Carcassonne holiday rental COCCINELLES NEAR CARCASSONNE, LANGUEDOC Holiday Rental SLEEPS 7 + BABY 4 BEDROOMS GARDEN TERRACE WITH VIEWS PARKING 15 MINUTES TO CARCASSONNE AIRPORT “A good holiday is one spent among people whose notions of time are vaguer than yours.” - J. B. Priestley. Charming tradional French village house on three floors, having spectacular views of the Pyrenees and located in an historic village in the heart of Cathar country.	Larger photo - Coccinelles
Only a few minutes from the stately hilltop town of Montreal, only 15 minutes from Carcassonne Airport and less than an hour from the Med, this pretty house in the round of the “circular” village of La Force is spacious and comfortable with three well-furnished double bedrooms and an open mezzanine floor offering an extra single bedroom. DETAILS OF ACCOMMODATION Coccinelles can be entered either from the front entrance in the round place de ville (where there is ample parking immediately outside the house) or through an arched stone gateway where trailing foliage and rambling flowers provide a tranquil, shady terrace. The sunny hallway (with cloakroom and toilet) leads to a fully-equipped kitchen with a fridge-freezer, an electric cooker a microwave and a dishwasher. There is a utility room. A large typically-French dining and sitting room complete with wooden fireplace leads onto a south-facing leafy garden terrace with its stunning views. Here, if you wish, you can sizzle on a golden afternoon along with the sausages on the barbecue! Garden furniture and a barbecue are provided. Open a doorway in the hall and you’ll find stairs leading to the lower ground floor where there is a very spacious and well-lit dry cave which also contains a WC, the laundry area, a table-tennis table . . . and even a piano for any budding Edith Piafs who fancy giving a heartfelt rendition of “Je Ne Regrette Rien”. Upstairs from the entrance hall there is a second bright and comfortable sitting-room with TV, CD-player and video, along with a bathroom with shower, WC and wash-basin. A large bedroom stylishly decorated in hyacinth blue, with exposed beams and parquet flooring has a lovely view. The beds can be converted to either one double or two singles. Up the open-plan stairs once more , and on the second floor are two more parquet-floored double rooms full of character - one with a double bed and the other with two singles. Additionally, there is a single bedroom on the separate mezzanine area - a light-filled galleried room overlooking the sitting-room. Through the window below one can see the centre of this village which dates back to medieval times. There is an abundance of books, music CDs and videos in the house. The house is well-equipped with both fans and electric fires or wall-heaters. Electricity and water is included in the rental price, along with all bed-linen and towels. There is a cot and high chair provided, plus stair gates - added safety for tiny explorers.	View from upper terrace Shady ground floor terrace Kitchen Salon Double twin bedroom
Double bedroom Twin bedroom Single bedroom Carcassonne Map showing location of rental	LA FORCE AND SURROUNDING AREA The loveliness of the Languedoc landscape of France is undisputed. Set between the Pyrenees in the south and the Black Mountains to the north, it is a geographical region of many personalities: plains and rugged mountains and elegant cities ... the numberless sprawling vineyards of the Minervois, Corbiere and Malpere ... the hot-scented, standing stillness of the sunflowers in field after field, ranked like soldiers in the warm yellow light ... the bumpy red-tiled roofs of houses - immediate evidence of the Catalan influence just over the southern border ... the tree-draped Canal du Midi making its green-dappled way towards the Mediterranean coast ... And all this, set against the magnificence of the Pyrenees, an eternal iridescent purple backdrop with spiked peaks which can still be white-capped, even into May. The turbulent 2000-year timeline of Languedoc-Roussillon has a fascination which will captivate even non-historians, dating from the Roman overpowering of Carcassonne (its position commanding one of the great roads into Spain), continuing through the area’s occupation from the year 436 by the Visigoths, then from the year 713 by the Spanish, not to mention the bloody horrors wreaked upon it by Albigensian Crusaders slaughtering Cathars in the name of the Pope at the beginning of the 13th Century. There are numerous medieval towns and villages within easy reach of La Force and the spectacular Cite of Carcassonne, only 15 minutes away, is the jewel in the crown - possibly even in France’s crown. You can collect your morning croissants and baguettes from the bread-van which comes to La Force every morning, but for supermarkets you need to hop into the car and drive for a few minutes. Close to La Force, Montreal stands imposingly upon a hill, the highest focal point for miles in this pre-Pyrenean foothills region, its impressive aged church and monastery perched in silhouette against the horizon. This busy old town has bars, restaurants, a superb swimming pool, tennis courts, plenty of shops, a weekly market and regular festivals. Many other sporting activities can be enjoyed in the region, from hill-walking to sailing to horse-riding and cycling. There are beautiful lakes, mountains and gorges within quick and easy driving distance. This region being the heart of Cathar country, many former hilltop strongholds such as Montsegur and Las Tours are within very easy reach. A little further south-west through the mountains finds Andorra. Spain is easily-accessed; one can make Barcelona in not much more than a couple of hours. Toulouse is 50 minutes away to the west and Albi, birthplace of the artist Toulouse-Lautrec, only a couple of hours’ drive north. These are just two of the creative centres of a region where all artistic interests are well-catered-for. And if you (or the children) yearn for sand, sea and other child-centred activities, Cap d’Agde has 14 kilometres of beaches and many attractions for the young, like 'Toonland' and 'Aqualand'. It takes an hour or so to reach other pleasant beaches at Narbonne-Plage, Valras-Plage and, going south past the pretty ports of la Nouvelle, Leucate and Barcares, Canet-Plage. An extremely good and extensive animal safari park is situated in this coastal area at Sigean - but if you prefer your animals to be even less threatening you need to move back inland, where a Dinosaur Museum forms part of the paleontology dig-site at Esperaza, south of Limoux. You can’t get less threatening than extinct! And on the way back stop off for a degustation at Limoux, where the local sparkling wine, Blanquette de Limoux is produced. Rumour has it that the “secret” of champagne production was in fact stolen from Limoux by the viticulturists from the Champagne region, so Blanquette is the “true” champagne! Buy a bottle and judge for yourself! ACCESS Nearest airports: Carcassonne (Ryanair only) 15 minutes. Toulouse (various carriers) 50 minutes There are connections to TGV railway lines from the train station at Carcassonne.
COCCINELLES, LA FORCE. SLEEPS 7 $ dollar and € euro prices are approximate; rental costs are based on the £ POUND value. Rental is normally Saturday to Saturday. Electricity and water is included in the rental price, along with all bed-linen and towels. WEEKLY RENTAL 2008 £ GBP $ US € EUROS EASTER £350 $640 €530 APRIL, MAY, OCTOBER £295 $540 €450 JUNE, SEPTEMBER £395 $725 €600 JULY, AUGUST £495 $910 €750 Outside these dates: price on application. Also available for longer winter letting, prices subject to discussions with owner. |Contact owner at E-mail: coccinelles@southfrance.com Why not take an art, drama, ceramic, photography, book, creative course near Carcassonne at French House Party? HOME    PROPERTIES    BOATS    PLACES   RENTALS