Berniès - Heart of Gascony

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Farmhouse |4 bedrooms |Sleeps 10

Pergain Taillac in Condom

from £100 / night

£700–£1685 / week

Short stays welcome

Changeover flexible

4.5 out of 5

2 reviews | Write a review

Key info  Swimming pool, beach or lakeside relaxation, balcony/terrace, car essential, private garden, pets welcome

Check availability and book

About the home

Enclosed by its own grounds filled with established orchard of peaches, apples, pears, plums and walnuts, you can pick your own breakfast, lunch and dinner, staying in a historic home that dates to the 100 Years War and that lies at the heart of historic Gascony, with guaranteed sun for at least nine months of the year.

Down a driveway lies the house and private grounds, where you can eat in the shade of our mature trees or on the flag-stoned terrace. Explore our 35 acres of sunflower fields and oak woods. We have our own newt and crayfish ponds, a stream, small fishing lake and large, secluded field, ideal for camping, complete with a stone fire-pit.

In a walled garden with its own pigeonnier, a three-storey dovecote built from stone and wood, sits a spacious swimming pool, with a shallow, stepped end for small children, and a deeper end with a water slide. Here also is a kitchen garden stocked with onions, leeks, tomatoes, potatoes, lettuces, raspberries and herbs. Over the wall, is a large garden with a swing, football nets and a netted trampoline that make this a holiday location where children can safely roam free and will not easily get bored.

Inside this large, traditional Gascon noble-man's home there are four high-ceilinged double-bedrooms, and a spacious kitchen with two dining tables. In the kitchen there is a large fridge, a chest freezer, a new gas stove and Bosch fan oven, and every kind of pot and pan to cook yourself a Gascon feast, sourced from the near-by Agen Sunday market, staffed by small producers - the best in a region of gourmands.

If you can't find what you want there, many other fruit and vegetables farmers are close-by, including our friendly neighbours, Denis and Fatima Duffour, growing the best organic melons, Coeur de Boeuf tomatoes and Gariguette strawberries in the area. You can also visit Monsieur Laffargue, an award winning Blonde d'Aquitaine beef cattle farmer who sells direct to the public. A couple of kilometres away are yet more farms selling chapons, pintards and all kinds of free-range poultry. Our local village, Pergain-Taillac is five minutes away for your bread and croissants and Madame Juin will sell you milk and eggs direct from her farm.

At night, fill a glass and watch the bats and barn owls from the terrace. Visit one of our local Michelin-starred restaurants or flop in front of the large plasma screen and catch a movie on the satellite TV or from the DVD library.

We are surrounded by historic towns and villages, thermal spas, waterparks and lakeside bathing. Close by there are three horse riding stables, and fields criss-crossed by mountain bike routes, with some of the best road riding in the region, on lanes that rarely see traffic. Surrounded by trekking circuits as well as tree-top zip-wire courses, there is plenty to do outside this house and its park.

With a clutch of (child-friendly) Michelin starred restaurants in the neighbouring villages, it is also only a little over an hour to the great cities of Toulouse and Bordeaux. The Pyrenees mountains are only a 90 minute drive away too. The enormous dunes and beaches of Arcachon and Cap Ferret can be reached in 90 minutes too, making this a great base from where to explore the region.

See also: http://bernies.pergaintaillac.com

Facilities

Further details indoors:
Terracotta tiled hallways, pressed with the traditional footprints of a duck and a dog to drive away the devil, Berniès has been restored and updated to become luxurious and welcoming, with British satellite TV as well as French digital channels, and free wifi access, making this also a well-connected home.

Further details outdoors:
An enclosed private garden shaded by two mature horsechestnut trees, leads through a lockable gate to a walled kitchen garden and a 6m x 13m outdoor swimming pool with water slide and sun loungers on the tiled terrace area. Apple, cherries and figs overlook the pool, as do raspberry canes and tomato vines, with herb beds to take cuttings from.

An ancient tower houses the garden games and chairs, and inside an adjacent barn is a table tennis table and sports equipment.

Further details

Maps, guides and leaflets available. A welcome folder with suggestions and essential numbers as well as recommendations. Pool open June to October. An extensive DVD library of films for children and adults.
See: http://bernies.pergaintaillac.com

Conditions

1. Holiday Price. The price quoted is guaranteed for the agreed period on receipt of your deposit of 30% of your total invoice value. This deposit is non refundable and therefore we strongly recommend you insure your holiday as soon as you confirm your booking. The balance of your invoice is due 8 weeks prior to arrival. On receipt of your deposit we will confirm your holiday. Payment can either by made by bank transfer - our bank details are available on request - or by cleared Euro or GB Sterling cheque.

