Hi Patrick. You don't say what your citizenship is but if you are not a member of the EU, you are limited in the time you can spend in France. France is part of an international treaty called the Schengen Agreement (Treaty) and the USA is not a signatory. If you are a US citizen, you may only spend 90 days (3 months) within the Schengen territories. At that point you are required to leave the Schengen area for a full 90 days (another 3 months) before you are allowed to return to the Schengen area. You can stay longer but you will need a visa for that and will have to apply to your nearest consulate. You must have the visa BEFORE you leave the US.
This is Gites de France and they rent everything from in-town apartments to houses out in the country. If you are a long-term renter, you can often negotiate excellent rates, especially out of tourist season. Don't be afraid to ask about special long-term rates. We've gotten some great bargains that way. Gites de France is regulated by the French government so they are very reliable. (You may have to pay a bit higher rate during the Christmas holiday season but if you are staying for 3 months, make a point of it and see if they will relent on "high" season.) The rest of your time should be low season nearly anyplace.
In Burgundy, Beaune is a favorite town. It's small enough to get around easily but large enough to have things to do. You didn't mention the Loire valley but may I suggest that they are rumored to have the "purest" French in the country. At least anyone from the Loire will tell you that. 8^)
Tours is a large university city in the Loire and very centrally located. Nearby are many lovely villages. We spent a month recently in Montrichard and loved it. Azay-le-Rideau is small and very nice with enough shopping for your needs and reasonably priced. Check the Gites-de-France web site for both areas to see what you find and if you want to ask about any of the places, post again here.
Staying in France
Hi Patrick. You don't say what your citizenship is but if you are not a member of the EU, you are limited in the time you can spend in France. France is part of an international treaty called the Schengen Agreement (Treaty) and the USA is not a signatory. If you are a US citizen, you may only spend 90 days (3 months) within the Schengen territories. At that point you are required to leave the Schengen area for a full 90 days (another 3 months) before you are allowed to return to the Schengen area. You can stay longer but you will need a visa for that and will have to apply to your nearest consulate. You must have the visa BEFORE you leave the US.
If you are not a US citizen,m you will need to check whether your country is a Schengen country or not. You can get much of the information you need at http://www.schengenvisa.cc/ or at http://www.eurovisa.info/SchengenCountries.htm
You might consider 3 months in France instead of 6 months if you don't want to apply for a visa. For inexpensive housing, check http://www.gites-de-france.com/gites/uk/rural_gites
This is Gites de France and they rent everything from in-town apartments to houses out in the country. If you are a long-term renter, you can often negotiate excellent rates, especially out of tourist season. Don't be afraid to ask about special long-term rates. We've gotten some great bargains that way. Gites de France is regulated by the French government so they are very reliable. (You may have to pay a bit higher rate during the Christmas holiday season but if you are staying for 3 months, make a point of it and see if they will relent on "high" season.) The rest of your time should be low season nearly anyplace.
In Burgundy, Beaune is a favorite town. It's small enough to get around easily but large enough to have things to do. You didn't mention the Loire valley but may I suggest that they are rumored to have the "purest" French in the country. At least anyone from the Loire will tell you that. 8^)
Tours is a large university city in the Loire and very centrally located. Nearby are many lovely villages. We spent a month recently in Montrichard and loved it. Azay-le-Rideau is small and very nice with enough shopping for your needs and reasonably priced. Check the Gites-de-France web site for both areas to see what you find and if you want to ask about any of the places, post again here.
Good luck.