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The monk's old bakery, now a gracefully restored family gîte - find a medieval oven, French windows and loungers to laze by the pool beyond

Another graceful restoration by Dutch owners in rural France. In five hectares of woods, meadow and orchard stand a ruined Cistercian abbey and the abbot's palace. Your delightful hosts, with three children, have poured hearts and talents into the place. They live in the 18th-century abbot's palace, do popular B&B and have converted the old barn, built with abbey stones, into several gîtes, including this bakery for eight. A tangle of greenery envelops the generous, two-storey cottage, with its terracotta floors, stone walls, cream drapes, antiques and open fire. The medieval bread oven is still intact, the super new kitchen looks into the dining area, French windows open to a west-facing patio with loungers and barbecue, serenity and light. This is marvellous for robust children: hollow trees to hide in, woods to build dens in, a dressing-up box to raid; friends in the other gîtes; bikes, ping-pong, trampoline, pool and games; cats, dog and pony – and trailer tractor rides. On Thursdays in summer, great big barbecues are held in the courtyard for (mostly Dutch) guests and friends.