Provence holiday cottage, France
| country: | France |
| location: | Rural ProvenceSee map here |
| price: | From €800 - €1700 per week for cottage (sleeps 4). Price includes electricity, heating, private pool, BBQ and final clean. Linen available to hire €20 per person. Deposit required |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
description
This is a very prettily restored cottage in a peaceful setting in the heart of rural Provence. This is the country of lavender fields and fruit trees and there are lovely views of hills and open countryside from the house and from the pool terrace. The property is situated in a small hamlet consisting of the French owners’ farmhouse and another cottage which is also available to let. All three properties have their own pool and are secluded from one another. This cottage has a large enclosed garden with a wide terrace by the pool with plenty of garden furniture and a barbecue. Each cottage has its own ping-pong table and there is also a boules pitch and some swings. The interior is charming and full use has been made of beautiful local materials creating a colourful and cheerful atmosphere. This one of our favourite properties and it is excellent value for money!
rooms, food and facilities
There is a comfortable living room with a sofa, a log burning stove, a television. This room opens on to a covered terrace with superb views and steps leading down to the pool area. The Provençal kitchen is well equipped with a dishwasher, mixed hob, small electric oven, microwave, fridge-freezer and electric kettle. Upstairs there are two pretty bedrooms, one has a double bed and the other has a double and a single. There is an attractive shower room with W.C. and there is another separate W.C. Under the house, by the pool, is a cool, summer dining room. There is also a shower, W.C. and washing machine in this cellar area.
The house is situated about 3km from the hilltop village of Dauphin which has a restaurant, a café, grocer and boulangerie. The village of St Michel l'Observatoire is about 5km. As its name implies, this village has an important observatory and there are interesting astronomical events organised in the summer such as star-gazing walks and night time picnics. The owners's son has a very successful restaurant on this village square called L'Auberge des Coupoles - definitely worth a visit! Another nearby village is Mane, about 6km, which has small shops and restaurants. Just outside Mane is a Benedictine priory called Salagon; it has beautiful gardens which are open for visits most days. Forcalquier, 8km, is a lively little town which has an extensive street market on Mondays, a supermarket and a good choice of restaurants and small shops.
During the summer many of the villages in the Forcalquier area have concerts and local fêtes. Aix-en-Provence is only about 40 minutes drive. This is a fascinating town with many lovely boutiques and cafés and little squares - our favourite town in France!
There is much to explore in this area such as the Lubéron Hills, the big lake at Saint Croix, and the spectacular Verdon Gorges. There is a golf course at Manosque about 20 minutes drive and tennis courts at Forcalquier. This is a relatively ‘undiscovered’ part of Provence and there are many picturesque ancient villages to explore.
The house is situated about 3km from the hilltop village of Dauphin which has a restaurant, a café, grocer and boulangerie. The village of St Michel l'Observatoire is about 5km. As its name implies, this village has an important observatory and there are interesting astronomical events organised in the summer such as star-gazing walks and night time picnics. The owners's son has a very successful restaurant on this village square called L'Auberge des Coupoles - definitely worth a visit! Another nearby village is Mane, about 6km, which has small shops and restaurants. Just outside Mane is a Benedictine priory called Salagon; it has beautiful gardens which are open for visits most days. Forcalquier, 8km, is a lively little town which has an extensive street market on Mondays, a supermarket and a good choice of restaurants and small shops.
During the summer many of the villages in the Forcalquier area have concerts and local fêtes. Aix-en-Provence is only about 40 minutes drive. This is a fascinating town with many lovely boutiques and cafés and little squares - our favourite town in France!
There is much to explore in this area such as the Lubéron Hills, the big lake at Saint Croix, and the spectacular Verdon Gorges. There is a golf course at Manosque about 20 minutes drive and tennis courts at Forcalquier. This is a relatively ‘undiscovered’ part of Provence and there are many picturesque ancient villages to explore.
how this holiday makes a difference
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Holidays in France are largely about enjoying the culture of another country and both we and the hospitable French owners promote this in every way we can. These owners are keen for the rural community to thrive and enjoy sharing their local knowledge. Throughout the year there are local fêtes and musical soirées in the village and our tenants are invited to participate.
The property has been carefully renovated by traditional craftsmen using locally sourced materials such as stone and colourful Provençal tiles. Visitors are able to enjoy a stunning, unspoilt environment and appreciate the traditional rural way of life at the same time as supporting the local economy. A femme de ménage from the village is employed at the weekends to clean the property. The owners provide detailed information about the local shops, markets and restaurants in nearby villages as they are keen for visitors to sample the delicious locally produced food. A local grocer van calls at the hamlet a couple of times a week. The owners’ son has a restaurant in the village and our tenants always have a special welcome there. All this, along with renting the property, injects money into the local economy and supports life in rural France. Similarly they promote the local craftsmen who make santons or ornamental figures of characters in the village, and also the cultivators of herbs such as lavender, thyme etc. The house is very well insulated and double-glazed to reduce the need for heating; wood is available for the log-burning stove. The swimming pool is covered every evening to reduce evaporation and minimise topping up with water. Paper, plastic and glass are recycled and the owners ask tenants to take their sorted rubbish to a nearby collection point. They also have composting facilities which tenants are encouraged to use. Although a car is necessary to get to the property some of the best ways to enjoy the area are on foot or by bike as there are way-marked paths and quiet lanes for cycling which pass close to the property; bike hire is available nearby. The owners have information about the best walks in the area. We support a range of charities and projects in France and worldwide which provide aid to vulnerable communities and habitats, e.g. ASSOHUMA, a French charity which organises trips taking humanitarian and medical aid to women in Afghanistan and families in remote Sénégal; Shared Interest, a co-operative lending society which provides funding for Third World producers. Our office is in Devon is in a redundant agricultural building which we re-built using reclaimed, traditional materials. We support the Devon Wildlife Trust and we have nest boxes and feeding stations in the office grounds to encourage the birds. Our water for the office comes from a spring and is pumped by a water-powered ram. We do not produce a paper brochure; our bookings and enquiries are handled by email and all our office paper and printing cartridges are re-cycled. Our shredded documents go on the compost heap. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |