: Futuroscope, Puy du Fou, La Rochelle, Marais poitevin and Cognac. Closer to hand, you can visit the silver mines and Romanesque churches of Melle, the royal abbey of Celles-sur-Belle, the keep of Niort or the Zoodyssée wildlife park. Walks and cultural visits remain possible off-season, unlike the pool and the summer games.