Girona holiday farmhouse rental, Estanyol with walking, beach/lake nearby, log fire, jacuzzi/hot tub, balcony/terrace, gym, internet

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Mas Grau (farmhouse)

Home description

A magnificent stone villa in an idyllic setting overlooking the hamlet of Estanyol, near Girona on the Costa Brava, a safe (20 km) distance inland from the often crowded coast. On a huge private estate of over 110 hectaires, the house measures well over 1200m2, with 7 bedrooms and 5 bathsrooms, a private fenced-in 10x5 meter pool, indoor and outdoor BBQ dining area, and exercise room with jacuzzi for 4, and all amenities.

Aerial shot of Mas Grau	the pool & house in background
the pool - the fig tree attracted bees so it´s gone now	the front of the masia

To see more photos please visit http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/2745

The Costa Brava/Catalonia region

Mas Grau is one of the nicest independent vacation homes available in Catalonia (and I've been told by frequent rentors of holiday properties that it is probably one of the nicest vacation houses in Europe). Set in lush farmlands only 7 km SE of Girona's provincial capital - a fascinating historical city - this venerable fortified farmhouse occupies an isolated hillside position surrounded by fruit trees and woods, offering marvellous views of the Medieval village below (Estanyol), and the Mediterranean Sea in the distance. Mas Grau was built in the 12th century and was the fortress of the Viscount of Cabrera. This entire area is renowned for its pristine Medieval villages, the beauty of its countryside, and the area's gastronomy - whether you eat out at a restaurant or buy local produce from nearby markets.

Girona / Estanyol area

Mas Grau is one of the better examples of a fine Catalan masia, or farmhouse. The thick stone and wooden-beamed house is articulated around a walled-in and vine-covered patio, with an artesian well, barbecue, and a utility room with washer/dryer. The ground floor has a dining room and several sitting rooms, one with a barrel-vaulted ceiling and a large fireplace, another with TV, CD player, and a piano (undoubtedly out of tune since Geraldine Chaplin had it tuned some time ago). The kitchen is spacious with large refrigerator, a choice of ovens and stoves (electric, gas, wood-burning). The downstairs tile-lined bathroom is in a long hallway with lots of closet space which leads to a bedroom with a double bed and a magnificent balcony looking out over the coastal plain, with the village of Estanyol in the foreground.

How to get there

Mas Grau is a five minute walk through lovely fields to the hamlet of Estanyol, with two restaurants, and a bike path leads to the village of Aiguaviva, where you have several stores (butcher, baker, etc) and a supermarket. The huge supermarkets at 8 kms away, at the entrance to Girona town.

- fly to Girona Airport (15kms) with budget airlines like RyanAir
- or Barcelona Airport (100kms) with British air or EZ Jet
- or Perpignan Airport in France (60kms) with British Midlands and other budget operators

Info on local car hire available upon request.
The house is about 35 minutes from the French border, 70 minutes from Barcelona, and 15 minutes from Girona airports.

Activities near Girona

Facilities

Further details indoors:
The rooms are spacious and set far apart from one another, with plenty of common rooms on each floor, two rooms with private terrace, and outside there are different outdoor sitting areas, BBQ and poolside louge chairs.

When you email your request, I will send you a detailed description of each room and bathroom.

Further details outdoors:
The unspoiled views are magnificient, and there are no houses in the immediate area surrounding Mas Grau. The owners live in a similar mansion on the other side of the hill, and are on hand if you need them.

I would be glad to send you the Google Earth link for this villa. It gives you a good idea of how huge and gorgeous this property really is! and the distances to villages and access to major roads in the area.

Please read Testimonials and Comments from Past Guests since 1998 in our website.

Further details

Swiming pool is maintained year-round, and is fenced in for child safety, but there is no life-guard.

There is an electicity counter on the jacuzzi and guests are kindly requested to pay for the electricity used for the jacuzzi apart. This is to avoid situations whereby guests leave on the jacuzzi 24 hours a day during their stay. It only takes minutes for the jacuzzi to warm up.

Other than that, there are no hidden of extra charges of any kind. To the contrary, we can arrange extra services for you, for example, such as having a food shopping at the house and ready for you upon arrival....

