Cereste: A Perfect Villa for Holidays

Cereste is a pretty Provencal village nestling beneath the Luberon mountains. Mostly 15th to 18th century, it is a  delight to walk around to explore all the art galleries, shops selling local produce and crafts, or stop at one of the many cafe's for a glass of rose, a pastis or a coffee.  Walking is a theme of the village as there is an ancient walking route which is also now a cycle path that links Cereste with Forcalquier region to the Rhone Valley.

The village itself has an interesting selection of gargoyles to admire, although I find them all rather unattractive, their historical antecedents are interesting. These are in the Place Verdun, which has many fine houses, one of which has been turned into a hotel and several others into art galleries. Going east out of the village is the Nid d'Amour, a walk taking in the old pigeon coups, pigeons were once big business in this village, and although you can find it in some restaurants locally, it is a very gamey almost an acquired taste. The path then leads on through some lovely fountains and leads to the Roman church built in the 13th century and the Priory Carluc.  


Cereste has an unusual microclimate that they claim makes it cooler in the evenings in summer than anywhere else in the area, which may not be what you want to hear if you are reading this in England in winter, but trust me, the evenings in Provence in summer can be very warm.


Other attractions include the 18th century St Michael Church, a ruined abbey, a Roman bridge and swimming, mountain bike hire, hiking are all available, plus there is an interesting market every Thursday morning.


Once you have seen all there is to see in  Cereste , and if you are more ively than I tend to be when going for a relaxing break in deepest Provence, then the nearby village of Viens is worth visiting.  It is a 13th century perched village which at 630 metres above sea level, nearly 2000 feet, provides fantastic views across the Provencal countryside, and over the border into the Alpes Maritimes where it is possible to see in the distance fields of lavender at the right time of year, which I guess means the summer!  Enter the village by way of the Saracen Gate and have look at the clock tower, which inevitable dominates the village skyline. The village has history going back over a thousand years, and there are still several 13th century houses to see, plus it has a restored 14th century Renaissance Chateau.  It is at the end of the so called "route d'ochre" which leads to the famous Provencal "Colorado Cliffs"


Another village which is just as pretty and offer the same wonderful outdoor summer experience of flowers, forests, woodlands, walking and mountain biking is St Martin de Castillion about 8 km's away.
Staying in the area in a hotel can be tricky, there is one hotel In Cereste, and as far as I can ascertain, no others in the area.  There are of course a few gites, but to be comfortable for a week or a fortnight, a better bet is to look to hire a private villa, as there are a number to choose from.  There are several agencies offering this kind of Rentals , some speak English and some are in fact English.


Getting to this part of Provence is pretty difficult unless you have access to a car, which to my mind is imperative, especially if you want to take in the whole area, as public transport hardly exists and taxis are scarce.  Nearest airport is Marseilles, which has flights going to many destinations in Europe and the UK plus you can get too and from several provincial French cities plus Paris quite readily. The airport is some 75 km's distant but allow up to 2 hours as the back routes are not conducive to fast driving, and in any event the route is pretty and worth taking in.

The Rose Wine of Provence - Cote D'Azur Villas

The rose wine of Provence has a growing and justified reputation, and is still much underrated and undiscovered outside of Provence. There are hundreds of vineyards throughout the wine growing area of Provence, with several AOC's located in the area, which stretches from St Tropez in the south-west up Fayence in the north-east.


The best known name for Provence rose is probably Bandol, a wine that is exported all over the world, but although one of the better wines it is certainly not the best, although it is very good. Domaine Ot would probably claim to be the most exclusive, but for me it is a little overpriced, and although very good there are a number of much cheaper wines that are available, although mainly it has to be said direct from the vineyard, many of the producers making insufficient quantities to interest anything other than the local supermarkets. Indeed some of the smaller producers sell only to passing customers, offering tastings and these can be very busy places during the summer season.


The better known names include Cote de Provence, Cotes de Luberon, Buche De La Rhone, St Tropez peninsular, Varois, St Victoire, Gigondas and Bellet.  There is also a wine called Whispering Angel which is really good but a little expensive given the great range of choice available. For every one of these better known names, I could offer an alternative, not so well known and almost certainly cheaper.  Chateau Mauame for instance, Chateau St Julien, and any number of producers around the StTropez area.


There are two types of rose, the traditional rose coloured variety and the greyer, or more orange gris type.  The gris is a particular favorite of mine, being smoother in most cases than the more red coloured alternative, indeed in the local supermarket you can pick up a very decent gris for under three and a half Euros, and if you spend 6 Euros a bottle you are into something very decent indeed.


Rose though, is mostly seen as a summer drink, sales drop off dramatically during the winter months, as it is often iced and that does not seem right once the weather turns colder.  Many Brits were turned off rose at an early age because the only variety readily available in the UK during my youth was Mateus Rose which is frankly not often very good.  It is only by trying the Provencal versions that their reputation has spread.


The vines are omnipresent in Provence during the summer and offer a wonderful sight in early September laden down with fruit.  Picking takes place during September and the first part of October and the wine is ready for sale by March the following year.  Roses tend not to last very long, unlike the reds, which can be found in Provence but only a few are of real quality and as yet I have not found a white which passes muster in our household.  Better by far to stick to sampling the roses.


