2027 Retreat · September 4-11, 2027
LIVING IN FRENCH
A Language & Lifestyle Immersion at Château de Borie
with Déborah Pham Van Xua
What if you could stop studying French for a week—and start living it?
Spend a week at Château de Borie building the confidence to actually use your French while experiencing everyday life in Southwest France. You'll learn through real encounters—shopping at the market, sharing meals, exploring village life, discovering local food and wine, and connecting with the people and traditions that make this corner of France so special.
Guided by French teacher and well-being coach Deborah Pham Van Xua, you'll learn practical French in a relaxed, supportive environment and then have opportunities to use it in the world around you. This isn't an intensive language course or a week of grammar drills. It's about becoming more comfortable speaking, making mistakes, asking questions, understanding more—and discovering how much more accessible France becomes when you're willing to give the language a try.
Along the way, you'll experience the pleasures and rhythms of French life: lingering over chef-prepared meals, wandering a local market, tasting regional wines, exploring medieval villages and having time simply to enjoy where you are.
Come for the French. Leave with more confidence, new friendships, and a taste of what it feels like to live French.
“Step into France not as a tourist, but as a participant.”
A week, lived in French
Learn French by living it
- Relaxed, supportive French sessions with Deborah
- Practical language for markets, restaurants and everyday encounters
- Real-life opportunities to use your French while we're out exploring
- Conversation, games and activities designed to build confidence
- Simple ways to keep your French going after you return home
Experience French life
- Shop a local market alongside our château chef
- Explore medieval villages and everyday life in Southwest France
- Meet local people and makers and discover the traditions that give the region its character
- Learn about local wine with our sommelier, Stéphane
- Time to wander, linger and enjoy the slower rhythm of French life
Gather around the table
- Continental breakfast each morning
- Chef-prepared meals featuring local and seasonal ingredients
- Lunches at the château and while we're out exploring
- A cooking demonstration with Chef James
- Shared meals, wine and conversation with your fellow guests
Your teacher & your host
Déborah Pham Van Xua
Teacher · Founder, FeelGoodFrench
Déborah Pham Van Xua is a native French teacher from southwest France and the founder of FeelGoodFrench. Now based in the Basque Country, she has spent her life crossing cultures. She especially enjoys helping North Americans aged 50 and over explore French—and the cultural quirks no textbook quite explains.
Her favourite challenge? Helping learners whose French disappears the moment someone asks them a question. Expect humour, playful practice and memory tricks shaped by her interest in neuroplasticity and how we learn.
For Déborah, language is about human connection. She creates a warm, non-judgmental space where you can recognise your strengths, find your motivation and dare to speak. Her mission is to help you trust yourself, stay curious and enjoy connecting with others in French.
Bring your imperfect French. There’s plenty we can do with it.
Abigail Carter
Host · Château de Borie
Abigail Carter is an American author and the owner of Château de Borie, the centuries-old château in southwest France she has called home since 2022. After building a life and career in the United States, Abby did something she never quite expected: bought a crumbling French château and began creating a new chapter on the other side of the Atlantic.
Today, she opens the château to small groups of curious travelers who want to experience France a little differently—not rushing from sight to sight, but settling in, sharing meals, exploring the surrounding villages and getting to know the rhythms of life here.
Abby believes some of the best experiences happen around a table, on an unplanned detour, or in conversations between people who were strangers a few days before. Her retreats are built around that idea: come as you are, make yourself at home, and see what happens.
Meet Chef James
Chef James Lee Gordon brings more than a decade of experience in organic and Michelin-rated kitchens to Château de Borie. A remarkably creative cook, James transforms fresh, seasonal ingredients into dishes that are as beautiful as they are delicious—often looking more like works of art than dinner. Founder of The Chocolate Bear Kitchen in England, he is also particularly skilled at creating thoughtful, inclusive menus for guests with food allergies and intolerances.
