A place for your creative retreats,
in the heart of the Vendée.
You run creative workshops, residencies or retreats, and you're looking for a place that holds both the work and the rest. La Grange Essartaise rents you the venue: a workshop space adjoining two independent cottages, in the quiet of the Vendée bocage, 35 minutes from Puy du Fou.
The whole estate, yours alone.
You book the whole place: a workshop space adjoining the two cottages, and 8 individual beds (four per cottage) across Sand Baya and Le Cottage du chemin des chênes. Everyone gets a real bed in a real house, around one shared garden.
Beds are made on arrival, linen provided, end-of-stay cleaning included: your group focuses on the work while we keep the house.
From a weekend to a week, for any kind of making.
The place suits weekend workshops as much as week-long residencies: drawing, ceramics, jewellery, writing, textile, photography, and whatever you offer your community. It is made for adults, in small groups.
Weekdays and the low season, outside school holidays, are the most open windows: that is when the place is yours, without overlapping the family stays.
You lead, we keep the house.
You bring your programme and your group; we provide the place, the lodging and the housekeeping. The workshop layout (tables, light, storage) is set up with you to fit your activity: tell us what you need. The quote is built to measure, by length, season and the services you want.
What exactly do we rent?
The whole place: the adjoining workshop and both cottages (8 individual beds), with the garden. You book it privately and your group has the estate to itself.
Is the workshop equipped?
The workshop is a work space adjoining the cottages. The layout (tables, light, storage) is set with you to fit your activity: tell us what you need and we prepare accordingly.
How many participants can you host?
Up to 8 guests overnight: one individual bed each, around four per cottage, so no one has to share a bed or a sofa with people they’ve just met. For an already-formed group who know each other, or a daytime workshop without an overnight stay, write to us: we’ll look at it together.
Can we come midweek or off-season?
Yes, and it is the better choice. Weekdays and the low season, outside school holidays, are the most open windows for a creative group in the quiet.
Who leads the activities?
You do. We provide the place, the lodging and the housekeeping; you keep control of the programme, the teaching and your community.
When do you open, and how do we book?
We open in spring 2027. Join the waiting list with your project, and we will set the first dates together as soon as the calendar opens.
Planning a workshop or a creative retreat?
Write to us with your project: dates in mind, format, number of participants, type of activity, and we'll put together a proposal. We open in spring 2027; the waiting list lets you hold your first dates first.