Saint-Paulet holiday farmhouse: Saint Paulet

Overall an excellent property and ideal for large groups.

The facilities are as described on the website - there is an excellent pool and all the rooms are large, attractively decorated and individual. The house is huge as well, meaning screaming kids at one end don't disturb sleeping kids at the other!

The garden, while very well kept, isn't quite as big as you might think from the photos but is plenty big enough - we set up a badminton net and had plenty of room to spare.

The village of Saint Paulet is tiny and has nothing in it - literally no commercial premises at all - so if you want coffee, bread or a wander around shops you have to travel a short distance by car although there is a bread delivery to the house three times a week.

The immediate surrounding area is very rural and is lovely - rolling hills dotted with tiny villages. It's great for cycling and walking and the stream at the bottom of the garden makes for a nice walk through the trees.

We took day trips to Castelnaudery (typical, pleasant French town), the lake (good for swimming and a nice walk), Carcassonne (stunning and well worth a visit, if a tiny bit 'theme park' for my liking), Saint-Felix (small but very nice village for a coffee and a stroll) but mostly just stayed around the pool for two weeks.

The house is great for children; our party included three children under one, one two-year old and one four-year old and they all had a ball and it was very safe (although we never really worked out the pool alarm!).

If I had one complaint it was that the place could have been cleaned better. I know it's a rural property but it didn't seem to have been professionally cleaned before we arrived. This didn't spoil the holiday and, in fairness, we didn't complain and given how responsive the owner was on other things prior to our trip I'm sure he would have done something about it had we mentioned it.

Lot's of space for 12 people. Those who wish to find a quiet corner to read a book or just relax can do so in the wonderful grand salon whilst the rest of the group whoop it up in the pool, etc. The bedrooms are very spacious and nicely furnished. We had to share a shower with our son and his wife as the ensuite attached to our bedroom only had a bath but it wasn't a problem. We had young children with us and it was difficult at times to find enough shade for the outside eating area but we understand from the owners that this problem has now been addressed and a pergola has been erected with climbing plants which will provide shade. There are some nice gentle walks close by along the side of the canal (suitable for strolling with a buggy) and, of course, plenty to see and do within easy driving distance. We tried to book La Bomba again this year but unfortunately the dates we wanted had already gone but we certainly will go back for another family holiday.

La Bomba is a large old farmhouse in its own ample private grounds, tastefully and well converted.It more than adaquately accomodated our party of 10. The patio area leading to the swimming pool is a lovely space with the option of dining in the open or under a shady canopy. The pool is handily adjacent to the house and patio and there is a nice grassed area surrounding the pool on three side where we erected the much-used badminton net.
The grande salon is a lovely large vaulted room with a large traditional fire place suitable for indoor dining but converted by our super-active party into a table tennis room which witnessed many formidable contests.
One disappointment was the absence of bicycles which would have been well used if available.
The house is surrounded by very attractive corn, maze and sunflower growing farmland and is more a working agricultural area and less touristy than Provance-and none the worse for that!.The surrounding villages are attractive if quiet and overall the area exudes a sense of the real France and is a wonderfull area to relax and unwind.