French Immersion Homestay At Teacher’s In La Livinière, Occitanie

Pierre was a wonderful host and his village is charming, in the heart of Minervois wine country. It was a pleasure to go on excursions to some extraordinary places – not least as I find the Cathar history fascinating, and some of the castles nearby are truly unique. We played tennis and I was able to go on very pleasant jogs in the countryside. The village benefits from an excellent, and inexpensive restaurant as well as a grocery store if you want to cook at home in the evening. Pierre’s own cooking was delicious – simple, healthy and excellent. Pierre was very responsive to my needs: I had passed a C1 exam several years ago but have some engrained errors. It was incredibly helpful to identify them with Pierre who helped me knock them out. He was also very helpful in giving me some ways of speaking more naturally. It was priceless (so it’s helpful his prices seem to be among the best value you can get!) to be able to sit down for a few hours every morning and tackle elements of grammar and colloquial usage that I’d never got my head around and then practice while walking in the afternoon. The sleeping quarters are spacious but very simple. The WiFi allowed me to work easily. Thanks Pierre!

My partner and I met up with Pierre and his daughter at the
gare de Carcassonne for a fortnight of immersion. Pierre and
I last met in October of 2019, so we were renewing our
contact.  My goal was to enjoy a full immersion, to discover
more about the Languedoc region and the village of La
Livinière, to improve my conversational skills and confidence,
and to develop my knowledge and use of correct French
grammar. Pretty big goals!
Pierre is a very experienced language teacher with a
background in etymology of languages and history. Each
morning, we met upstairs for French lessons where Pierre
made written notes, gave me extended examples, some
French everyday expressions, and explained more complex
points of grammar. I had access to some excellent textbooks
on Pierre’s bookshelf, in case I wanted extra practice.
The fortnight was a complete immersion in Pierre’s day-to-
day life. We shared breakfasts, lunches and some evening
meals (complete with apéros) with Pierre and family, where
we three chatted in both English and French about word
origins, European history, as well as daily life and habits of
the southern French people. We had two guided tours with
Chris, a local naturalist who farms lavender and olives, and
has worked with le maire to created signposted trails around
La Livinière. We interacted with Pierre’s petite fille, who is
très mignon – this enabled us to have an insight into true
family life!

During our free afternoons, we shopped at the village
épicerie, chatted with a few locals, visited the next-door
village of Siran and followed marked trails through the olive
groves and vineyards. On our excursions with Pierre, we
uncovered just some of the natural and historical riches of
Languedoc. We explored the hilltop medieval town of
Minerve, hiked between the Cathar châteaux de Lastours,
descended into the amazing natural gouffre géant de
Cabrespine, and experienced an olive oil dégustation with
Naz at the local co-operative. Before an exploration of the
amazing salt marshes around Peyriac-de-Mer, we had lunch
in the eel-fishing village of Bages. We watched the sun
setting from the hilltop quarry at Saint-Julien-des-Meulières
which was once the source of all the meulières for southern
France. A visit to beautiful Narbonne was a great way to end
a full-on fortnight.
We loved the region of Languedoc, enjoyed the little village
of La Livinière and can recommend the wine of Minervois.
Our thanks to you, Pierre, for a fortnight of complete
immersion in all aspects of southern French life !

Never having had any formal training in French, I decided a number of years ago as I neared retirement that I needed and wanted the challenge of learning a second language.  My learning since then has been pretty random, relying primarily on internet sources, such as intermediate French podcasts, youTube videos, etc.  Since I was going to be in France this fall, cycling in the Pyrenees, I felt compelled to find someone who could help me make sense of what I knew.
What luck to find Pierre!  As other students have mentioned, Pierre and I had lots of opportunities to organically discuss culture, family, politics, the region over Pierre’s excellent breakfasts, lunches, or on our afternoon hikes.  I so enjoyed this, and felt that these interactions and conversations gave me some confidence to speak.  But, back to our sheep:) the three hours daily of grammar and phonetics filled my greatest need and began to give me that foundation in the language that I was lacking.  Pierre is an excellent teacher, patient, and organized.  I keep reviewing my notes not wanting to lose what he shared with me.
Pierre’s accommodations are comfortable and quiet, with just the right amount of privacy while retaining the sense of immersion.  The village is very special, labyrinthine narrow medieval streets, small but so much to discover.
Our outings included a day with Pierre’s fun and energetic young daughter exploring the villages of Bages and Peyriac-de-Mer on the étangs at the edge of the Mediterranean, a long afternoon of vineyards and capitelles around La Livinières, and two days of hikes in canyons and to some of the remarkable châteaux of the Cathares.  These were active and educational outings, perfect for me.  
I learned a lot from Pierre, and felt that I was on a good trajectory to learn more but alas the week ended, and I regretted that I couldn’t stay longer.  I will not hesitate to return if I find the opportunity.

