French Immersion Homestay At Teacher’s near Vannes, Brittany

We so enjoyed our week with Florence and Dawson in August! They made us feel like family. The mornings instructions were excellent and perfectly pitched to our level of French. And the afternoon excursions were as enjoyable as they were educational. Also, we left with quite a few of Florence’s recipes and have been cooking them at home. We highly recommend “Chez Flo” and hope to return! Tanya and Stewart

We heartily recommend an immersion with Flo, whose basic approach was to pay close attention to areas where each of us struggled in conversation, and then select exercises to work on those areas. Emphasis was placed on the kinds of errors that are most likely to lead to misunderstanding, with a good mix of written and oral exercises. There were several excursions to choose from, and they often provided opportunities to practice. We did find it helpful to have a car (but you could do without) to do some sight-seeing during free time, which also provided opportunities to practice speaking. Meals were lovely, with lots of home-grown produce and terrific support from the family in speaking. Finally, the accommodations are particularly nice. You can’t go wrong here!

First of all, I cannot say enough positive things to describe my week of Immersion Chez Flo. All aspects of my stay were absolutely amazing! I had some pretty specific goals and things I wanted to focus on during my stay. I shared these with Florence beforehand. She is so well organized and is THE most outstanding teacher! She had prepared a wealth of materials to address each of my goals with a ton of exercises to challenge me and practice. No question that my fluency and knowledge improved during the week. We studied together, we laughed, she motivated me and we had fun. I didn’t speak any English the entire week – which was the idea, right? From the moment I arrived, I felt right at home. The gîte is beautiful, spacious, very well equipped and extremely comfortable. The entire family is so welcoming I really felt like a family member, not a guest. I had an enjoyable afternoon spent with Florence’s mother as well, where we just chatted about everything and anything and explored her magnificent garden together. She is an impressive and sweet lady.

I arrived on the day of the European elections and had the unique experience of accompanying Florence and her daughter Leyla to the local polling station where they were officiating the voting and counting the ballots. As we watched the results unfold, live, it was clearly a pivotal moment to be in France!

I really appreciated the relaxing countryside setting of Florence’s home – a true oasis. However, this is no desert! The village of Saint-Jean-Brévelay is only a 2km walk away. This area of Brittany has so much to see and do. It’s hard to say which excursion I enjoyed the most. Vannes was charming, with its colorful market, half-timbered houses, and historical buildings reminiscent of Alsace or Germany. The prehistoric ruins of Carnac which make you wonder how on earth did they do that, and why? And then there was the Golfe du Morbihan. This was truly a highlight for me as I adore the water and sailing. We took a boat excursion throughout this inland sea which has around 40 islands. There was an onboard live commentary to tell us stories about the area and information on the history, geography and oysters farms. Another fantastic opportunity for French comprehension, while taking in the beauty of the surroundings & fresh air. We got off the boat at Île aux Moines, the largest island, where we walked / hiked for almost two hours along coastal paths, beside seclude beaches and up and down narrow winding lanes lined with flowers.

I would absolutely recommend an immersion with Florence, without hesitation. No matter what your level, she will design a program that EXACTLY meets your individual needs and you will thrive.

Thank you, Florence, and your entire family, for an exceptional learning experience and an unforgettable week.

I couldn’t have wished for a better French immersion experience than the week I spent with Flo!  She is a perfect host, and a wonderful French teacher. Each day, Florence devoted herself to my comfort and enjoyment of my stay in France, engaging me all the while in French conversation and formal instruction. Everywhere Florence took me, every recipe we prepared together, she shared her knowledge of French and Breton culture and history. I ate delicious meals, spoke a lot of French and received excellent, systematic teaching where improvement in my oral and written French was needed. I highly recommend an immersion stay with Flo!  

My four days with Florence and her family in May were more than I had hoped for. She is a wonderful host, very thoughtful and generous and it was an unforgettable experience to be part of her family life for this short time. She was very quick to pick up my ‘weaknesses’ in French and guide me through a range of exercises and explanations that were easy to understand and follow. My French definitely improved even in this short time. We explored some lovely regions of Brittany and she was very knowledgeable about the area and obviously very passionate about the history. I highly recommend Flo’s homestay immersion and I will definitely be going back when I have the chance. Suzette,

Nous avons passé un excellent séjour chez Flo. La réservation a été simple a effectuer, le logement était très confortable et nous avions tout ce dont nous avions besoin.

Florence a très bien compris, et très vite, les domaines linguistiques sur lesquels nous devions travailler, les cours étaient intenses mais aussi très amusants.

Les excursions on été très bien choisies et bien expliquées, nous avons beaucoup appris sur la culture bretonne, l’histoire et la vie quotidienne de la famille de Florence et des habitants.

Les repas étaient merveilleux, simples et goûteux, cela nous a donné un goût de la culture gastronomique bretonne.

Merci beaucoup Florence, c’était une expérience merveilleuse, tu es une personne chaleureuse et amusante. C’était un plaisir.