2. Returnable Breakage Deposit A breakage deposit of €400 will be asked for with your balance, this will be banked and held as security. This will be returned to you within 2 weeks of your departure less the cost of any breakages and damages.

3. You are responsible for any breakages, damages or loss to the property and all the amenities provided, and for leaving it in good order and in clean condition. The house will be clean on arrival and it should be left that way on departure. There is an end of let cleaning charge of €80 for a let of 1 week less and €100 for a 2 week let. This cost to be paid locally prior to departure. If you commit any serious abuse or damage to the property or any of it's amenities, we reserve the right to treat your holiday as cancelled, and require you to leave the property immediately without any compensation.

4. Cancellation by you: as stated in Point 1, the deposit is non refundable. However, should the holiday be cancelled less than 8 weeks prior to arrival, the full 100% of cost less breakage deposit is to be paid. Provided cancellation is unavoidable, these costs should be recovered by your personal travel insurance. We strongly recommend that insurance be taken out to protect against unavoidable cancellation, accident, illness or injury, or breakdown to your vehicle on a self-drive holiday.

5. Sleeping Capacity This must be agreed on booking to enable us to provide the accommodation most suitable for your needs. Under no circumstances is the maximum number of occupants indicated on booking to be exceeded, should this occur then either a surcharge of €450.00 per week per additional person will be required on arrival, or we reserve the right to refuse admission to the property of any of your party in excess of the agreed number.

6. Use of the pool and gardens. The use of the swimming pool, which is unsupervised, is entirely at your own risk. Parents agree to ensure children are supervised at all times. The gardens are also not supervised and similarly use of these facilities is entirely at your own risk. The owners cannot be held responsible for any accidents on the property resulting from improper use of the pool or other facilities.

7. Under no circumstances must our accommodation be sub let to a third party. If it is discovered that this is the case then the full amount of the security deposit will be forfeited without any refund.

Photos

 

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pigeonnier

 

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morning on the terrace

 

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main house from the garden

 

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pool

The Midi-Pyrenees / Gers region

Guaranteed sun for at least nine months of the year! Berniès is in the department of Gers, forming the major part of the old historical region known as Gascony that was described by Abert Camus as Tuscany in miniature, having the highest concentration of bastide (defensible walled) villages in France. Unspoilt by motorways, mass tourism and major industry, it has a rich heritage, a rugged landscape, superb climate (hot, dry summers and cold winters), fantastic regional food (cheese, meat, vegetables, soft fruit) and wine (Cote de Gascon, Fronton, Gaillac and Tariquet) - not to mention aperitifs like Armagnac and Floc. We are surrounded by independent producers and farmers, growing melons, apples, plums. Farmers sell their own fruit juices, breads and cheese. Everything from suckling pig to wild boar is being reared. Local people are friendly and welcoming.

The Condom / Pergain Taillac area

Year round, the Gers is perfect walking country with the main St Jacques de Compostelle pilgrim route passing just a few kilometers away from us at La Romieu, a historic village also famous for its collegiate church of St Pierre, a UNESCO world heritage site. From its cafes and bar, there are dozens of circular walks through the sunflower fields and woodlands, suitable for all levels of fitness, with the striking twin towers of St Pierre serving as a constant locator on the horizon. The historic towns of Lectoure, Condom and Nerac are also close by, as is the medieval fortress village of Larrisingle. The magnificent Chateau de Bonaguil is barely an hour's drive. Some of France's most incredible cave art sites are a similar distance away.

If you prefer pedal power there is nothing better than taking a couple of hours out on the traffic free undulating lanes that surround us. There are bicycles for all ages in the stables and we have a full list of road and off-road routes.

Painters and photographers are drawn to the Gers for its beauty, enchanting little bastide (fortified) villages and clear air. Every day of the week there is a market somewhere close by. All summer there are vide grenier (empty loft or bric-a-brac) sales. And the region is alive with festivals, (including the internationally renowned Marciac Jazz Festival, the Tempo Latino Festival in Vic Fezensac and the Grand Pruneau Show is Agen). Every Friday night in summer there is a music and food festival in our neighbouring village of Lamontjoie.