I just returned from an incredible immersive experience with Pierre at French Today, during which I was able to get personalized attention learning the language, exploring local olive groves, hiking among castles ruins, and visiting a charming fishing village. Pierre’s love of the his country and its history was ever present, making my acquisition of the French language truly enjoyable.

I had a fantastic week with Pierre in La Livinière. I can’t imagine a more interesting, stimulating and educational week! Pierre is an extremely gifted teacher who is patient, clear, and knowledgeable. I truly enjoyed every minute of my stay. 

My experience with Pierre was a complete educational vacation in France. I loved the small village of La Liviniére with its narrow alleys, cobblestone streets, and ancient church, located in a lovely valley filled with vineyards and olive groves. His comfortable and historic house is located in the center of the village, and I found myself far away from tourists truly experiencing French life in Occitane/Provence. I can honestly say that I had the best meals of my month-long trip in France at the local restaurant, Les Meulières in La Liviniére. 

The immersion experience was a wonderful combination of classes and leisurely conversation that took place at breakfast, lunches and afternoon walks and excursions. The conversations provided the opportunity to practice the classroom lessons and to practice speaking French that went far beyond simple communication exercises. Somehow, with Pierre’s patient guidance, I was able to talk about all manner of subjects of mutual interest including French history (as motivated by the cultural and geographic features of the region), French cultural practices, life in small French towns, world events, politics, and anything at all that occurred to us. I was continually surprised at how much I could communicate and understand with his help. 

The classes took place between the delicious breakfasts and lunches that Pierre served. The focus was on French conversation as motivated by questions that arose naturally in our conversations. Pierre would take such questions and, with graceful ease, place the questions within a much broader educational context of essential modes of expression and French manners of communication. He explained not just how to communicate but also provided clear explanations of the grammatical basis so that I could adapt these ideas to my daily French. He provided loads of examples to really drive home the ideas. After every lesson, I would hurry back to my room to clarify my hastily written notes and to more fully incorporate his gems of wisdom and helpful techniques for improving my French.

I thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon outings. These were relaxed events that included walks through the rolling countryside enjoying the scenic vistas of Mediterranean France and learning about the unique and incredibly aromatic plant life of the Provence “Garrigue” environment, including sampling wild pomegranates, figs, grapes, rose hips, etc. One another afternoon, I learned all about growing and harvesting olives and olive oil at a community cooperative (and brought home some absolutely wonderful olive oil). And, best of all for me, we visited several incredible 12th century chateau/fortresses perched on dramatic ridges that embodied a rich history of medieval France and its conflicts with the rest of Europe. So much fun! 

About me: I am an older student (66) with a long-ago two years of French in high-school who has tried to make progress using on-line tools mostly on occasions of visits to France. I thought of myself as an advanced beginner with quite marginal communications skills. I certainly felt “I wasn’t good enough yet” to try a week of immersion as a solo student. I couldn’t have been more wrong! It was a super beneficial and useful week that dramatically improved my speaking and understanding of French, all while learning about French culture, geography and history.

I spent two weeks doing a French immersion course with Pierre at his charming little village in La Liviniere. It was thoroughly enjoyable and a real immersion into the French language and the local history. Pierre was very attentive to ensure that every morning that we spent learning French met my needs and always made me feel at ease no matter how many mistakes I made. And he corrected them with so much patience. I really enjoyed interacting with him, learning daily new French expressions used by French in their day-to-day interactions. For me it was a real French immersion experience. We had breakfast and lunch together every day during which we conversed with each other. After lunch Pierre organised an outing with me and that was always special. There were hikes that we did, we visited medieval villages and historic sites with castle ruins dating from ancient times. All the outings were amazing, and the best thing was that Pierre is so knowledgeable in the local region and the local history, it was as if I had a local guide with me. Anyone who is seeking an authentic French immersion experience, I really recommend Pierre to you.

