Le Manoir de Valentine is a beautiful old French house at the edge of a village named Valentine (yes, really) within sight of the Pyrenees in South West France. The house is the perfect location for a French getaway: the whole house is available to book now, usually for rentals of a week (or two!). A beautifully restored old French house with real personality, complete with mountain views and a la
rge garden. Le Manoir sleeps up to 12 in 5 bedrooms but is comfortable for a much smaller party too. It has a big pool, two reception rooms (one of which is stocked with a library of books to browse during your stay!) four recently restored bathrooms and a spacious eat-in kitchen with everything you need. Also featuring: the best croissants you've had, within a 2 minute amble! DO WE GET THE WHOLE SPACE TO OURSELVES? We rent out the house as a whole so you're assured of privacy - book and use it all as your private playground in the south west countryside of France. WHO WILL LOVE STAYING HERE? Last year guests included several groups of families with young children (perfect for two or three couples plus kids in the summer holidays!) as well as a 40th birthday - a bunch of friends (singles and couples) who made the most of the wonderful wine in the area ;). (Last year's guests enjoyed their stay, so much so that we're already getting repeat bookings from them for this year, which is always lovely to hear). HOW MANY BEDROOMS ARE THERE?
- 3 x spacious double bedrooms with en-suites,
- 1 x triple bed room with private bathroom upstairs (this is a large room with gorgeous views, is perfect for a few friends sharing, or kids) and
- 1 x two beds room (perfect for kids or close friends!). As well as
- 2 living rooms (1 with a big bookshelf to browse at your leisure, and another with a nicely stocked games cupboard!)
- 1 large kitchen, with a long table with lots of seating.
- 2 rambling green garden spaces, including a terrace space outside the kitchen complete with BBQ and outdoor dining table (for those essential glasses of rosé and chats in the evening).
- all the usual amenities (laundry area, space for parking) and the less usual ones (good wifi on all floors, a wine fridge, and glimpsing the still-snow-capped tops of Pyrenees even as you get ready to sit by the sunny pool in the middle of a hot summer)
REALLY - WILL I LIKE IT? If you're liking what you're seeing on this page, and if you like going to places that are rustic and real (rather than fake / perfectionised for 'tourists'!) you'll like this place. Le Manoir is at the edge of a real working village so you get a feel for everyday life here - yet you can still close the gates and have your own private space with everything you need. In short, Le Manoir de Valentine is for you if you want to have time to relax, maybe sit by the pool or in the garden and read (did we mention we've got a library of books here?)... but also want to have the option to get out and have adventures:
WHAT ELSE IS THERE TO DO NEARBY? Be it exploring cute mountainside villages (meeting the people who make amazing cheese for your larder), meandering around fresh food markets, finding beautiful things in vintage stalls, cooking or eating out French style... or more active pursuits like kayaking in the Garonne (even beginners can do the route nearby), visiting a wildlife sanctuary, cycling, hiking the foothills and more. You can even hop over to Spain in just a 45 minute drive - there's great tapas in the town over the border (2 countries in one trip isn't bad going!). IS THERE GOOD WIFI? We have both been running our businesses from this house so know how important this can be! (But we purposely keep it away from the pool area so you can get offline too ;). WHAT IS THE MINIMUM BOOKING PERIOD? The minimum booking period is 1 week - though we find that most people choose book for about 2 weeks (and say they wish they could have stayed longer - those croissants must be good!)
WHAT IS THE CLOSEST AIRPORT? Toulouse - which is under 1 hours' drive away along a very easy road. (There is also a train available to the nearest town for those in your group who aren't as keen on driving). There are plenty of good value EasyJet flights from UK airports (including London Gatwick) into Toulouse making it convenient even at peak periods. HOW MUCH IS IT? AND HOW DO I BOOK? Weekly rates for the general public this season are in the region of £2500-£2750/week for the entire place to yourself - but an additional opening season discount is available for friends / friends of friends here :).
2016 UPDATE:
If you think you might be interested in taking the house for a week (or two!) in 2016 or 2017 - it fills fast! - drop Robert an email and he'll gladly let you know more: [email protected]
Thanks for being here - we very much look forward to having you enjoy Le Manoir de Valentine! Rob and Marianne
