Traditions hotels may be great for some but not all travellers. If you are looking for a quaint or more intimate rural kind of experience, a bed and breakfast option might be perfect for you. In France bed and breakfast establishments are called chamber d'hotes. Because they include a more personable approach, chambre d'hote lodging is commonly available in smaller towns and rural areas.

Depending upon the department and the local regulations, hosts can offer five or six bedrooms. Some chamber d'hotes have rooms suitable for disabled guests and others have no handicapped lodging available whatsoever.

Unlike a regular hotel, a bed & breakfast or chambre d'hote has fewer rooms and is usually run by a single person or family. Instead of a large building, a bed & breakfast or chambre d'hote usually is a large house with rooms converted for visitors or a smaller building with simple rooms. Not all chamber d'hotes are small or larger houses. The other extreme of the range is the large renaissance chateau with a maximum of six rooms available to hire. These chateau chambre d'hotes are a hybrid of a typical chambre d'hote and a dirty big chateau hotel but without the sixty guests. What is common amongst the range available is the homey appeal of a chambre d'hote as opposed to a regular hotel.

As the name implies, a bed & breakfast is not usually a place that you will lounge in all day. Most are located in tourist areas handy for local attractions. They attract guests who want to visit the local interests but who prefer a more homely environment to a hotel room. The chambre d'hotes scattered throughout the Loire Valley are usually handy for visiting the historic chateaux and vineyards. The one hundred mile stretch from Orleans to Tours has the highest concentration of historic chateaux to visit. The Kings and Queens of France literally chateau hopped along the Loire River with their three thousand strong royal court and their furniture in tow.

Chambre d'hotes are usually a place to sleep and to eat in the morning. Check-in is usually during the late afternoon. Breakfast is a lovely meal prepared especially for guests; sometimes a continental breakfast with home made jams and freshly baked croissants and other pastries, seasonal fruit and cheese and charcuterie. It depends on the particular chambre d'hote where you stay.

Most people stay at a chambre d'hote or French bed & breakfast for a short time. There is no hard rule that says you cannot spend your entire two-week vacation there. Some bed & breakfasts have great tours, games traditional and electronic, pool, and other activities for guests and children to enjoy. Generally the larger the establishment and the range of activities on offer the longer you can envisage staying for a vacation. The premises may be ideal for hiring exclusively with friends and family for a long vacation.

No matter what bed & breakfast you choose, try to find one that fits your specific needs. Do your homework. Some do not accept families with children under a certain age. Others specifically have rooms only for single travellers. Enquire which languages are spoken by the hosts. Chambre d'hote or Bed & breakfast options are extremely varied, so hunt around until you find the perfect one for you vacation.