House in a Mountain Village

The House details

Home description

This family home is renovated to a very high standard and is situated in gardens in a village with just 2000 inhabitants : St Remy sur Durolle.

Enjoy an old fashioned relaxed, rustic life style with small family run shops within five minutes walk. Visit the village's Sunday market and local 'brocantes' where there are bargains galore. 

The village is ideal for those who desire to escape from the hustle of daily life into a peaceful setting. You can practice your French on the locals as practically nobody speaks any English except the lady at the newsagents. It has the added advantage of being located within easy driving distance of Ambert, Le Mont-Dore, Le Puy and Limoges. Thiers, the medieval town, is 15 miles downhill .

The village has two bakers, two butchers, two grocers, two hairdressers,one beauty shop, a newsagent, a hardware store, one hotel-restaurant, four bars, a post office, a bank and a church within a five minute walk from the house. A mile from the village there is a lake where a wide variety of aqua activities are available, as well as tennis and indoor squash. Should you be a night-owl, there is a nice discotheque which opens in the summer after midnight.

It is also easy to join various organised walks or horse treks through the surrounding woodland. Around the village, one can visit cheese-makers, wine-pressers, knife factories, curtain-makers, lace-making and other cottage industries typical of this region of France. In the summer, there are various festivals and fairs in the surrounding area which are more to perpetuate tradition than for commercial reasons. Local commerce is also stimulated by various "brocantes" where a varied choice of antiques and craft can be purchased at a significant bargain. There are three 18 hole golf courses nearby and tennis and horse riding is available.

There is ample  car parking on the property. Mountain bikes, tennis racquets can be hired.

External features on site

• Boating lake
• Fishing lake
• Garden
• Tennis Court

Accommodation detail

The raised south facing, ground floor accommodation with many windows, is full of light and cham conveying a feeling of ease and comfort. Being transversal it is very cool even in  hot summers. It is furnished with antique farm furniture. The china is "Ainsley" and the crystal glasses are from Harrods while the cutlery is a typical quality product purchased from the village factory.

• Kitchen - is recently installed and has a glass wall opening onto the paved outdoor seating/dinning area with teak furniture  This gives the kitchen a very light conservatory feel.
• Living room - contains a large sofa-bed with a comfortable 5 inch mattress, which can sleep two.
• Two Bedrooms - with twin/king beds and includes ensuite shower rooms with wc
• The studio - with a 4ft 6 inch sofa-bed (5inch mattress) by the main building with its own electricity, telephone and washing facilities.

The house is entirely insulated with double glazed windows and doors.  The garden extends to half an acre and there is an outdoor dining room on secluded shaded terrasse with teak table and chairs. The sun is on the terrasse from noon till sunset.  A friendly caretaker will greet you on arrival.

About the location

Quick access to the A71, makes the village within easy reach of the principal towns, Chateaux and places of interest in the area. The village is a beautiful 15 mins drive downhill to the medieval town of Thiers, capital of knife-making in France. In nearby Vichy a sophisticated life style is available with its Spa, opera, ballet, concerts, designer shops, horse racing track and every imaginable water sports.

St Etienne, Clermont Ferrand, Le Puy and Lyon are also within easy drive. The Puy de Dome, the highest mountain in the area is a must to visit. There are also many festivals to join in during July and August. If you prefer to visit chateaux, then the Chateau de Hauteribes, Chateau de Malmont and Chateau de Codignat are close by as well as the hot springs of Chaudes-Aigues. Of course if you only wish to relax you can just lay back on the  house' s armchairs!

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

Activities near by

Adventure park, Ballooning, Boating, Canoeing, Golf, Hiking, Horse riding, Ice skating, Mountain biking, Paragliding, Rambling, Shopping, Sightseeing, Skiing, Spa, Swimming, Tennis, Tree adventure park, Walking, Water skiing, Water sports

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

How to get here

• The village is 400 miles from Le Havre directly on the motorway (except for the last 3 miles) with a journey time of 5 hours. You may take the ferry from Portsmouth - Le Havre.
• Ferries from Dover - Calais or Boulogne. It is a drive of 6 hours to the house from Calais.
• Ryanair will fly Stanstead to Clermont Ferrand (30 minutes drive to the house) from spring 2008.
• There are daily flights from Heathrow to Lyon (1h30 drive from the house) Stanstead to Grenoble Airport (2hrs 15 mins. drive), where car rental is available.

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