We have stayed in both Maison Guy & Cabanon Chadwick every year over the past 7 summers and both are now very much a home away from home. We love the laid back private relaxation that both properties offer and have shared them both with family and friends, who have been similarly enthusiastic about their stays there. The layouts of both properties are great, easy to clean and have all the facilities you could want. The view back down the valley from Maison Guy is really spectacular in the evening, please don't let the trees grow too big to block this out.
The properties and pools are well maintained and if you should have a problem, the local team are quickly on hand to sort it out (the pool at Maison Guy turned green overnight in late May one year due to a sudden drop of yellow pollen from the cork oaks, Phillipa & Becky were quickly on hand to get it sorted and normal service resumed the following day).
La Garde Freinet itself is a delight with many interesting restaurants, shops and a great market on Sunday and Wednesday. It is the perfect spot away from the hubbub of the Cotes D'Azure if your preference is to get away for relaxation. There are good local beaches which are uncrowded, even in high summer, if you are prepared to explore and walk a bit. Our favorite is L'escalet about 35 minutes away.
We wouldn't hesitate to recommend either property to anyone, our only reluctance being that recommendations lead to them becoming harder to book when we want to go!
If we had one criticism, it would be about the size of the tree over the pool at Cabanon, which had got very big by last year and put the pool in shade for a good part of the day. If you want a shady spot, the covered terrace with its amazing concrete sculptural table is just the perfect spot to waste the day with a newspaper or book and several bottles of the perfectly chilled local rose!
Every year we say we will try somewhere different, but we just get drawn back to where we know we will have a chilled out relaxing holiday in great properties in a stunning location.