To avoid any problems during your stay, please take a few minutes to familiarise yourselves with our house rules.
These form the basis of our Terms & Conditions, so any failure to respect them may result in a breach of contract, and all that might imply.
Please do not leave your car parked in the courtyard entrance, other than for briefly loading and unloading your luggage. To speed this up (and make it easier), you’ll find a baggage trolley in the garden shelter. If you text/call us on arrival, we will come & meet you with this if required.
There are four car parks within very close proximity (see Local Facilities Map), the closest and most secure of which is the Aire Camping-Car Park, just 200m by foot via a little alley. In addition to dedicated facilities for motorhomes, this has about 50 car parking spaces as well as a few for coaches. Please do not use the coach spaces for your car, even if others appear to be doing so. This car park is covered by CCTV security cameras, but the nearby alternatives are just as secure as there is virtually zero crime in our small community.
We can take no responsibility for theft of or damage to vehicles. In the unlikely event of either happening, we will be happy to help you contact the Gendarmerie.
If you are holidaying with bicycles, you are welcome to store your bike(s) under the garden shelter.
Please WALK your bikes(s) in the courtyard and along the alley to the house.
Although there is virtually zero crime in Lion-sur-Mer, we strongly recommend that you securely lock bikes at night or if left unattended elsewhere. We will take no responsibility for their theft or damage, but in the unlikely event of either happening, we will be happy to help you contact the Gendarmerie.
Both motorists and cyclists should be aware that the speed limit in the Rue Edmond Bellin is 20 Km/h (that’s 12.5 mph), and that pedestrians always have right of way.
Parents with children will be pleased to hear this, but should also ensure that children do not run into the road – there is always a chance that an idiot is out and about.
We advertise Le Gai Séjour as a quiet haven by the sea, and expect our guests to live up to that promise too.
We’re not talking about excited chatter over a barbecue and a couple of bottles of wine, or the natural exuberance of children playing in the garden. Both are only to be expected from people enjoying their holiday or break.
What we won’t tolerate is excessively loud music inside or outside the house, doubly so after 11pm (23.00hrs).
If you have to listen to music at warp factor 13, please do so via headphones. This applies especially to the bedrooms and the main living room, both of which adjoin neighbouring properties.
Similarly, we don’t care for selfish, yobbish behaviour in general. We expect our guests to act in a civilised and sociable manner that doesn’t upset us (the proprietors) or our neighbours.
If we find the behaviour of guests persistently unacceptable, we will have no hesitation in expelling them from the property without refund, as per our Terms & Conditions.
We’ve tried to make the house and garden of le Gai Séjour as child-friendly as possible, but ultimately the responsibility for keeping (particularly small) children out of harm’s way rests with parents.
Bathroom and kitchen cleaning products are deliberately placed in cupboards well out of reach of small children, so please ensure they are put back where they belong after use. Likewise, all such chemical products come with child-proof caps, but please make certain they are correctly replaced after use – we can accept no responsibility for any lack of parental vigilance. In the garden, we only ever use safe organic products, but these too are kept next door, well out of reach of curious children.
The wooden stairs are attractive and original, but quite steep and potentially slippery in stockinged feet or shiny-soled shoes!
Likewise, the central window upstairs has been fitted with a bar, but please don’t leave small children unattended in this part of the house unless the window is firmly closed. This central upstairs room is however ideal for keeping infants & toddlers close by the principal bedrooms, so if used as such, please ensure you securely close the window either fully or by using the limiter-lock provided if it’s very hot.
The garden is as safe a space for small children as is possible. All tools are locked away (mostly next door) and very few people, other than the friendly post lady find their way down the alley.
The only real potential danger is if you use the BBQ, so when/if you do, please DO NOT leave small children unattended – again, simple parental responsibility.
Please do not smoke or vape in the house, or drop cigarette butts in the garden – they are incredibly polluting.
If you wish to smoke in the garden, please use the ashtrays provided. When you empty the ashtrays, please do so into a black bin bag and subsequently the black wheelie bin prior to your departure.
Please ensure all cigarettes are fully extinguished prior to binning them.
Le Gai Séjour is a holiday home, not a party venue!
If you have local friends or friends staying locally we have no objection to your hosting them for early evening drinks, dinner or a BBQ, but please respect the neighbours in relation to the rules laid out under Noise & Neighbourhood above.
If your group consists of less than the normal maximum of six persons, we have no objection to one or two friends staying overnight, but like all other guests, they must comply with the house rules laid out here. Adults may also be liable to pay the Taxe de Séjour (tourist tax).
