Charming 18th Century Village House Renovated by Architect

Property description

Les Bougainvilliers offers enormous character, charm, comfort, and LOCATION! You’ll be 15 minutes from the exquisite town of Aix-en-Provence, not much further from Avignon and Arles, close to the hilltop villages in the Luberon and only 30 minutes from the Mediterranean Sea.

What else are you looking for in a vacation home in Provence?

LES BOUGAINVILLIERS is not like any house you’ve ever seen. It was built around 1750, and renovated by a French architect. This splendid old house offers the real deal “French Experience” -- stroll to the boulangerie for warm croissants, sip in an outdoor café, shop at the farmers’ market, then return home to open the wine and prepare a meal full of French flavor to savour in the courtyard. Voilà!

The house is situated on the western edge of Saint Cannat, an 'authentic' village still largely undiscovered by tourists. It has excellent butchers and bakers, a fruit and veg shop with exquisite produce, a small general store, a newspaper shop, hair salons, pharmacies, cafés and a few boutiques.

A huge skylight in the roof brings sunshine into the entire house through the atrium. Double paned glass and excellent central heat keep the house very warm in winter -- the thick stone walls keep it cool in summer. You will not need A/C at Les Bougainvilliers, but we do have electric fans in all the bedrooms. All year long the warm afternoon sun floods the living room, rooftop terrace, and farmland across the street. Parking on the street in front of the house is usually easy.

The house is built on three levels. On the ground floor is the kitchen (entered from the courtyard) with a new oven and dishwasher in August 2010, two coffee makers, a toaster, and plenty of work space and good kitchen utensils for preparing your Provencal meals. Also on this first level are the living/dining rooms, one bath, w.c., and washer/dryer. Tastefully furnished with a combination of French antiques and modern pieces, the living room has comfortable leather furniture, a piano and a huge semi-circular window that looks onto the brightly flowered courtyard. An excellent fireplace and very efficient central heat make Les Bougainvilliers a perfect house to rent in winter. The dining room table extends to seat 8 people. A mini computer for your use is on this level.

There are three bedrooms, all on the middle level. One has a queen sized bed, one has a standard double, and one has twins that can be made up into a queen sized bed. The larger of the bathrooms has a walk-in Italian shower, plus a separate w.c., on this level.

On the top level is the TV room. Here, under the huge roof beams, you will find seating and a flatscreen television (French only). On the large landing is a comfortable, convertible sofa bed and the door to the “Tropezienne” terrace which overlooks the rooftops and fields of Saint Cannat. We've recently added a large pergola and news plants so that the terrace is a comfortable place to be during sunny days.

From the house you can quickly walk to the butcher, the baker, the post office, pharmacies, shops, cafes, and the colorful Wednesday morning market. The bus to Aix-en-Provence and beyond leaves from a nearby corner. One of the BEST restaurants in the entire area is Le Mas de Fauchon, about one mile from the house. Lunch or dinner (outdoors much of the year) at Le Mas de Fauchon is a MUST!

So, go see it all, come back to Les Bougainvilliers, throw open the doors, open the rosé, turn up the music and feel like a local!

And we offer you FREE long distance calling to North America and Europe so you can tell those back home all about it!