December Prayer Weekend report

The weekend of 12 and 13 December saw friends of LPO gathering from various parts of the UK and France to pray for all aspects of the ministry here.

It was great to welcome Andrew Paviour from head office, the familiar face of Jen Rumsey, our dear friend Liz Jond, volunteer workers Ken and Marion Reece, locals Roger and Beri Fray plus some of their fellowship on their Advent retreat here. And we know many more were joining with us in prayer, from near and far.

We're committed to covering this place in prayer and filling it with praise - and that work continues all year round!

There's a more detailed report on the Friends page of the website.

Best discount deadline extended to Dec 14

Bookings are flooding in right now. Don't miss out - we've extended the early booking deadline to December 10th. The most popular holiday dates are late July and August, and Spring half  term. The Customer Service team are highly expert at dealing with availability checks and answering all the questions - but if you wish you can check availability and book online, right from the front page of the website http://www.springharvestholidays.com/.

The best prices are now.

Our best prices are right now. The best choice of availability, the early booking discount mean that the only way to be certain of the  best price is to go ahead and book. The deposit is low and there's a redundancy money-back guarantee for your peace of mind.

And to further  reassure you, all your payments are held in a special account until your holiday is over, guaranteeing your 2010 holiday.

If you're not sure about us, check out http://www.tripadvisor.com/ and search for Le Pas Opton. We have not planted any of our own reviews here, so get the real reports - there's even some criticism...

Going live! Our all-new website!

I can't really express how excited we are!!!!!

Today our all-new website goes live!!!! www.springharvestholidays.com

So much is new. There's new content, new functionality...

a new look - to match the 2010 season brochure,

a new, easy to use, drop down menu system so you can more easily navigate around the site - plus what web gurus call a 'crumb trail' (top left hand corner) so you can see where you've been,

new photos - do you recognise anyone you know?

BIGGEST of all is our new Online Booking System!! From start to finish you can book your holiday at Le Pas Opton without picking up the phone. Clever technnology eh? www.springharvestholidays.com

Speaking of technology - we're also launching ourselves on Twitter today. Search for LePasOpton on Twitter We'll be giving regular snippets of information about what we're up to outside of the holiday season, and then 'live from LPO' between May and September. So, give us a follow. While you're there - check out our new Facebook page too.

Plus we're going to be adding new content and information all the time, so keep coming back for a look or get in touch if there's something you can't find.

Come along and book your 2010 summer holiday with Spring Harvest Holidays - you're best holiday yet. www.springharvestholidays.com

See you there!

P.S. A HUGE Thank You to the many people who've contributed to the new website and online booking system - you know how you are: we know how hard you've worked.

P.P.S. Book by 30 November 2009 and receive an early booking discount of up to £100!

A little question for you

A little question for you: what's the busiest time of year for the boss of Spring Harvest Holidays?

The middle of August? No - I'm on holiday!
November or January, when bookings are at their peak? Nope.
April and May, as the site prepares for another season? Getting warmer......

Actually,the busiest time is NOW. We're finalising ferry contracts, sorting out travel insurance deals, booking speakers, agreeing dates and updating accommodation profiles. And then there's the small matter of producing a new brochure and website (in the capable hands of Andy and Michele).

Another thing we are getting excited about is online booking: in pounds or euros, in English, French, German or Dutch, it's only a matter of weeks away. We'll keep you informed.

Soon all this will come to fruition. So watch your letterbox and your email INbox. The 2010 season will be launched very soon.

The French Houseparty 2009

Faith. Holiday. People.
Fantastic. Hot. Prayerful.
Fun. Heavenly. Priceless.
French Houseparty.

There’s no week at Le Pas Opton like it. For adults only, this week is brimming with activities to choose from so you can be as occupied as you like - or just chill. It’s only a week, but the memories will last forever

Yes I’m hijacking Steve’s blog again, but with good reason. I had the opportunity to work and be a fly on the wall at the French Houseparty (FHP) & what a week it was.

Guests can arrive in a variety of ways, one of which being by luxury coach, with pick-ups all the way down the UK. So I donned the famous blue shirt of a Spring Harvest Holidays courier and ‘repped’ my way from Potters Bar to Portsmouth. The overnight crossing to St Malo couldn’t have been smoother with both the waves and Brittany Ferries staff treating us gently.

En route to Le Pas Opton, we stopped for coffee and a short tour at Dinan, once home to the Dukes of Brittany and a beautifully preserved example of a medieval French town.