We must stress the need for parental vigilance with small children in the kitchen – especially when cooking. We cannot be responsible for any accidents or injuries that might occur; it is the parents’ responsibility
We check that all appliances & utilities are in good working order before you arrive, but should you experience a problem, please let us know as soon as possible and we will endeavour to have it rectified at the earliest possible moment.
If you fry foods that leave any amount of excess fat or grease, please allow it to set, then dispose of it in the bin before washing the pan(s), be it in the dishwasher or sink. Disposing of it into the water system is a primary cause of blockages (and eventually bad smells) and will cause everyone inconvenience and possibly cost.
Please put away or cover foodstuffs, and clean surfaces after eating. Flies are never really a nuisance here, provided you don’t encourage them!
The golden rule with the bathroom, and especially the toilet, is the oft stated cliché ‘Please leave it as you would wish to find it!’ – this especially applies when you are about to leave.
Please do not dispose of anything in the toilet other than that which it is designed for. Similarly, only use the toilet paper provided or any you may buy in addition. Anything else, notably tampons, earbuds, makeup wipers etc. should be disposed of in the bin provided.
Please do not allow hair to build up in the shower or sink outlets. These can also be a cause of blockages, so please dispose of it in the bin provided.
Failing to observe these rules may mean us having to get a plumber in at short notice, which is both difficult, expensive and doubly inconvenient for you. You may also be presented with the bill!
We always give the house a thorough clean in between guests’ departure and new arrivals, but often have very little time to do so.
As such, we would be enormously grateful if you could endeavour to leave the property in the same state of cleanliness as you found it. Likewise, if you could empty bins and strip the bed sheets ready for us to put straight into the washing machine.
The garden (approx. 75m2) is entirely at your disposal, and being south facing, is protected from the sea breezes and a haven of sunshine throughout much of the year. It is also a safe haven for children to play in. Very few strangers come down the alley, and you will be able to keep half an eye on them from all parts of the house excepting the toilet.
Please refrain from dropping cigarette butts or any other detritus. Similarly, please ensure you thoroughly remove any broken glass in the event of a breakage.
Ball Games
Ball games are NOT permitted in the garden – there’s a huge beach at the bottom of the road!
Fruits & Flowers
In late summer or early autumn, the figs are becoming ripe, but please do not pick them. We will do that when they’re good and ready, and are happy to share them with our guests. Please Note: The netting over the tree (only when ripening begins) is there to deter greedy birds not humans! If you see a bird caught in the netting, please let us know and we will free it. You are equally welcome to do so if inclined. We like our feathered friends and invariably have a well-stocked feeder hanging in the garden.
Similarly, the flowers are there for all to enjoy, but leave them for us to pick and place in the gîte as and when there is a surfeit.
Please dispose of your rubbish in the bins provided before leaving.
We empty the bins at the bottom of the garden as and when weekly or fortnightly collections are made.
Black Bin
Please put all household waste in the black plastic bags provided and make sure they are well secured before placing them in the black bin. This considerably reduces odours. We remove these every Sunday evening for collection early on Monday morning and return it at the earliest time possible. Thus, if you arrive during the week or on a Saturday, you may find that the black bins have not yet been emptied – they will be on the following Sunday.
Yellow Bin
This is exclusively for plastics, cardboard and papers, but is only collected every two Tuesdays, so may be partially full when you arrive. Again, to reduce any odours, please ensure any containers are thoroughly rinsed before binning them. We will remove and return this bin at the earliest possible moment.
Green Bin
This is for garden waste, so you’re unlikely to use it. You can however use it for things like cauliflower leaves etc. Please DO NOT use it for dog waste. There’s a dedicated bin for this on the street just outside the courtyard entrance.
Glass Bottle Bin
The closest glass bin is situated in the car park behind Le Fabrique Hotel Bar (see Local Facilities Map). Any broken glass should also be taken directly here – we provide some sturdy cardboard boxes for this purpose. Please put wine corks (not plastic ones) in the bag provided – we recycle these too.
Guests do not need to worry about taking the bins out on the correct days – that’s our job!
At present, the annex at the bottom of the garden is treated as a separate and private space to the main house, and thus locked and out of bounds.
Very occasionally it will be occupied for a night or two (we will let you know if this is the case), but generally it is just used for storage, washing and drying linen etc.
In the future, we may extend the house accommodation to include this as a self-sufficient bedsit; ideal for either sulky teenagers or anyone else who wants their own space.
Accidents happen, but we do expect guests to let us know if any damage or breakages should occur.
We’re not so mean as to charge you for the odd glass or mug, but please bear in mind that it can sometimes be difficult to replace one item of a matching set, so we may have to make a deduction from your security deposit in this event.