Top Five Tips For Booking a Last Minute Villa in the South of France

If you have ever thought about making a spontaneous decision and booking a last minute holiday in the South of France, keep reading - this blog post is for you! We have a wide selection of last minute villas in Languedoc, Provence and Cote d’Azur and booking one with South France Villas is easy and hassle-free. With so many airlines flying to the Southern France, reaching your dream holiday property could not be easier!

Choosing the perfect French Holiday Villa can be overwhelming because of so many options – we’re happy to help you with any questions regarding our Luxury Rentals in the South of France as well as provide information on the local area.

1. Choose the region

Trying to decide which region to stay in can be difficult since every one of them offers different activities, landscapes and climate. Whether it’s wine tasting, windsurfing, golfing or cycling, we’ll help you when it comes to choosing the perfect location for your holiday in the South of France. If you are stuck between two options, have a look at some of our villas that are on the border of Languedoc and Provence or Provence and Cote d’Azur – this gives you the perfect opportunity to explore more during your holiday!

2. Choose the top three things you want in your villa

When you book one of our French Holiday Homes with a big group, you might need to compromise since everyone’s taste is probably different. Try to write down a list of the three things you want in your holiday property in Languedoc, Provence or Cote d’Azur. This will make your search quicker and you can book your dream holiday villa fast!

3. Travel Insurance

Don’t forget to buy travel insurance before jetting off - this will ensure a carefree journey where you don’t have to worry too much.

4. Enjoy your holiday more with a little bit of help

      Whether you want assistance with babysitting, catering or extra cleaning, we’re happy to organise everything for you. This way you can enjoy your French holiday even more and concentrate on relaxing and exploring the local area.

      5. Research the area where you will be staying

        You have now booked your last minute holiday and will be travelling to the South of France shortly – for you to enjoy your stay even more, research the area a little bit before arriving. This will make you more familiar with the region and you don’t have to spend precious time on doing research while you’re on your holiday! If you would like some tips regarding the local area, please don’t hesitate to contact us.  

      Have a look at some of the last minute villa offers we have in September:

The Baie Bleu close to Ste Maxime and St Tropez is now on special offer! This gorgeous Cote d’Azur villa sleeps 4 people in 2 ensuite bedrooms. It has a private pool, large garden and beautiful sea views.

La Garenne near to Canal du Midi sleeps 6 people and prices are from 700€ in September/October! It is close to Beziers and the beach is approximately 25km away. It has a lovely garden and swimming pool and is a great option when you are looking for a last minute Holiday Villa in the South of France.

La Garenne - garden and back facade

Plenty of sunloungers to relax in

Villa Vinea close to Narbonne sleeps 6/7 people and is only £869 in September and October instead of the normal price of £1250! Not far from the Spanish border and the beaches, this property in Languedoc is the perfect last minute Holiday Villa.

If you are looking for a bigger Luxury Villa, have a look at La Californie – situated next to Cannes, this exceptional Luxury Holiday Villa sleeps 10 people. It has sea views, a pool and a lush Mediterranean garden. The international airport of Nice is approximately a 30-minute drive away so the villa can be easily reached. 

If you would like to find out more about any of the featured properties above, or any of our other holiday villas in the South of France, Corsica or Morocco, please don't hesitate to get in touch!

UK: +44 (0)20 70 60 64 14

France: +33 (0)4 67 36 05 54

email: info@southfrancevillas.com

Top 10 Languedoc Holiday Homes - Roquebrun: A Client's Review

This is a client review of a fantastic river-front holiday home ideal for a large family group or several families sharing a house.  

See where this client stayed: Maison Mimosa in Roquebrun

'Our one week stay at Maison Mimosa, Roquebrun in July was absolutely fantastic.  We were a two-family party of 9,  with offspring ranging in age from 14 to 23,  and parents of appropriate ages!  Everybody had a wonderful time. 

We are all very keen wild swimmers and with children who would want some or lots of independence, we had deliberately chosen a house right on a river and right in a village.  Good decision.