If you are looking for a genuinely immersive experience, you will find it at Pierre’s house in the quaint village of La Livinière. You will truly be sharing his home- his delicious garden-fresh lunches, his TV room, his patio, and even the shower room- while still having your own separate space with WC and kitchenette on the ground floor. Pierre warmly welcomed me and my entire family (spouse and children aged 10 & 7) into his home. He was patient and kind with my children, helpful in his French lessons with me, and led the whole family on amazing afternoon excursions that allowed us to explore the beautiful Occitanie region, learn about its history and geography, improve our French, all while having fun. The children especially enjoyed meeting his adorable daughter Anaïs. Thank you Pierre, for nurturing my family’s love of the French language and culture!

My wife and I originally booked an immersion week with Pierre for 2020. However, much to our dispappointment, COVID ended up derailing those plans. As 2024 was approaching, we wanted to make spending a week with Pierre part of our 40 anniversary  in France. It was worth the wait ! My wife is relatively new to French, whereas I am at a more experienced level. Despite the disparity of our levels of French, Pierre was able to make our learning time effective and interesting  for both of us. Pierre’s knowledge of language and his ability to teach spoken French in an immersion style is exceptional. My wife was hoping to learn more of the basics of French and to establish a proper foundation upon which she could build. I was hoping to have the opportunity just to speak a lot of French, with the objective of correcting recurring mistakes of grammar, pronunciation, and accent so that French speakers would stop switching to English whenever I try to speak with them. We both got what we were hoping for ! After our week with Pierre, we spent a second week in France on a self-guided bike tour in the Dordogne/Lot area of Freance, and I can honestly say that among the dozens of interactions and conversations I had with francophones that week, there was only  one person who preferred to speakin English with me (the front desk Clerk at the Mariott in Toulouse).

In addition to the excellent learning experience, staying at Pierre’s place was also just what we were hoping for. We prefer to experience France in  the countryside closer to the people’s lives rather than in big, fancy, touristy cities. La Livinière  was just what the doctor ordered.

Additionally, Pierre’s cooking was excellent. One of my wife’s favorite French dishes savory galettes, and Pierre’s were superb ! He even made sure we had them twice !

Pierre also took us on several excrusions and beautiful hikes. We saw ancient ruins, châteaux, beautiful hamlets and villages, just to name a few. Pierre is very knowledgeable about almost everything-culture, history, plants, birds, geography, you name it ! He is also a good tennis player. Knowing that we were tennis enthusiasts, Pierre  made arrangements for us to play at his club. In addition to some fun tennis, he taught us a lot of tennis vocabulary. It will be a lot more fun the next time I watch the French Open !

Overall, our stay with Pierre was an outstanding experience and we would positively recommend an immersion stay with Pierre !

Pierre is an unusually gifted French teacher. I have taken classes and used tutors multiple times before to learn French and no one has explained things as clearly as Pierre. Not only were his sessions specifically tailored to my needs, but he patiently pushed me to a level I never expected to reach in two weeks. His teaching format is a great combination: morning sessions with more formal content and afternoon outings that provide an opportunity for relaxed and extended conversation while touring or hiking in the beautiful region near his picturesque village. He is also a delightful cook! I strongly recommend him.

Pierre is an excellent teacher and an impressive guide to his very interesting region.  I have pages and pages of notes from his lessons! He was also really fun to hang around with.  I learned so much about the history of this part of France.  We visited historic villages, an olive oil factory and hiked among ancient chateaus. Pierre is serious about his teaching and his guiding.  I found myself working harder than I expected to, but also learning more! The same is true for my understanding of history.  It is a passion of Pierre’s, and he imparts his enthusiasm!  My family and friends would have been shocked to see me climbing to see ancient chateaus, but my 75 year old self did it and was glad I did (even though I flaked out before reaching the last two.)

Pierre’s home is in a small historic village.  My space on the first floor of his home was very comfortable.  Our meals were very good and full of conversation as were our drives through the gorgeous countryside. My week with Pierre pushed me in many ways and I’m so glad it did.

My sister-in-law and I, both in our 70s, had a wonderful week with Pierre. With grace, patience and humor, he made us feel welcome, laughed at the jokes we told in broken French, and shared his beloved countryside, history, culture and, of course, language in such an interesting way. He was generous and patient with our mistakes, and we both improved in our ability to speak and understand French.