Être chez Flo est comme si on est en famille. Nous nous sentions comme si nous étions de vieux amis, et chaque détail a été soigné, y compris mon besoin de manger sans gluten.

J’ai fait plusieurs immersions avec French Today et la dernière était il y a 4 ans.  Cette fois-ci, je suis allée chez Florence pendant 2 semaines  à Saint Jean Brévelay en Bretagne,  Une semaine ma sœur m’a rejoint, l’autre semaine, mon amie. C’était dans les meilleures 2 semaines en France qu’on a passées. On a de la chance !

Merci beaucoup Florence, c’était une excellente immersion, C’était harmonieux, riche et profond avec beaucoup de qualité et de variété. Pendant les 2 semaines, j’ai travaillé dur, donc j’ai beaucoup appris. C’était assez épanouissant, fatigant et aussi satisfaisant, mais c’était l’objectif! Bravo !

En plus, il y avait des activités en dehors des cours. Florence nous a emmenées à Auray, Carnac, visiter un Château, un musée, et surtout au marché de Vannes, où on a acheté des saucissons, des fruits, des légumes, des fruits des mer, comme des huîtres, des saint- Jacques, et un gros crabe de 2 Kg.  On a eu beaucoup d’opportunités de parler en français avec  les gens locaux, dans des vrais situations. C’était les meilleures expériences!

Grâce à l’hospitalité de Florence, j’ai rencontré ses parents, Annick  et Guy, un couple charmant et très gentil, et ses  amies, Liliane , Véronique et Viviane, des femmes adorables et charmantes !

Quand on prenait des apéritifs, ou en partageant les repas, j’ai beaucoup appris sur toutes les histoires de 14-18, 39-45, et ce qui s’était vraiment passé dans les environs du village et dans leur pays. Nous avons passé ensemble des moments précieux.

Quelle ambiance, quelle chance et quelle joie pour être accompagné par tant de gens, qui sont aimables, sincères et encourageants quand on s’entraîne à parler une nouvelle langue.
Et ça marche, ça marche très bien. En fait, j’ai commencé à parler en français avec plus de fluidité ! C’était comme un rêve devenant réalité.

Merci encore Florence et Dawson, c’était  un séjour exceptionnel.
Le logement était calme,  les repas copieux, l’accueil chaleureux, les cours dynamiques , et bien adaptés à moi…

Florence et Dawson, Je vous remercie encore et à bientôt,  j’attends notre prochaine avec l’impatience !!

Je voulais progresser en français et passer du temps en France, donc j’ai choisi de faire une immersion. C’était une expérience absolument incroyable ! Le logement était parfait et j’ai beaucoup aimé le village de Saint-Jean-Brévelay. La vue du gite était magnifique !

Pour les cours, j’ai beaucoup appris en une semaine. Avant l’immersion, j’avais toujours ce sentiment de stagner en français, et Florence m’ai aidé de comprendre mes points de faiblesse pour que je puisse améliorer mon français. C’était génial d’utiliser le français dans la vie quotidienne pour progresser. Avec les cours et toutes les conversations, juste après une journée, j’ai pensé et j’ai rêvé en français !

Les excursions étaient magnifiques ! Florence connait tellement de choses sur l’histoire et elle nous a raconté l’histoire pendant les excursions. J’ai adoré visiter le château de Suscinio et c’était la première fois pour ma mère de voir un château. J’ai aussi beaucoup aimé Vannes. C’était très cool de voir le marché et j’ai pratiqué le français en achetant des choses au marché. Le pique-nique à Arzon avec la vue époustouflante était une journée parfaite. A la fin de la semaine, on a eu la chance de diner avec la famille de Florence. C’était une bonne façon de pratiquer parler français avec d’autres personnes.

Merci Florence et Dawson pour cette immersion inoubliable !

I decided to try a week of immersion with Florence to accelerate my language learning and to evaluate my true level of ability. Florence and her family provided activities, constant exposure to spoken French, wonderful food, and comfortable, quiet accommodations. Her classes are completely tailored to your desires and she will expose weaknesses that you probably didn’t even know were there. If you are hesitant to speak due to a lack of experience, confidence, or base of grammar, she will make you feel comfortable. I would highly recommend the experience to any ability level, especially if you are interested in the beautiful countryside and small towns of western France.

A week with Florence will amaze you. Somehow, you’re able to spend six days conversing only in French and not feel completely overwhelmed. You’ll begin to really enjoy speaking with Flo, her family, her friends, and her neighbors as they make you part of their world.

The daily lessons are challenging, but that’s what you’re here for and you see yourself progressing daily. In addition, Flo has an uncanny way of quickly pinpointing your needs and gently helping you overcome your blockages. She’ll make you impressed with yourself!

Then there are the meals . . . yes, I ate very well but also learned to cook some traditional Breton foods so I brought back a little of Chez Flo to share with family and friends. Foods are local and fresh and in season there are eggs and vegetables from the home (not to mention Flo’s father’s cider).

The village is an easy walk away via paths and fields and lovely rural countryside. It was a lovely time to reflect and enjoy and breathe the non-polluted air (this from a city-dweller who noticed the difference immediately).

