Village Flottant de Pressac

The floating village is a few minutes' drive from Pressac, a small town bordered to its north-east by the Clouère river and with the waters of the Clain flowing through. Over a dozen towns and villages are within 15 or so kilometres of here, including Pleuville (10 minutes' drive), Épenède, Charroux and Lessac, all within 15 minutes, and Chatain, 20 minutes away. Department capital Poitiers is just under an hour away. Take the kids to Vienne and the famed Futuroscope theme park, just over an hour from your floating base, for a thoroughly modern time among its multimedia, cinema and audio-visual attractions, including shows, exhibitions, games and 3D and 4D cinemas. About 25 minutes away by car is La Vallée des Singes or Monkey Valley, where 30 species of over 400 monkeys from all over the world live among the trees. Another excellent family option is the baronial castle of Château d'Harcourt, an hour away in the medieval town of Chauvigny, for adrenalised 45-minute falconry shows. For a more placid base, drive for an hour on a bookish trip to the literary town of Montmorillon and its booksellers, calligraphers and 20 or so bookshops.