Exceptional Manor House with Private Pool, centre of medieval Seillans, France Reviews

Our three-generation American family (ages 12 to 78) spent the first week of July at this wonderful house. It is the model of what a vacation rental should be: extremely well-equipped and comfortable and well-located in the village but private. Sitting in the large garden near the pool under the olive and fig trees, smelling the lavender and looking up at Seillans’s Romanesque church, is idyllic. Most nights we ate at the long table under the grape arbor, which is enhanced by an excellent large grill. (The one night we ate out was at the splendid La Gloire de Mon Pere, about a minute away.) The kitchen is well-designed, so it was easy for us to work together to prepare meals. The house is nicely decorated with Provencal fabrics and has both a big living room and smaller sitting room, as well as various terraces, so it is easy to be sociable or private. The beds are comfortable. There is an excellent collection of books, videos and games, and the owners have thoughtfully provided a selection of local maps for use while at the house. The caretaker speaks good English and is very nice. Unlike many rentals, staples were left from previous visitors, so we didn’t need to buy things like vinegar and olive oil for our all-too-short stay. There’s a garage, but we never had to use it for any of our three cars because there was always parking at the edge of the boules court across the street. The bakeries and Tabac (with the International New York Times daily) are a five minute walk down into the lovely old town, as is the Bar Charlot, where our grandsons had a great time watching the World Cup with the townspeople. I cannot think of anything that would have further improved the experience.