Animals and local products: the winning combination to enjoy a bucolic break in the Land of Pickles! This summer, the Tourist Office is offering you a special program to (re)discover the know-how of its local producers. The goal? Highlighting the region's farms through friendly visits, designed for families and particularly suitable for children!
Program : animals to cuddle, the discovery of local know-how, gourmet snacks and souvenirs to collect as a tribe.
Sheep, goats, cows, and bees... It's also an opportunity to experience unexpected encounters. And for the truly curious? We suggest a visit to a farm! Cheese factory, distillery, flower farm, and more. Which one will you fall for?
Here are our top 5 farm visits to be as close as friends in Pickle Country!
1 – The Four Seasons Mohair Farm
(I.e. The New House – Saint-Julien-des-Landes
📅 July 21, 28 and August 4, 2025 – From 14:30 p.m. to 16 p.m.
💡 A visit is also possible all year round during school holidays reservation.
Fancy a wonderful encounter? Bénédicte and her Angora goats await you at her farm. You can touch, smell, and understand: from shearing to making clothes, each step of the mohair transformation is passionately explained to the whole family during a visit. As a bonus? A furry snack made with local products.
A moment as delicious as it is interesting for parents and children alike!
Do not miss : Angora goat scratching and Bénédicte's personalized mohair course. There's only one thing left to do: fall for one of her pieces to spend the next winter warm in this material!
Note : the farm is labeled “Welcome to the farmThis label guarantees quality farm products and authentic tourist services offered directly by farmers committed to a local and transparent approach.
🎥For Bénédicte's video portrait, click here!
🌞 How does a visit work? We'll explain everything right here!
2 – The 3-in-1 Farm: the Bellilocaine Bee, Market Gardening Sled and the Animals’ Vegetable Garden
(I.e. Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche
📅 July 8, 25 and August 11 – From 14 p.m. to 16:30 p.m.
Pauline, Alexandre and Cédric form a true trio of enthusiasts! Each expert in their field, they reveal all their secrets to you. Little creatures (bee)zarres, farm animals or vitamins in the fields, this visit promises to be more than complete!
🍯 Beekeeping activities
Can you hear that buzzing? Put on your beekeeping outfit and meet Cédric near the hives for a unique experience. Based on the farm's grounds, he'll reveal all the secrets of his honey production. If you thought you already knew everything about this precious nectar, the whole family might be in for a surprise!
And finally? A tasting of fragrant honey straight from the cells! Buzz.
🌾 Farm-side activities
Here, Alexandre guides you through his vegetable plots and seasonal curiosities. This passionate market gardener tells you about his job with simplicity, sharing his tips and anecdotes from the field to better understand the behind-the-scenes of outdoor market gardening. One thing's for sure: when it comes to information, you'll be far from coming up empty-handed!
And what would a farm be without its animals? Pigs, goats, chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs and other small creatures flourish in Z'Animaux Vegetable Garden. Throughout the year, Pauline offers visits to tribes to better understand how to take care of these balls of fur (or feathers!).
The little extras : direct contact with the animals and a final tasting of local products. Honey and vegetables galore!
🎥 Find out how a visit takes place
📅 To participate in another of Pauline's activities this summer, click here!
3 – The Chancellor’s Farm
(I.e. The Girouard
📅 July 11 and 25, August 1 and 26, 2025 – From 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
On this farm, a dynamic duo welcomes you for your visit: Dominique, the cheesemaker and Jean-Luc, the shepherd. Here, you can learn how to milk sheep, watch a sheepdog training demonstration, and above all... you can taste cheeses, from the freshest to the most mature.
During this 100% gourmet entertainment, become an expert on cheese in all its forms and stages of maturation: a real treat for the taste buds of children and parents alike!
❤️ Our favorite activity : the magical moment when the dog gathers the sheep in a few seconds. Unmissable!
🎥Our shepherd Jean-Luc tells you more about his activity!
4 – The Caliméros Farm
(I.e. Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche
📅 July 9 and August 6, 2025 – From 15 p.m. to 17 p.m.
Parthenaise cows (the most beautiful according to us!), donkeys and ponies : At Emmanuelle and Pierrick's, your little ones won't know where to look! During your visit, listen to the anecdotes of the latter, a former agricultural technician. It's also an opportunity for the youngest to brush the donkeys... As long as you don't drive them crazy!
🐄 What are Parthenaise cows?
Parthenaise cows are the stars of Poitou! They produce tender and flavorful meat, highly sought after by gourmets.
😋 To be enjoyed : Do you have a sweet tooth? Treat yourself to the delicious homemade rillettes offered at the end of the tour.
5 – The Petit Grain Farm
(I.e. Sainte-Flaive-des-Loups
📅 July 24 and August 21, 2025 – From 14:30 p.m. to 16:30 p.m.
At the Petit Grain Farm, Titiana Le Guen enthusiastically shares her passion for organic farming. It is in the heart of a peaceful setting that she opens the doors to her world… On one side, the free-range poultry pecking peacefully under the trees; on the other, behind the scenes of the transformation of its oats in muesli. We're already salivating, aren't you?
❤️ Favorite : tasting of homemade muesli (chocolate or honey raisin), served with compote or fromage blanc at the end of the visit.
🎥 Oats and Titiana, it’s quite a story… And she tells it to you here!
🔎 And that's not all!
Other visits to producers are also offered during the summer. While less focused on animals, they are just as informative. Mark your calendars:
- The Pierrette Cheese Factory
- The Singulières Flower Farm
- The Gardens of La Vrignaie
- The Achards Distillery (visit for over 18s)
- New in 2025: Visit to Mathieu's Oasis
- New in 2025: Visit to the Malvergne Orchards
📍 And to discover the 28 visits offered on the different farms (farm, distillery, orchard, etc.) during the summer, it's here:
Want to go further ?
👉 On our site, you will find all the direct sales points of local producers (perfect for filling your basket before going home):
👉 The Tourist Office has also created the booklet “ The Crazy Meadow » which brings together all the producers of the Pays des Achards, the seasonal produce calendar and the markets.