We had dreamy mornings and evenings cooling off and swimming in the crystal clear water of the River Orb against the gentle current right outside the house and also really enjoyed being in the really spacious at atmospheric house looking at the fantastic views of the bridge and mountains beyond and also of life on the other side of the river where happy people and their dogs spend the day mucking about in the river from the large natural river beach.   

The river is safe and you can happily let children from 12 years and up paddle and swim on their own.                    

           

       

In the house there is an indoor pool and sauna plus games room with table tennis table and bar in the cellar and the children enjoyed the swimming pool as a novelty a couple of times but the weather was so good and the river so beautiful that it was very under used.  However, I can imagine that these facilities might be wonderful to have mid-winter or when the weather isn’t great. 

Roquebrun is as charming as any tourist website tells you but it feels properly lived-in and real and there is obviously a lot going on.  

The Mediterranean Garden right above the village is beautiful and testament to a lively community as it is run mainly by volunteers and there was a really well attended village party on our last night.  We had a couple of great meals out in Roquebrun; Le Petit Nice does really good pizzas and  the relatively new, I think,  Cave de St Martin tapas bar (tapas bar as a description doesn’t really do the place justice I don’t think) was really superb and is making my mouth water just thinking about the meal we had there.

  Everything fresh, everything melt-in-the-mouth delicious, every ingredient top quality and everything seasonal – plus great wine.   

We came back to England enthused with the peach, tomato and basil salad we had there and  I  have served what I hope is a not-too-bad imitation of it four times since being home!  Both Le Petit Nice and the Cave St Martin have fantastically friendly and helpful staff and wonderful views and it was such a treat being able to walk to both restaurants in less than 5 minutes.    

Out of Roquebrun we spent a great day jumping into and swimming in the beautiful deep clear-water pools in the Gorge d’Heric and another day kayaking 10 and 15km back to Roquebrun, where some of our party saw an otter and all of us loved the scenery and peace and quiet (except when negotiating a rapid!).  Also spent a day at the Lac de Salagou, an amazingly atmospheric damn lake surrounded by martian-like red sand and some really interesting villages and natural rock formations.  The journey cross country to Salagou was beautiful too and a reminder of just how unpopulated and unspoilt this part of France is. 

Shopping was easy, with a village shop and a basic but comprehensive selection of fresh bread plus tinned and fresh food  and drinks in Roquebrun plus a fairly basic twice-weekly market,  and if you needed to do a big shop, the big street market (weekly?  twice-weekly?) and supermarket in St Chinian were a pleasant 15 minute drive away.   And of course there’s a vineyard round every corner……..    

We had to do an airport run to Montpelier near the end of the week and it was extremely hot so we combined it with a trip to the beach on La Corniche, just outside Sete.  We had a good swim in some great waves and it was perfect for a quick cool-off and to dip into the Med quickly.  Easy parking and a nice freshwater shower was available.  But I know there are better beaches in Languedoc and, given a choice, I wouldn’t have moved from the river Orb!

The South France Villas team were wonderful.  Helped with travel arrangements, gave great advice and were generally as helpful as they could possibly have been.  The fact that all their staff have lived in the area for a very long combined time really shows as they have brilliant local contacts and can answer almost any question you put to them.   Thankyou all very much for a wonderful holiday.

Phyllida Barnes

20-27 July 2013

Summer Dreaming of Holidays in the South of France

Whilst it is lovely to curl up and get cosy by the fire during the winter evenings, thoughts of long Summer days with endless sunshine and blue skies are ever present and images of that swim in the sea, walk along the beach or topping up that tan come to mind.

Next year the South of France has even more to offer because Marseille is the European Capital City of Culture 2013 and there will be a mass of events and much more going on in the city - from Martigues to the lovely La Ciotat - and not too far away in the likes of Arles and Aix.


The Languedoc, Provence and the Cote d'Azur are all amazing locations for that perfect holiday, with history, culture, gastronomy and of course wine all at your finger tips - not forgetting the Mediterranean and the fantastic beaches!

