House with Private Pool and Lake in Rural Location

Plein Sud details

Home description

A private second home in France, completely refurbished and redesigned in 2006, Plein Sud is in an elevated position, overlooking its large, floodlit swimming pool, and private wildlife lake. It is beautifully designed and landscaped for outside living and furnished and equipped to a high standard as a home, not as a gite. It faces due south for all day sunshine.

Plein Sud is set in the tiny hamlet of Bariats, it is five minutes drive from Villereal.

External features on site

• Barbecue
• Fishing lake
• Garden
• Scenic views
• Swimming pool (exclusive use)

Accommodation detail

Originally converted from an old cow byre, Plein Sud is now decidedly more luxurious! It is built 'upside down', with the generous living space upstairs to take full advantage of the views.

First Floor

Spacious Living room:

• Comfy, stylish seating
• UK satellite TV (free to air)
• Music centre
• Telephone (honour box)
• Small library, including local guides and dictionary!

Living room leads, open plan, into

Kitchen:  

Completely new this year, with cream units and wooden work surfaces. It is very thoroughly equipped so that keen cooks can take full advantage of the wonderful local produce – when you can tear yourselves away from the restaurants!
The equipment includes :-

• 'Stoves' cooker with double oven
• Huge fridge
• Dishwasher
• Microwave
• Coffee machine
• Food Processor
• Large selection of pans dishes and utensils
• Good and plentiful cutlery glassware and crockery
• Lots of cook books!
• (washing machine downstairs)

Dining Area:

Has painted “distressed” sideboard and dresser, mirroring the kitchen, plus a farmhouse table and six chairs, which you will never use!, as the kitchen and dining areas open out directly on to the covered terrace, through two pairs of double doors – this is where we guarantee that you will spend all your time, when you are not by the pool.

Covered Terrace:

Looks down over your pool terrace to the lake and the thickly wooded hillside beyond. This is a true “outdoor room”, 30 square metres in size, with a dining table and chairs at one end and a relaxing sitting area at the other. With flowering pots (thoughtful guests please water!) and glazing and blinds at one end to protect from the elements, you can live outside for your entire holiday, even when the weather is not at its best.

There is a constantly changing view over the little lake, with its resident moorhen family and other visitors - herons, mallards, jays, occasional deer- (binoculars provided!), and a great view of the sunset down the valley. There is gentle lighting for when the sun goes down, together with candleholders if you want to create a romantic setting! You can tell we are a little in love with our terrace - we think you will be too.

Ground Floor

• Bedrooms 1 & 2 - these two charming double bedrooms each have a new, kingsize, bed. Both have double French doors leading out onto the beautiful terracotta tiled garden terrace.
• Bedroom 3 - this has a 4’ 6” double bed, however, we regard this as a single room as it is quite small.
• Shower room - a completely re-fitted spacious shower room has a large walk-in shower, wc and washbasin.

Across the terrace in the pool house is a second shower room with wc and hand basin, in case of pressure on the main facilities!

Outside

Plein Sud is a house designed for outside living. In addition to the covered terrace, you have a choice of charming, landscaped areas in which to relax; the mellow terracotta garden terrace, with its table and chairs and sunshade; the pool terrace itself with its loungers and swing seat; the flowery decked terrace to one side of the house, nicely shaded from the afternoon heat. There is even a “boule”pitch so that you can practise your skills before taking on the locals (boules provided). There are abundant herbs in the garden to add savour to your cooking.

The 11 x 5 metre swimming pool has in-pool lighting for evening dips. It has Roman steps at one side of the shallow end and this feature, and the generous size of the pool allow you to have 'proper' swims if you like to, or you can just float about, watching the swallows diving. There is a pool alarm for your security

There is a pretty pool house to one side. This provides a summer kitchen with double sink and fridge for poolside drinks, with an adjacent barbeque. It also contains the second shower room to the property, including washbasin and wc. A washing machine is also sited here for your use.

A lavender walk leads down to the meadow and little lake, private to the property. While the grounds are kept just as meadow to encourage wild flowers and provide wildlife habitat, a path is kept mown all around the lake so you can enjoy a walk around it and take in the views down the valley. Just beyond the lake you can take the “chemin rural” up into the woods which meet the bottom boundary of the property. Here there was sited a medieval castle – we confess we have never discovered any remains!

A short walk through the hamlet you will find a large reservoir which also provides delightful walks and further bird watching opportunities, while the immediate area is ideal for cycling with quiet roads and rolling countryside.

What we offer

• A clean, well equipped, beautiful home for your holiday
• Privacy – No owner on site or adjacent, no sharing your pool, but an English caretaker a phone call away (in a nearby village) should you have any queries or difficulties.
• Saturday changeovers
• Provision of all bed linen, towels (except for pool towels) and tea towels, with free linen change and house cleaning, if you wish it, on the Saturday of a two week or more stay.
• A house book with information on local facilities, tourist information, shopping, events, wine tasting opportunities and, most importantly, lots and lots of restaurants!

About the location

Set in the tiny hamlet of Bariats, it is five minutes drive from the picturesque 13th century bastide town of Villereal, with its full shopping facilities, good restaurants and wonderful weekly markets including a vibrant summer night market.

Monpazier and Beaumont bastides are ten minutes away and the wonderful sites and activities of the Dordogne valley are only a half hour drive. The immediate area is wonderful to explore, with its medieval towns, villages and castles. Splendid local restaurants provide regional specialities and range from simple family style to French Gourmet cuisine.

The wine making regions of Bergerac, Monbazillac, Pecharmant, Cahors and Duras are all close at hand. A comfortable drive away are the legendary vineyards of Bordeaux, and St Emillion

See Local guide and map for information on nearby towns and facilities.

Activities nearby

Adventure park, Ballooning, Bird Watching, Boules, Canoeing, Caving, Cycling, Drawing and painting, Fishing, French tuition, Go karting, Golf, Gourmet dining, Hiking, Horse riding, Kayaking, Mountain biking, Paragliding, Photography, Photography, Rambling, Riverside activities, Rock climbing, Shopping, Sightseeing, Singing, Swimming, Tennis, Theme parks, Tree adventure park, Walking, Wind Surfing, Wine tasting, Wine touring

See Activities and attractions for more information on nearby activities and places of interest.

How to get here

• 25 Miles from Bergerac airport (where car rental is available).
• Rail links to Bergerac station.

See Local guide and map for information on nearby towns and airports.