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A few One Off Places are still looking to fill their Christmas and New Year slots - what better than to escape with family, friends and loved ones during the festive period to a former folly, a treehouse, an eco retreat, a hall, boathouse, windmill or beachfront hideaway.

Lee and I have owned a holiday cottage in Lower Normandy for 10 years now, so we are quite familiar with all things “French”, including the stunning architecture.  One thing newcomers to France may notice is a proliferation of Chateaux.  Castles in the UK are few and far between and most are tourist destinations; many are looked after by The National Trust and other similar organisations.  Not so in France where many historic beauties are empty, discarded, unloved and some in ruins! 

`Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar....`.  This famous quote by Antonio Machado translates as: `traveller there is no path, you make the path by walking`. To me, this sums up our journey - when we found our wonderful finca it was wild and beautiful, it still is but now you can experience it, live within the atmosphere. 

Whether you want a UK break away or a dash to slightly warmer climes, here’s a selection of family friendly One Off Places which still have availability during October half term.

I’ve lived on the island of Mallorca for over seventeen years, arriving from Scotland after falling in love with a Mallorcan. We lived in a rural area known as Es Pla – the fertile plain at the centre of the island - and during my first few years there I learnt the language by immersion, gave birth to three boys and had a crash course in Mallorcan culture including wine making, becoming familiar with the old tales called Rondaies and the folk tunes sung to the traditional drum the ximbomba.  We grew our own fruit and vegetables, had solar panels and water from our own well and I began to develop an English language school using art, music and drama, working only with Mallorcans in the local area.