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L'Atelier - Menerbes - Provence

The Village - (CLICK ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE)

Like so many Provençal villages, Menerbes is built on a hill with superb views across unspoiled countryside on all sides. For such a small village there is an extraordinarily good collection of shops, including a very good grocer, butcher and baker as well as an interesting antique shop, art gallery and china shop. There are three restaurants and a bar. Our family has a house in a quiet corner of the village - L'Atelier, Rue des Tourneurs. There is a garage suitable for a small car.

L'Atelier

This very attractive old house is in a quiet corner of the village on the south side with fine views of the Luberon Mountains. It has two double bedrooms, both with en suite bathrooms with shower and loo. One of the bedrooms has a vaulted ceiling and a four poster bed. The other is reached through the terrace and comfortable living room with open fireplace which overlooks the pool. There is an excellent hi-fi with CD player, a television with satellite receiver, video machine and plenty of books. Downstairs there is a new and well equipped kitchen with a table that can seat 6. There is electric heating throughout and a washing machine.

Outside L'Atelier there a beautiful large terrace with shady area and small swimming pool (960cu ft - built in January 1999). They get the sun all day and have fabulous views. These features make the house one of the most desirable in the village.

Things to do

Menerbes is the ideal place in which to walk, eat, sleep, read, listen to music, paint, write, visit one of the many outstanding villages around and about, wander in the mountains of the Cotes de Luberon, buy wine and visit the marvelous outside markets of Apt and Cavaillon and the antiques market on Sunday mornings at Isle sur la Sorgue. Menerbes is about an hour from Marseilles, Cassis and the Mediterranean coast. You can also swim in one of the superb outdoor public swimming pools that surround Menerbes. They are beautifully sited with wonderful amenities and frankly the water is a great deal more appetising than the rather murky brew in the Mediterranean!

How to get there

By car Menerbes is approximately 10 miles from the main autoroute. We make the journey in a single day from Le Havre, Dieppe or - best of all - Calais, where the autoroute virtually starts at the Ferry Terminal anddon't come off it until Avignon Sud. Then take the N100 to Apt and turn right just before Les Beaumettes. If you arrive from Nice or Marseilles on the A7 exit at Cavaillon.

There are overnight trains from Calais to Avignon and, of course, there are now Eurostar/TGV trains from Waterloo and Ashford direct to Avignon (an on to Cavaillon) changing at Lille or Paris. Paris to Avignon takes 3.5 hours. By plane there are regular flights from Gatwick to Marseilles or from Gatwick to Nice from whence there are trains to Avignon and Cavaillon. It is a 30 minute taxi ride from Avignon and 1 hour from Marseilles.

Bookings

If you wish to make a booking please telephone Mr and Mrs Mackenzie on t: (01323) 811400 to ensure that the house is free. Then please confirm your booking in writing to us at:

Eckington Manor
Ripe
Nr Lewes
Sussex
BN8 6AU

Email: mackenzie@hungrymonk.idps.co.uk

Each week normally runs from 3.30pm arrival on Saturday to 10.30am departure the following Saturday, although we try to be as flexible as possible.

N.B. Please bring you own sheets, pillow cases and towels. The double bed is 5ft wide. The two single beds are 3ft wide.