We loved “living” in La Livinere for a week, being regulars at Le Meulieres, and sharing Pierre’s delicious breakfast and lunch with him. The experience brought back many memories of our prior experiences in France, and Pierre was generous with his interest. I appreciate that he did all this – teach, host, cook, guide, advise, laugh – while also living his own busy life.

In the week after our immersion, we traveled the region; both of us were able to order in restaurants, select a cheese (“dur, pas trop fort”), ask strangers for help and successfully navigate our exploration of Albi, Pyranees, Sete, Agde, Pont-du-Gard, and Montpellier. I was able to read my Arsene Lupin book more easily on the way home than on the way there. Our explorations were deeper as a result of our improved access to the French language. Merci, Pierre.

Claire Kennedy
January 14-20, 2024

I live in Toronto and work as a lawyer and corporate director.  I have some exposure to French in a professional setting (through a board on which I serve, though I participate in English) but my interest in learning French is mostly personal. I have studied French off and on for a number of years and would describe my level as intermediate. I can read French reasonably well and can write functional French but I’m much less adept at conversational French, in part because I’m still in the mode of trying to translate from English in my head while speaking and also because I have difficulty following French speakers, who naturally don’t sound like the textbooks from which I’ve been learning!!

I decided that 2024 would be the year that I recommitted to French and I was very lucky to find Pierre on French Today.  I wanted an immersion experience, away from a large city (too easy to fall back into English) and the tailored 1:1 experience vs. a classroom setting really appealed to me.  So did Languedoc both for the milder weather in January and the fabulous wine and food (more on that later).

As eager as I was to do this course, I was nervous as the TGV from Paris pulled into Narbonne station, where Pierre was waiting to pick me up. He greeted me with a kind smile and our conversation started, haltingly for me, but he was patient and put me at ease. In under 30 minutes, we were at his charming home in the equally charming village of La Livinière. His house is very well laid out for immersion homestay –   I had essentially the whole first floor to myself with a large bedroom with private sitting area, private bathroom and kitchen (which I had no occasion to use).  Stone walls and wood beams in the ceiling created real ambiance. The dining area and living room (also site of lessons) and main kitchen were on the second floor, to which I had access, and Pierre has a private third floor loft.

After I dropped my bags and got a little settled, we headed out for a walk to get the lay of the land in the late afternoon light.  The village is surrounded by vineyards and olive groves and Mediterranean herbs and wild oak and almond trees abound.  Pierre is very knowledgeable about geology, geography and history as well as local flora and fauna so we had lots to talk about on our walk. We returned chez Pierre and he prepared a delicious meal of swordfish. During the week,Pierre prepared continental breakfast and lunch for us. He is very accommodating of dietary restrictions (I don’t eat meat or poultry) and he is an excellent cook, using fresh, local ingredients and offering local cheeses.  Evenings are free time and I availed myself of the 2 excellent restaurants in La Livinière, one casual and the other a little more formal, both with very good food and wine (reasonably priced too!) Had I felt like cooking, Pierre would have taken me to the grocery store but I was on holiday and decided I wasn’t cooking for myself.

Breakfast was served around 815 am and conversation (and learning) began.  After breakfast, there were about 3 hours of lessons.  I found the time flew by even though I was working hard. Pierre is obviously an experienced teacher and he quickly assessed where I needed the most help (yes, subjunctive, I’m talking about you!). Lessons were organic, not using textbooks, but with enough structure to be useful and enough fluidity to stay engaging and an emphasis on French as it’s spoken by native French speakers. Pierre is good at gentle, clear corrections, frequent enough to be useful but not so frequent as to sap confidence and interrupt the flow.

Not surprisingly, French is an orderly language with a logic, albeit not one always obvious to Anglophones. Pierre was very good at explaining the “why” of French language usage as well as the “what” and I’ve carried those lessons with me and find myself now figuring out the correct usage more quickly, which helps my comprehension and speaking pace (and is very satisfying!).

After lunch, we watched the lunch time news (another good way to pick up vocabulary) and then each had some “own time” before heading out on a walk/hike.  Pierre is an experienced hiker and knows many fantastic local walks, some challenging, others less so, so we had a great mix.  It was invigorating and more time for conversation on a wide variety of topics. On one gorgeous, warm afternoon later in the week, we ran into the vigneron at Château Sainte-Eulalie. I was thrilled to be able to have a spontaneous conversation in French with him and it was a good marker of how far I’d progressed, not just in the language per se but in my confidence to speak (despite my inevitable mistakes). 

