Les Rives du Port - Lovely 2 Bedroom House near the waterfront in Marseillan Village port

Les Rives du Port offers a unique hideaway on the banks of the waters of the little port... read on to discover why Les Rives is the favourite choice for couples and friends.

Whenever you return to Les Rives du Port, look out for the little touches, new twists to the decor and design. The owner has a great eye for detail and as he uses the house throughout the year, there will always be a triumphant addition tto the home from the brocante markets and art and antique fairs at the plage and Pezenas.
Regular guests get to know the fisherwomen, wine makers and dog walkers who pass the terrace each morning, and a wave bonjour is part of the sunrise routine at Le Rives.

Luxury over three storeys with two large double bedrooms and two bathrooms, a portside terrace overlooking the fishing boats and the park and a private garden to the ground floor bedroom.

From £450 out of season to £930 in peak summer months, this special house is a firm favourite, with regular guests returning year after year to a true home-from-home by the water's edge. Key spring and summer dates book up a year in advance.

The Ground Floor entrance hall and smart modern bathroom lead into a light, bright and cosy garden-bedroom with a comfortable double bed.

The nautical theme reflects the port that is just outside the window, with tableaux of sails and seas on the wall behind the bed. The ecelctrc art selection around the house and the well-stocked book case in this bedroom reflects the home-owner's wide-ranging interests and includes maps and guides for planning your next cycle trip or hike in the countryside outside Marseillan. 

Two glass doors swing open to the pretty waterfront patio with its romantic swing seat under the pergola and cool greenery that rustles gently in the sea breeze.

A great spot for sitting down to email home - the wifi at the house reaches both this ground floor patio and the first floor dining terrace - both overlooking the park and port opposite Les Rives du Port.

Just beyond the greenery, between the jetties of the port and the park, is the the champ des pecheurs, fishermen's field, where nets are strung between the trees to dry as the pecheurs themselves gossip and idle away the afternoons and look out across the lagoon in in the shade of the Madeleine Saint Jean winery.

The cave itself is around 50 yards from the house, and here you may pick up a bottle of the Maison Rouge or a crisp Chardonnay to serve on your terrace with the evening meal.

For yourselves, be like the locals and keep a biberon on hand to fill up with good country wine ffom the tap, sold by the litre to serve in pichets as you toast the setting sun. You may park your car right in front of the house, next to the field.

From the bedroom and its private terrace, come back indoors and make your way up the white-painted wooden stairs to the first floor salon-sejour:

A modern well-equipped kitchen for people who enjoy good Mediterranean food prepared with passion,as the southern sunshine spills in through the window. Now with a dishwasher to allow you to linger on the terrace after dinner. the kitchen also has a ceramic hob, electric oven, microwave and fridge.

The washing machine is downstairs, just off the hallway.

A soft and welcoming sofa and arm chairs and a smart dining suite for apreciating food and lifestyle in comfort.
A high-end music system and the TV for quiet nights in. And a cooling through breeze in summer as you enjoy either your own tunes or the house owner's eclectic taste in music.

Decked in teak, the first floor terrace through the patio windows is the place for breakfast, lunch and dinner al fresco - dining under the sultry Languedoc skies.

Step out onto this wide terrace, its electric awning offering shade from the noonday sun, an outdoor dining suite for evenings watching the lights flickering across the bay as the Mont St Clair is reflected in the clear waters of the Etang de Thau.

A few more steps lead to the splendid spacious open plan bedroom on the second floor.

An ensuite shower/wetroom and a seperate wc on the same level.

This bedroom now has an extra-wide kingsized double bed. Space for pampering and quality me time, comfortable chairs, with desks and tables for catching up on your emails, admiring the eclectic art collection on the walls or simply gazing out over two contrasting views of Marseillan:

Look north across the port, the oysterbeds, beyond the Parc and onto the vineyards of the horizon; Gaze south over the Tabarka rooftops to the entrance of the main marina.

Up to the hills of the back country to discover Cathar castles and the Languedoc of Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code and Kate Mosse's Labyrinth - or perhaps the Cevennes of Robert Louis Stevenson's famed Travels With a Donkey: where you may still follow in the author's footsteps with a donkey of your own and staying in the same inns and guesthouses, still welcoming guests 150 years after the writer first made the trip. Order a special copy of the novel before you travel - with a guidebook at the back! This is after all, the land where your holiday reading comes to life!

Relaxation is the keynote of any stay at the Rives du Port. You can see the oysterbeds from the terrace and one of the gentlest shopping trips you will take will be the lovely waterside wander through the park, along the new plagette beach to the oyster farms.

Pick and choose your seafood supper and, on the way back, step into the red stone warehouse of the Banq family's winery and choose a flavoursome viognier white or reliable marsellan red to serve with the meal.

You can take the same walk, leaving the car at home should you fancy dining out. In summer, fishermen's shack just beyond the plagette, serve platters of fresh oysters with a glass of crisp chilled picpoul and  the lunchtime brasucade fishermen's barbecues at the osyer sheds are the stuff of legend.

Behind the sheds, grab a plate, find a spare place at one of the long shared tables and lunch with the locals. Mussels, sizzling in white wine and herbs, toasted over flaming vine stock, fresh sardines on the grill: pile up your plate and leave space for dessert. 4 courses, coffee and wine for around 20 euros - pretty much unforgettable stuff.

Of course, the fine dining option is still on the menu, two or three minutes in the other direction and you are on the main restaurant lined quaysides of the pleasure port, and five minutes walk takes you to the very heart of Marseillan Village for the gatsronomic treats of centre ville.

Plenty of oportunity to work off all this food - the village tennis courts are just along the oyster farm lane from the house, you may hire a sailing boat with a skipper for as little at 60 euros in the main port around the corner.

The new cycle path swings all the way round the etang, taking you to Sete and back along a trail of unspoilt beaches and ripening vines.

Of course, you may prefer simply to watch other people being energetic - the Kithau sailboard club has its shack in the park by the lagoon and the fun is in watching first timers enjoy the zip wire string from the shore to the waters.

Make Les Rives du Port your home from home, whatever the season. Heating in winter and fans in summer.