Blanzay is surrounded by a collection of small villages and artisan farm shops. You can buy tasty cheeses at the fromagerie on a Saturday morning and there is a large and eclectic Brocante nearby. The bustling town of Civray is less than ten minutes by car with a twice weekly market, range of nice places to eat and traditional shops. The nearest supermarket is just eight minutes away.
Really close by you have Chateau d'Epanvilliers, Vallée des Singes (monkey valley) and Le Cormenier (rural childhood museum), along with various wild swimming and kayaking places on the Charente. Within half an hour's drive you will find stunning towns and villages such as Confolens, Verteuil sur Charente, Ruffec and Nanteuil en Valee.
The historic cities of Angouleme and Poitiers are within an hour's drive, as is Futuroscope and various lakes and waterparks.
La Rochelle, Ile de Re and the coast make a good day trip, along with the ancient Marais Poitevin. Bordeaux is just over two hours by car and Paris is 1.5 hours from Poitiers on the TGV. It takes around one and a half hours to get to Limoges.