Facilities::
Built c.1810, the cottage is a traditional (detached) Gascon farmhouse with open barn.
Accommodation is ideal for 2- 5.
Upstairs: 2 double bedrooms (one with extra single bed); single bed on the mezzanine; another single bed in a small adjoining passage room; washroom.
Ground floor: comfortable living/dining room with corner kitchen, fireplace, sat. TV, sofa, armchair, dining table & chairs; separate sitting room with sofa bed; bathroom/loo; utility room; WC.
Plenty of reading material, maps, guidebooks, games, garden furniture, BBQ, table-tennis, boules, free use of 4 (elderly) adult bikes.
Our house file gives extensive information on local events & activities, vineyards, music/ jazz festivals and places of cultural/ historic interest. We regularly update our list of recommended restaurants.
Excellent daIly farmers' markets, supermarkets/ hypermarkets (20 min).
Tranquil rural location near a farm - there's no exotic night life or street bustle!
Many repeat bookings.
Places to see and things to do::
Explore hills, valleys and mountain peaks; see the Tour de France pass through in July; visit spa towns, ancient castles and abbeys (Mauvezin, St. Sever, St. Bertrand de Comminges, Flaran) or historic sites like Montmaurin, Auch, Tillac and the famous astronomical observatory at the Pic du Midi de Bigorre. Go wine-tasting, sample local Gascon and Spanish cuisine.
International summer festivals include 'Jazz in Marciac', Latin American music in Capvern, street theatre in Bagnères-de-Bigorre, the 'Fête des Battages' in Burg, the 'Grande Pourcailhade' or Pig Festival in Trie and the Pyrénées piano festival in Barèges.
Theatre, concerts & museums in Pau/Tarbes. Local facilities for golf, riding, stargazing, climbing, skiing, walking, water sports, coarse/fly fishing (holiday licences are sold locally June - Sept.). Lakes suitable for swimming/boating: Miélan (c.26 km), Lourdes (c.38 km), Marciac (c.45 km). Water-sports centres: Boulogne-sur-Gesse (c.35 km), St. Pé de Bigorre (c.48 km).
Travel Planning::
Access to the cottage is easy by road, rail and air. Several low-cost carriers now serve the area. Car-hire facilities are available at all the major arrival points.
The nearest motorway exits are Capvern, Tournay (A 64).
Nearest airports: Tarbes-Ossun-Lourdes (30 mins); Pau (40 mins, served by RyanAir); Toulouse (1 1/4 hrs, served by BA/AF/EasyJet/BMI); Carcassonne (2 hrs) and Biarritz (1 3/4 hrs, both served by RyanAir).
Nearest rail stations: Tournay, Lannemezan, Tarbes, Pau, Toulouse.
Nearest Autotrain station: Toulouse.
Excellent TGV link to Bordeaux/Paris; TGV several times daily from/to Paris-Montparnasse / Tarbes-Lourdes (5 3/4 hrs).
General Information:
It's an easy drive to the mountains and Spain, to Béarn, Comminges, Madiran, Jurançon (important wine-producing areas) and Armagnac.
Pays Basque c.60 mins; Atlantic coast (Bayonne, Biarritz, St. Jean de Luz) 1 3/4 hrs; San Sebastian 2 1/4 hrs; Narbonne and Med. coast c. 2 1/2 - 3 hrs.
Golf:
Golf enthusiasts can choose from local Championship courses within 1 hour's drive, some of them full of history as well as challenge:
Bagnères-de-Bigorre (beautiful views); Pau (one of the most magnificent courses in France - the oldest course in Europe); Tarbes; Lannemezan; Lourdes; Masseube; and Château de Palanne, Tillac.
Most of these are 18-hole courses.
There are about 28 courses in the area. The greens and fairways are permanently green, the soil base of varying mixtures of rock, blue clay and sand all retain and trap the moisture throughout the year (unlike the regions of Provence and southern Spain which can be dry and arid), and most of the courses here are adjacent to the large rivers which flow through the departments. Many courses have electric buggies, club houses and putting greens. All are playable 52 weeks a year because of the mild climate, though after heavy rain they can get a bit muddy. There are courses for beginners, courses for long handicappers and challenging courses for the experienced golfer. Green fees have become reasonable in recent years. Most courses charge more at weekends and during the tourist season (July - Aug.). South-West France has a long tradition of golf playing, the course Pau-Billère being the oldest club in continental Europe, created in 1856.
Golf towns a little further away:
Auch, Bayonne, Biarritz, Bidart, Eauze, Eugènie-les-Bains, Fleurance; Mont de Marsan; St. Jean de Luz.
Other Activities:
evenings al fresco, stargazing, painting and sketching, writing, relaxation, reading, dégustations, house-hunting - and lazing.