A new water-park in nearby Nerac. the town of 'Chocolat' fame, is never frantic. Parc Walabi (a proper theme park) has rides for every size in Agen, which also has a skate park and lovely nooks and crannies and chic shops to browse, as well as a little gem of a museum. Even nearer, La Romieu has a huge open air pool and bar, should you get bored of our pool. The canals 15 km away, are shaded by fruit plantations, and run for hundreds of miles, their tow-paths great walking and riding routes. There are also several shady rivers down which to canoe or swim. And we have two thermal spas nearby at Lectoure and Castera Verduzan.

There is also an alternative. You could do nothing, and laze by the pool in Berniès, enjoying the silence.

How to get there

Berniès - Heart of Gascony What's nearby: Attractions Restaurants Click map icons for more information

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Berniès is in the rolling countryside of the department of Gers, in south west France.

By Air:
Fly to Toulouse (1hr.10mns away from us), Bordeaux (1hr.15mns), Bergerac (1hr.20mns), on BA, Easyjet, Ryan Air, BMI Baby, or Fly B. Flights vary, but all from the UK are approximately 1hr.20mins.

Car Hire:
Hire a car from an airport or railway station and drive to us.

Directions:
From Toulouse: follow signs for A62 direction Bordeaux. Take the A62, and exit after 55 minutes, at junction 7, take the last exit at the mini roundabout for Laplume and Condom, keep straight on this road through Berrac and Laplume, and heading towards Lamontjoie. Turn left into Lamontjoie, and then keep straight on through the village and out the other side until you hit a t-junction. Turn left and first right down a small lane which leads to the hamlet of Bernies.

From Bordeaux: head for the Rocard, ring road, and follow signs for A62 Toulouse. Stay on autoroute until junction 7. take the last exit at the mini roundabout for Laplume and Condom, keep straight on this road through Berrac and Laplume, and heading towards Lamontjoie. Turn left into Lamontjoie, and then keep straight on through the village and out the other side until you hit a t-junction. Turn left and first right down a small lane which leads to the hamlet of Bernies.

By Rail:
Take the train from Bordeau or Toulouse to Agen railway station, which is 21 km from us. Hire a car there or get a taxi to us.

Activities near Condom

Reviews

Review: 1 to 2 of 2

18 Feb 2013

“a dreamy rural retreat” Bernies is a very comfortable and characterful house set in stunning gardens and sunflower filled countryside. Its perfect for those looking for a rustic and rural retreat. The rooms are very... more

07 Jan 2013

“Fantastic and stylish family home.” We had a wonderful family holiday at Les Bernies. The House is delightfully furnished and the pool is superb. the accommodation is stylish but not fussy and the kids had room to roam and play. This is a warm and welcoming holiday home in a delightful area of France and I would recommend it to friends and anyone whether families or 'grown ups'!

Review: 1 to 2 of 2

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Rental prices

Prices for group size 10
Period	From	To	Weekly	Nightly rate		Minimum  stay
				Weekday	Weekend
High Summer	1 Aug 13	1 Sep 13	1685£ 1685	-	-	1 Week
mid season	1 Sep 13	1 Oct 13	950£ 950	-	-	1 Week
low season or long let	1 Oct 13	1 Apr 14	700£ 700	-	-	1 Week
mid season	1 Apr 14	2 Jul 14	950£ 950	-	-	1 Week
high season	2 Jul 14	1 Aug 14	1450£ 1450	-	-	1 Week

The property's weekend rates apply to: Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights

NB: Prices may be subject to change at the advertiser's discretion.

A compulsory end of let cleaning charge is levied of €80 for a 1 week let and €100 for a 2 week let.

There is a €400 inventory deposit required with each booking.

Availability

See below for next 9 months' availability - to see the next 24 months click here

Availability notes:

This is a much loved family house and a summer let only, between July and September, although other dates will be taken into consideration for special occasions.

Contact the owner

* Required fields Please check the following errors: First name * Last name * Email *   Did you mean ""? Yes / No Phone number Arrival date Departure date   Ignore calendar - enquire anyway No. of adults No. of children Message * Send me ideas on where to stay

1 year listed You are contacting Cathy Scott-Clark Landline n/a Mobile n/a Payment accepted Credit cards accepted PayPal accepted Languages spoken The owner is based in the United Kingdom and has advertised with Holiday Lettings since 2012. This farmhouse has received 2 reviews from previous guests.

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