Rental rates

Period	From	To	Weekly	Nightly rate		Minimum  stay
				Weekday	Weekend
Low-season	1 Oct 07	1 Jun 08	1700£  1,371	0-	0-	1 Week
Mid-season	1 Jun 08	21 Jun 08	2150£  1,734	0-	0-	1 Week
High-season	21 Jun 08	31 Aug 08	2400£  1,935	0-	0-	1 Week
mid-season	31 Aug 08	1 Oct 08	2150£  1,734	0-	0-	1 Week

NB: Prices may be subject to change at the owner's discretion.
Easter and New Year - high-seasont rates apply during these periods.

- 25% deposit by bank transfer or credit card is required to secure the booking
- the remaining 75% is due either pre-payed or in cash (Euros) upon arrival
- prices are all inclusive and there are no extra or hidden charges whatsoever

Guestbook

Hi Charlie,
Asunto: Thanks for Mas Grau
Just a short note to say that we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Mas Grau in July. The owners were charming and the property was wonderful, albeit a little large for us. Still, it was nice to be away from the crowds and to have the little village below with its excellent restaurant. We plan to come back next year, and would like to look for a similar type farmhouse--though one smaller and thus easier to keep clean. Many thanks for your help. We'll look up your website later to try to book something much further in advance than we actually managed to do this year.
Cheers,
Tion Kwa

------------------------------------
Charles,
First of all my apologies for reacting that late. Hope your doing well, we still remember with pleasure the beautiful days we´ve spent in Mas Grau. No problem if you give your contact my E-mail adress and I´ll give them positive information about your services. You can bet on it.
With kind regards,
Erik



Charlie -- we made it! Sorry we missed your call on Thursday. We were wandering the streets around the Cathedral & got back to the room at 10:15. We really enjoyed Mas Grau. The landscapes are beautiful (much greener than here at this time of year). I was surprised to find Girona so hilly! ... Here's an abreviated outline (excuse the butchered spelling & improper puctuation!):

Friday - Arrived in Barcelona -- Drove to Mas Grau Saturday - Explored grounds around Mas Grau; Roger's family came & prepared dinar (paella with black rice); Explored "old Girona" (Jewish Ghetto; Cathedral)
Sunday - Visited family farm in Sant Marti Sacalm (spectacular views)
Monday - Drove to France (to say we did it) -- Palau dels Reis de Mallorca; Back to San Pere de Roda (closed); climbed to Castelle de San Salvador (nerve wracking with a 4 year old who has no fear); visited El Port de la Salva (found a playground on the beach for the kids)
Tuesday - Visited Empuries, then L'Escala, Begur & Peratallaba
Wednesday - Lunch at Castell Follit de la Roca; then Olat & Volca Santa Margarita; watched Els Manaies in Girona
Thursday - Shopping & lunch in Girona; drove to Barcelona (no problem finding the Gutenburg, however it took 20 minutes to get our big, American van down the ramp & into the underground parking garage!)
Friday - Barcelona - Sagrada Familia, Casa Ballo, Casa Mila, Cathedral, Placa del Rei, Placa de Sant Felip Neri, Las Rambles
Saturday - Departure (only took 10 minutes to get the van out of the parking garage!)
Overall, we were impressed by how old everything is (nothing here is more than 300 years old), and I missed my Diet Coke (I don't drink coffee, I'm a Diet Coke for breakfast girl!). I guess the fat-free, low-calorie obsession isn't the same there.

I would definitely go back (without kids?). Although we appreciated the location of the Gutenburg (walking-distance to many things & a Metro stop right outside), we wished we had been able to stay at Mas Grau the entire time. The kids needed a "decompression" day -- we kept them going for too long. They just wanted to "hang out" & play but we didn't have time. By the time we got to Barcelona, neither of them wanted to walk anymore. And we did find some "colourful" people at the little grocery store around the corner from the hotel, but it just reminded us of the Tender Loin district in San Francisco.

Availability notes

Contact owner

To contact this owner please visit: http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/2745

Contact details for home 2745 Please mention Holiday Lettings
Name:	Charlie and María Williams
Tel:	+34 93 268 2300
Mobile:	+34 656 364 960
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Advertiser joined: 4 Dec 2003 This property added: 4 Dec 2003

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