I deliberately decided not to rent a car while I was in Languedoc and found I didn’t need one. There was a good restaurant open every evening in La Livinière and everything there is within walking distance but there are not a lot of shops or other amenities in the village so if getting around on your own to neighbouring towns is important to you, you might want to consider a renting car.

At the end of my stay, Pierre dropped me at the train station in Carcassone. I’m determined to return to La Livinière to improve again. Since coming home, I watch French news regularly and have downloaded a French TV App so I can watch French shows and movies with French subtitles and have started weekly lessons with a local tutor.  What a great start to the year!

I have been learning French for some time and really wanted to try an immersion as a way to boost my conversational skills. My one week stay with Pierre in November 2023 did not disappoint. Pierre always made attempts to converse in a natural way, whether we were en route to visit a historical site, eating breakfast, or checking in at the end of the evening to discuss our evening and plans for the next day. I found Pierre to be easy to talk to, yet not talking too much (incessantly) or draining my energy (since I am an introvert). He also was very helpful in giving gentle corrections while I was speaking, something I really valued. Regarding the lessons, he adapted them to work for both myself and my husband who just started learning French in the last year. He is very knowledgeable of the grammar, pronunciation and especially nuances of spoken French that one does not learn about in university courses. Our outings were tailored to our interests, and my husband and I very much enjoyed them. There are plenty of interesting things to see in the area, and Pierre was happy to take us, even in the cooler weather and sometimes a little rain. We really enjoyed Pierre’s cooking and meals as well. They were simple, nutritious and delicious. We loved trying different cheeses, and I learned that I really prefer to have a fried egg on my galette. (I would not have tried one with an egg if he had not prepared it that way.) We ate at the local restaurants in the evenings, and those were very good also, with generous portions. Pierre’s home is comfortable and met our basic needs. Overall, we very much enjoyed our time with Pierre. I highly recommend giving an immersion with Pierre a try if you are interested in improving your French language skills.

After buying a holiday house in France in 2022, I needed to start learning French. 
I spent around a year doing Duolingo and teaching myself from a book. Whilst I was making progress, I could only use the present tense.  I was too nervous to actually speak to anyone and very unsure how to pronounce the French correctly. 
I booked a week with Pierre in order to try and boost my French. I was so nervous arriving at Carcassonne airport. I needn’t have been as  Pierre was very friendly and welcoming. 
Each day we ate breakfast together and then spend 3 hours studying, with emphasis on new tenses and pronunciation. Pierre was very patient and persistent in helping me get it right. After lunch we went for a hike somewhere interesting including the Castles of Lastours and the gorgeous village of Minerve. While hiking I would try and use the French I was busy learning. It was fun! 
I chose to have half board and I really enjoyed all the lovely food Pierre prepared for me . I looked after myself in the evening which worked for me as I was pretty tired after speaking French all day and hiking. 
At the end of my week’s stay Pierre dropped me in Carcassonne where I stayed a night before flying home.  I was now able to check into the hotel, buy things and order in restaurants while speaking French. Whilst I have a long way to go, I am no longer frightened of trying to communicate. I was delighted with my progress. Thank you Pierre. 

October 8th to the 15th, 2023
There are a few things that I wanted to achieve by taking an immersion course.Feeling more confident with myself speaking and listening. Being able to use colloquial language, so as not to sound like a textbook.Given a reliable approach to continue on my learning path.All of these goals were obtained in an atmosphere that was non threatening. In fact Pierre offers a situation and accommodations that should exceed every student’s expectations!Whether you are a beginner or a confident speaker of French, Pierre will contribute to enhance your skill level, without you ever feeling awkward or intimidated. The most important thing Pierre emphasizes is that this is an ongoing process and you must be motivated to continue to learn. This is not French in 3 months!
The accommodations are comfortable, not luxurious. If you want, and I suggest you do, plan on having dinner with Pierre during the week. He loves to cook and I enjoyed each meal. He will organize outings each afternoon according to your interests. The discussions during these trips add to what you want to achieve, conversational French at a level that you are comfortable with.Pierre is extremely personable, and after my course had finished I felt as if I had developed a friendship, more than a teacher-student relationship. I am returning to France in February and March to take a few more weeks with Pierre. During the intervening time I hope to continue conversational French with online tutors twice a week.