Marseille

To take full advantage of this area, why not stay at one of our properties and explore the region at your leisure. 

Villa Auriol (BR001)is only 20 minutes from Marseille - perfectly placed to enjoy all that is going on in the 2013 European Capital City of Culture.

 House and garden - BR001A

Just a stone's throw from Aix-en-Provence is the lovely "home from home" Villa du Jardin (BR002A), well placed to access this part of the world and ideal for a family of 6-7.  

The villa is very well equipped and has lots of added extras, such as bicycles, the possibility of fishing for trout in the nearby river and a boulodrome for that quintessential French pastime, a game of pétanque.

Villa du Jardin Facade

Don't miss the chance to visit  Aix and see it in all its glory - the Cathedral, famous works of art and the Mazarin quarter.

Alternatively, not far from quaint Sommières and the lovely town of Uzes, (both of which have fantastic Saturday markets),  the delightful Bastide Langlade (GR011A ), a stone building, combining original character features with contemporary decor and modern day living is perfect if you are a party of 10.

Conservatory and Garden

Fully Fenced Pool area

This coming Summer the South of France tops the list of destinations for diversity with a difference -  encompassing a myriad of activities and endless places to explore for people of all ages.  Come see for yourself!

Autumn in the South of France - Orange Vineyards, Céret Cherries & Truffle Markets

The seasons are changing in the Languedoc and although we are reluctant to say goodbye to the glorious summer sun and long balmy evenings there is another delightful season approaching. Autumns in the South of France are dramatic. 

The vineyards that cover the rolling landscape turn to varying shades of vivid orange. Its a season of bright skies, fresh air and some tasty gastronomic delights...

With Halloween on the horizon, and Toussaint (All Saints day) to follow, the kids will soon be filling up on sugary treats. More exciting than boiled sweets and foil-wrapped chocolate are the sweet and natural treats that the Languedoc has to offer.

Cherries from Céret -The region around Céret in the Pyrénées-Orientales is a major fruit producer, well know for its cherries. It is a Local tradition that the first harvest of cherries be sent to the President of France. Céret hosts a cherry festival each year with such oddities as cherry beer and a cherry stone spitting competition. A delicious treat for an Autumn evening would be a Cherry clafoutis, a delicious, baked French dessert made with a thick flan-like batter.

Quinces - or in French 'Coings' These fruits flourish in the warm Mediterranean climate and are just coming in to season. They are a fruit not dissimilar to a pear can often have hard flesh and tough skin. They have a wonderful sweet flavour and are best made into jellies and compotes!

Chestnuts - the Fêtes du Marron or Fêtes du Châtaignes take place throughout the Languedoc. These sweet and nutty treats are eaten roasted, made into chestnut paste, delicious cakes or even fudge! Orlagues, in the Herault,  has a Fête du Marron and Vin Nouveau in October.

And it's not just the sugary delicacies that are worth tasting but the savoury produce too...Autumn and Winter see the return of the mushroom picking season so Ceps and Truffles will be abundant throughout the markets. Uzès, in the Gard department, is famous for its Truffle Markets! 

www.discover-uzes.com Mushroom pickers who go in search of the fragrant and highly sought after Cep can take their mushrooms into the pharmacy for checking to make sure that they are edible.The grape harvest of late summer means that it is nearly time for the 'Vin Primeur', the first wine of the new harvest.

In Provence the First Côtes du Rhône festival takes place in Avignon on the third Thursday of November.

Equally tasty - and the perfect locations for delving into the local delicacies - are South France Villas delightful holiday rentals. We have a handful of properties that are new on our site 

Les Combes HE082A is a beautiful, renovated old wine cave with stunning hillside view, close to the market town of Saint-Chinian - where you can buy fabulous local produce.

La Grange HE083A

La Grange  is an large, elegant Provençal farmhouse with stylish but traditional furnishings in the beautiful town of Roquebrun.

Villa St Jean VR010A

Villa St Jean VR010A is in between Fréjus and Cannes and has stunning views over the Esterel valley.

Autumnal Vineyards and the Carcassonne Cité