Above are some photos taken of the village and surroundings that we now call home. Champagnac-La-Riviere. The village has around 400 inhabitants of which quite a few are members of what we call the "Silent Exodus". Nestling in a wooded river valley a mere 30mins from Limoges airport, it is ideally placed for the house hunter wishing to explore the delights of the Charente 16, Dordogne 24 and Haute-Vienne 87 regions of France. We moved here in September 2004 and as a result have found our way through cheap ferry fares, french driving, shopping, doctors, builders merchants through to asking our local mayor if we can connect up to the new mains drainage in the village.

We have also set up a business here and have some excellent contacts in the Chambre de Commerce et Industrie in Limoges. We can always offer advice, based on our own experiences, to house hunters who wish to set up businesses here in the Limousin.

We appreciate that it can be a daunting decision to move your entire life to another country, however, having been here since 2004 we have difficulty looking back and can truly say that we have no regrets.

We are more than happy to offer our gite accommodation to anyone wanting a peaceful break, some fishing or looking for a base to stay whilst visiting the various estate agents in the area. We have some very good contacts with reputable estate agents here. Should you stay with us we can offer free internet access via our onsite computer. This will enable you to house hunt very quickly whilst being in the position to phone up and arrange viewings.

To read our "story so far" which tells you of our experiences here in France and some of the plans that we made before our arrival.
You will also find numerous good links to all sorts of information on living in France and french property on

In the meantime........never lose sight of the dream. Everything is possible.

Happy house hunting, and maybe we'll see you soon.