Ideally to explore all the pretty villages and vineyards, you would want to be based in the area.  There are hotels but they do not offer the same space, views and ambience as renting a private villa.  This can be done very easily as there is a growing industry in the area with a number of companies offering  rentals of these sorts of properties. The lure of a private swimming pool after a long day sampling wines, can be very welcome, as are the views which one would normally expect to get in the area.  The space element is also very importance, particularly if you have a big family, hotels can become ruinously expensive and there is something nice about slipping out to buy some local produce and then sitting around by the pool or on the terrace whiling away an evening and drinking some of the local brews!


Provence is well served by Nice airport which is within easy reach of most of Provence and has flights going to and from much of Europe and beyond mine, being smoother in most cases than the more red coloured alternative, indeed in the local supermarket you can pick up a very decent gris for under three and a half Euros, and if you spend 6 Euros a bottle you are into something very decent indeed.


Rose though, is mostly seen as a summer drink, sales drop off dramatically during the winter months, as it is often iced and that does not seem right once the weather turns colder.  Many Brits were turned off rose at an early age because the only variety readily available in the UK during my youth was Mateus Rose which is frankly not often very good.  It is only by trying the Provencal versions that their reputation has spread.


The vines are omnipresent in Provence during the summer and offer a wonderful sight in early September laden down with fruit.  Picking takes place during September and the first part of October and the wine is ready for sale by March the following year.  Roses tend not to last very long, unlike the reds, which can be found in Provence but only a few are of real quality and as yet I have not found a white which passes muster in our household.  Better by far to stick to sampling the roses.


Ideally to explore all the pretty villages and vineyards, you would want to be based in the area.  There are hotels but they do not offer the same space, views and ambience as renting a private villa.  This can be done very easily as there is a growing industry in the area with a number of companies offering rentals of these sorts of properties. The lure of a private swimming pool after a long day sampling wines, can be very welcome, as are the views which one would normally expect to get in the area.  The space element is also very importance, particularly if you have a big family, hotels can become ruinously expensive and there is something nice about Cote D'Azur Villa Rentals: Book your luxury villa in advance during the Roses of Provence and have an unforgettable holiday in France.

Holiday Homes in Cabrieres-d'Avignon

Cabrières-d'Avignon is situated in the deepest of Provence to the east of Avignon and is as picturesque a village as you could hope to find in all of France. It is a sleepy  place with some beautiful stone buildings, and in the areas around Cabrières-d'Avignon you can still find some "bories" which are old peasants houses built in the 17th and 18th century but which are no longer owned by peasants having mostly been converted into sumptuous private residencies. The Plague Wall, whilst slightly grim in name is quite interesting in that it was built by to keep out the Plague, which had decimated Marseilles,  at bay in the 1720.  The wall itself extends to east of Methamis, although it seems to me that anyone wanting to gain access would just walk until the end of the wall and get in that way, but I digress.


There is a nice old chapel, the Lavender Museum at Coustellet and a five hectare (11 acre) cedar forest to explore, with great hiking and walking and even a cinema.  There are also some restaurants to visit, but basically Cabrières-d'Avignon is an un spoilt quiet even tranquil Provencal village. The name Cabrières-d'Avignon literally means the goat country near Avignon.  It has some history going back to the 11th century when a chateau was built in the area, but the village only officially came into existence in 1918. Pretty much that is it, there is little else to tell, but some of the nearby villages are also very interesting and worth a visit.


6 km's away, L'Isle sur la Sorgue is an island town in the Vaucluse Plateau above the Comsat Venaissin Plain.  It has a number of canals running through its centre, hence its reputation as an island City, enhanced by the River Sorgue which wraps itself around the town. There are still in existence much of the old machinery that was used to keep these canals full and to enable the town to use its water and catch up to 35,000 crayfish a day! .Silk and paper were also made in the town but much of its charm today revolves around its galleries and its devotion to antiques, there are reputedly over 300 antique shops in the vtown. Notre Dame des Anges has a fantastic Baroque interior and the Maison Rene Char is an art gallery featuring works by Dufy, Miro  and Mauguin.  An 18 hole golf course awaits those golfers and there is hiking and horse riding available.  Other villages worth a look are Le Thor, Fontaine de Vaucluse, Pernes les Fontaines and Cavaillion


Hotels in the area are scare, and although there are a number of gites in the locality, accommodation of that nature is often quite basic and nowhere near as comfortable as hiring your own villa, an option most people choose when deciding to stay here. A private villa has much to recommend it.  One can arrive back after a long day exploring or hiking, or even horse riding, to one's private sumptuous villa, often with great views and very often a welcome swimming pool.  It also works out cheaper than a good hotel if you are travelling as a family or a group, and there is if course the chance to self cater and but you wine from the supermarket rather than always paying restaurant prices! It is easy to do, there are several companies specialising in offering Rentals of quality property in the area, a simple internet search should be enough for you to find an English speaking agency.


To get to Cabrières-d'Avignon requires a car.  There is precious little public transport and few taxis.  The nearest town big town is Avignon, about 25 km's distant although many facilities exist at L'Isle sur la Sorgue.  Avignon stands on the main motorway south but you might find it more convenient to fly to and from Marseilles.  The airport there flies to many destinations in UK and Europe and to many provincial French centres.