The Fanthomes

About the FANTHOMES
We are the Fanthomes, with short-term rentals in the beautiful villages of Cogners and Tuffe. Not sure where the “holistic” title comes from, so to clarify, we are simply a good ol home with a basic lifestyle that has a lot of contact with nature.

(Please read our profile completely and carefully before sending us a request)

We are an ACTIVE short term rental facility (meaning that there is a chance that the places are rented during your stay). If so, we will have to move to another property if available or temporary suitable housing will be found to make sure that you have a place to stay (Monday-Friday).

Language(s): ENGLISH (tail end of Intermediate to FLUENT is required). A whatsapp conversation will be initiated to verify this

What we are looking for in a Worldpacker Volunteering here:
No smoking, vaping or use of drugs are allowed on this volunteer opportunity.


Even if you are not skilled at something (for general building repairs position), you must be able to do some basic chores, DYI projects such as painting, using basic power tools, gardening, cleaning, basic cooking, organising,the basics or willing to learn FAST and not take it personally if instructions are given.. For other “SKILL"-oriented positions, you MUST be an “Expert” at those Tasks to ensure that tasks can be completed well independently.

Be prepared for hard physical chores and other monotonous tasks—a little bit of everything and come prepared with appropriate clothing and shoes for your safety and comfort.

Worldpackers stay: 5 days a week
You are expected to be here helping out Monday through Friday ONLY (that is when the homes are not rented). On weekends(when the houses are rented), volunteers are expected to make their own plans and vacate the house(s). Some recommendations include weekend trips to Nantes, Tours, Angers, Rennes, Paris, etc. all of these destinations are less than 3 hours away. If, for some reason, you do not wish to go exploring and that the homes are available, you are more than welcome to stay and be on your own (the host will not be available to do anything with you unless pre-planned).
During your weekend escapade, your luggage could be stored safely in the garage or in the host’s private quarters.

Visits: Host is willing to do some visits with you whenever possible and reasonable. Host will offer 2 local visits (Le Mans and Vendome) at no extra charge.

Accomodations:
*You have your own private room in a small house and 1 common/shared bathroom. Please keep your bedroom clean and tidy for cleanliness and to prevent rodent infestation. NO FOOD and or DRINKS allowed IN BEDROOMS (any damage caused by breaking these rules will result in you being charged for replacement of bedding/furniture, etc.)
*Common areas (such as bathroom, living room, dining room, kitchen and or any other areas that are not your private bedroom) are to be kept FREE of personal property as well as debris for the comfort of all. Reminder that this is a SHARED space with other volunteers as well as the host. Please keep ALL of your personal belongings in your private space. Host will not be held accountable for theft or damage due to failure to comply with these rules.
At the end of your stay, you are required to leave your room the way you received it(meaning bed linen changed and dirty linen washed and hung to dry as well as sweeping the floor and dispose of your trash properly).

Cultural exchanges:
Eating meals together is very important for the cultural exchange part since that is the only moment we all have together to share. Please be advised that you will be sharing lunches(2pm) and dinners(7:30pm) with your host Monday to Friday. You are on your own for breakfast (food is provided in the fridge).

Here is what a typical day looks like here for worldpackers on TASKS POSITIONS ONLY. For other non-task related positions, please see host for more details.:
A work planning meeting is done every night at the dinner table for the next day
*Breakfast on your own when you feel like it BEFORE we start working
*We start working at 9am: Some prefer working straight (9am - 2pm), others (9am - 12pm, break for lunch then 2pm - 4pm. A schedule must be picked and stuck with so we ALL are on the same page (voting system, majority rules).
*Dinner is usually at 7:30PM
All/MOST meals for lunch and dinner are cooked by your host. So please advise as fast as possible if you have any dietary restrictions. Note that for some specific restrictions, like gluten-free, it will be your own responsibility to purchase your own gluten free bread due to the high cost. If you need any personal/extra food, it will be at your own cost. Arrange with the host for trips to the supermarket.

It is VERY VERY important for us to keep the place clean and tidy so we appreciate hosting volunteers who are neat and organised. Please consider that our daily life tasks are not part of the working time. We all cook, eat, wash, and clean up after ourselves. This is a shared space, so we all need to play a part in taking care of it.

Getting around:
We live in very small villages with either minimal to zero public transportation. So please research and budget as to how you want to get around.

The host (graciously) offers to pick you up upon arrival and drops you off during departure at the nearest public transportation system available. Please contact the host BEFORE buying tickets for arrivals and departures to make sure that it fits with her schedule.
Bikes(to be used at your own risks and peril) are provided in Cogners for use locally and the rest of the time, you will rely on the host to drop and pick you up(in Connerre or Le Mans locations only). Please budget for an average of 10 euros each time the host picks/drops you off for extra trips outside of arrival/departure.
Potential money saving tip: Plan your trips if possible around the host's trips to Le Mans or Connerre to avoid paying the extra fee.

We look forward to welcoming you with open arms and count on you to help us make your stay with us agreable.
Best

You will be coming into already setup B&Bs in operation. Not the Taj but in my opinion confortable spaces. We have 4 homes, 3 are on the same spot in a quiet village next to one another and the 4th home in another charming village with a lake. There is a very good chance that we visit and do projects in all 4 homes. Here, almost everything we do is done with a purpose of exploring different cultures

I am a solopreneur but am greatful to have a team full of kind helpers who accompany me and help a lot. Nevertheless, I absolutely love to work on my projects, learn from volunteers, share my culture with volunteers, reuse and give objects second chances and then some