There were excursions as well to a nearby city and the beautiful Gulf of Morbihan, but my favorite was to the Carnac alignments. It was beyond my imaginings and since it was winter, we could go amidst the standing stones and appreciate the Neolithic society that created this intensely magical place. Since Flo is from the region, we went to a “Tumulus” she knew where we were alone inside. Never in my life could I have expected something so special. I loved that we escaped the tourists. And to add to the authenticity, on the way there we ran into a farmers’ tractor blockage of the route and you can’t get more authentic French than that.

I loved it all.

Spending an immersion week with Florence in Brittany has all the ingredients you need for a fabulous time. Florence and Dawson live in a beautifully renovated farm building attached to a two bedroomed Gite that’s equally well designed. Both Florence and Dawson are welcoming, friendly and generous and go out of their way to make guests feel at ease and at home.

Alan and I had different levels of French but despite this Florence managed our lessons making sure that each of our needs were catered for. We shared most of our meals with Florence, Dawson and occasionally their busy son Luca, along with the additional daily entertainment from Maya their boxer dog. Despite being a somewhat complex dog she soon relaxes, greets you with enthusiasm! She is a real sweetie and we both fell in love with her. Florence’s cooking is delicious, mainly vegetarian and a lot of the produce comes from their own kitchen garden plus their 13 or so chickens. On one evening we had a go at making Galettes on a special hot plate under the close supervision of Dawson, who was clearly an expert.

During our stay we went on three outings that we had chosen, the local ‘Musee de la Resistance’, Carnac’ – the famous world Heritage site and ‘Vannes’ on market day. Each one of these offered extra opportunity to listen and talk French on the journeys there and back, and Florence gave us plenty of expert information

We were also very fortunate with the weather in our early October week. The sunsets were beautiful, and we were able to spend time relaxing or doing our French exercises outside sitting on our Terrace surrounded by fields of maize.

We both thoroughly enjoyed our stay with Florence and Dawson and wouldn’t hesitate in recommending them. I’m certainly hoping to revisit them if possible for a longer period next year.  Phoebe

Thanks for a brillant holiday, your hospitality, delicious meals, your teaching and showing us very  interesting historic places.It was also a privilege and a pleasure to meet your family and friends.

I’m sure my very rusty French has improved, as a result of your efforts.

I would definitely recommend your place to family and friends for an immersion course. Alan.

I have just spent the most wonderful week at Chez Flo. Flo went above and beyond to make my stay an incredible experience. She is passionate about both teaching and her beautiful region and that passion showed in the really well-thought-out lessons and activities. Flo’s patience in revising what I should remember and ability to explain what was new and difficult, were both remarkable. And each outing we did came with either a detailed, colourful explanation of the history or simply local treats! Flo’s home/family are warm and welcoming and my accomodation was extremely comfortable and private with its own kitchen and living area. It was a truly special week and not just because of the huge leap forward I made in French. I am already planning when I can return!

J’ai vraiment profité de rester avec Florence et sa famille. Je suis une étudiante médicale en Angleterre et je vais faire des stages en France dans les prochaines années. Les visites étaient très personnalisées,et j’ai visité les endroits qui m’intéressaient tels que le musée de la résistance. Florence a expliqué la grammaire compliquée d’une manière très simple et je me sens beaucoup plus confiante avec mon niveau de français après mon séjour. Sa famille était très bienveillante aussi – merci Florence!

J’ai assisté au cours d’immersion avec Flo cette année et c’était super. Flo est un excellent professeur et j’aimais beaucoup son style et comment j’étais immédiatement à l’aise avec elle et sa famille, y compris ses parents. J’ai eu des expériences très spéciales et on a bien mangé ! Le gîte est très confortable et bien aménagé avec une ambiance très calme. À la fin du cours, j’étais bien préparée pour voyager en France avec plus de la confiance en moi. Je continue mes leçons avec Flo en Australie sur Skype et j’ai hâte de retourner chez Flo l’année prochaine pour un autre cours d’immersion. Je peux recommander Flo comme professeur de français sans réservation.

Brittany is such a beautiful part of France, far from the more worn tourist route normally taken. Here is a chance to experience ‘real’ France and the French way of life. Flo is a warm, generous and accommodating host and a great teacher of the French language and French culture. She is especially passionate about Brittany and its history and I learnt so much in the short time I spent with her and her wonderful family. I highly recommend staying in their lovely gite which is adjacent to the family home. I was so struck by this location. It is surrounded by serene and beautiful countryside and just a short way from the gorgeous village of St Jean- Brevelay (don’t miss the épicerie fine) and from Vannes. I really loved Vannes – the old Bretagne centre, the canals, art galleries, food and flea markets, a chocolate exposition (wow!) And its nearby oyster/seafood cabanes. We also took a boat out from there to the islands in the Gulf de Morbihan which I enjoyed immensely. Above all though, my French language certainly improved and yes, it is true, after only a few days I was thinking and dreaming in French! Thank you Flo