With the sun already shining on us, upon arrival our guests were escorted to their accommodation and began to settle in. The FHP week offers many different flavours to other weeks at Le Pas Opton, including the way our guests are accommodated. To encourage interaction and fellowship, (plus ensuring the best value and pricing) we offer the opportunity to share a room with a fellow guest, plus you can upgrade to an ensuite room or book a mobile home or tent in the usual way.

The week began gently with an arrival buffet that many had booked into and then a welcome in the bar from our very own park manager, Chris. Dressed in his striped jumper, beret and kilt (!), Chris was entertaining from the moment we arrived, drawing everyone into the holiday atmosphere.

As with every other Spring Harvest Holidays week, there’s engaging Bible study and worship, which was led this week by Janet and Steve Gaukroger from Clarion Trust International. In the morning, over croissant and a coffee, we read through various prayers from notable biblical figures and in the evening sessions we were challenged about the activity of our personal faith and the individual purposes God has planned for us.

The weather is never guaranteed, but this year, the Vendée lived up to its reputation and the sun shone on us everyday, with temperatures consistently in the 30s . With such a glorious gift to wake up to every morning, the choice was simple, pool or sunbathe? Actually the choice isn’t simple at all, it’s the only hard thing about this week – what to do or not to do. Trips to Normoutiers, canoes and crêpes, French lessons with Chris, aqua-Olympics, drama, cycling, walks, wine-tasting, karaoke… the options go on and on - check out the FHP page on the Spring Harvest Holidays website for the complete 2009 programme.

Of course there are some significant highlights, here are a couple of mine. Moules and boules; street party by night. We sampled this fantastic fresh local delicacy and French favourite, eating outside on the terrace, washed down with a glass or two of good wine. Then let the games begin. Bouncy castle, boules, musical chairs, quoits… I love a party with a happy atmosphere and this evening really had it all, it was such a shame when the music stopped. Then there was the Cinéscénie and a night off for me. Throughout the summer on certain evenings, at a ‘theme park’ called Puy du Fou, a son et lumière extravaganza is held. 13,000 people sat down to watch as thousands of costumed cast members portrayed a history of the Vendée. Frankly, to describe this performance would take more than words, but I’ll try. Picture the scene – the backdrop of a semi-ruined chateau, a lake, a village, several windmills a tower and a watermill, all connected with roads. In this setting the story unfolds of a Vendéen family living through the centuries. From village fêtes with real jousting, to cannon fire in the Revolution, burning buildings, WW2 bombers, costume changes, highly trained animals – there’s so much going on you’d be pressed to see all of it. The entire production is illuminated by projections, lasers, holograms and a firework display to challenge the Bastille day celebrations. One notable moment is where a church backdrop is projected onto fountains – an incredible feat of technical engineering (or magic!) that astounds the eye. Combine all this with a soundtrack that enhances the experience with emotive music, this is an unmissable spectacle. This incredible show puts any multi-million dollar movie or West-End production to shame. If you ever go to the Vendée it’s a must – if I get the chance to go again, I’d be there like a shot.

For me, as Courier, Head Office staff member and official photographer and record-keeper this was a fly-on-the-wall experience like no other. Although this wasn’t a holiday for me (trust me when I say that immense amounts of hard work go into organising this special week - you know who you are), I still felt very included in the community that builds on-site throughout the week. Whatever the context of each guest that came, couple, individual, group or solo traveller I watched as they explored their new (or familiar for the FHP old hands) environment, met new people and made new friends. I watched as they all entered into a space that’s unhindered by the busyness of everyday life, and unchained by its bonds, gave space for God to come into their lives and work within them. For me, the ultimate expression of this was at the Street Party on the Sunday. Following the morning service, where guests joined in with their own presentations of drama and song, we all congregated on the ‘street’ to bring and share a barbecue together and then were led in communion. I’ve never experienced an atmosphere like it, such love and fellowship expressed within a newly formed community of God’s people, in such a short time – I’ll never forget the hugs, the tears and faces full of joy – and bonds formed that will last a lifetime!

It really is a special week, where you’ll have new experiences and make new friends, where the unexpected will happen and people will express God’s love to you in ways you couldn’t imagine. To that end I’d like to thank the people who: Gave me a lesson in flash photography, gave me a guitar lesson which has opened up so much, lent me their camera body when mine stopped working - and to all those people who I had such great conversations with – thank you all.

To recall the entire week would take a book, perhaps even a series, so to grab the detail you’ll have to a) remember what it was like b) ask someone who went or c) book for next year!

Click here for more details.

The historic Vendee

Want to learn more about the history of the Vendee and why it stands out in the French Revolution?

Read this great article in the Telegraph by Anthony Peregrine, entitled "Vengeance on the Vendee".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/france/6048204/France-Vengeance-on-the-Vendee.html#comments