Meals with James are an experience in themselves, often enjoyed outside on the château terrace. Depending on the season and the menu, that might mean a summer barbecue, a pizza night, or a little culinary theatre—such as his spectacular tableside Crêpes Suzette.
James brings imagination and a sense of occasion to every meal, making the food at Château de Borie an unforgettable part of the retreat experience.
Who this week is for
You don't need perfect French. You need curiosity.
Whether you're learning your first phrases or already able to hold a conversation, Deborah will meet you where you are. You'll learn the language that helps you participate in the experiences around you—and be encouraged to use it, imperfectly and confidently, with the people you meet.
Come on your own or with someone you know. The small-group setting makes it easy to connect, learn together and share the experience.
What you'll take home
You won't leave speaking perfect French—and that's not the point. You will leave more comfortable using the French you have, less worried about making mistakes and more willing to start a conversation.
Through small everyday moments, you'll discover how much you can already do. Along with new friendships and memories of your week in France, you'll take home practical ways to keep your French alive—and the confidence to keep using it.
Voices of Past Participants
“My week at Château de Borie was magical. I came to learn more French and improve my confidence. I achieved both of my goals, but also made friends and had wonderful experiences. I came away from the week with more confidence and a path/routine for improving my French. The accommodations and food were excellent. Château de Borie is lovely.”
~ 2026 Participant
“The people - the staff & participants became like friends.”
~ 2026 Participant
“I am overwhelmed with what Abby has accomplished both at the chateau and with the retreats. It’s wonderful how she shares it with others. Our language instructor, Deborah made learning French comprehensible and fun. James, our chef created delicious dishes from local frech ingredients. Finally making ten new, wonderful friends is truly a gift that keeps giving.”
~ 2026 Participant
The week, day by day
SAT SEPT 4th
Arrival
Arrive at Château de Borie before 4:00 pm. Settle in, meet the group over an early dinner.
SUN 5th — FRI 10th
Immersion week
Daily French sessions woven through market visits, an Agen excursion, the sommelier tasting, bastide village trips, and evening reflection circles. Full day-by-day detail shared after booking.
SAT SEPT 11th
Departure
Depart before noon.
Rooms & investment
Premium
€4,600 solo, per person
€4,000. shared, per person
Cygne, Étoile, Gingko, Rossignol, and Jasmin — all are second-floor, private bathrooms down the hall, except Jasmin, which is a third-floor room with a full ensuite.
Standard
€4,000 solo, per person
€3,600. shared, per person
Magnolia, Colibri, Chouette, Renard, Lapin, Paon — third floor bedrooms with private bathrooms down the hall. Shared pairings available in Lapin, Paon, and Cygne.
What’s included
What's Included
- Round-trip transport from Agen train station
- 7 nights, private or shared
- All meals, beverages, and wine
- Daily French sessions
- Market town excursion
- Sommelier wine tasting
- Creative language workshops
- A post-retreat guide — sites, apps, films & podcasts to keep your French alive
What's Not Included
- Airfare or train travel to Agen
- Travel insurance
- Gratuities
- Personal spending money
Getting here & getting around
Book your own flights into Toulouse or Bordeaux, then a roughly 90 min, train to Agen — or fly into Paris and take the 3-hour TGV from Montparnasse. We recommend arriving a day early in Toulouse if you can, to shake off the jet lag before the week begins.
Transportation is provided for all group excursions, so a rental car isn't necessary. Trip and medical cancellation insurance is strongly recommended. The château is multi-level with stairs throughout, so comfortable, unassisted walking is a must — and you'll likely meet Lulu, the resident Boston terrier.
Cancellations & refunds
A deposit holds your seat. Here's exactly how refunds work as the date approaches.
Deposit is refundable up to this date.
Full refund if your spot is filled from a waitlist; otherwise 50% refund, or a 12-month credit transfer to a future retreat.
No refunds. We strongly recommend trip/medical cancellation insurance.
Twelve seats. One week. A very different September.
Have a question before you commit — about your French level, a room, or the dates? Reach out directly and we'll help you figure out if this week is right for you.