Aux Volets Bleus

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House |3 bedrooms |Sleeps 6

Najac in Midi-Pyrenees

from £65 / night

£450–£700 / week

7 nights minimum stay

Changeover flexible

5 out of 5

3 reviews | Write a review

Key info  Balcony/terrace, car advised, private garden, no pets allowed

Check availability and book

About the home

Right in the very heart of Najac, one of the most beautiful of France’s “Plus Beaux Villages”, La Maison aux Volets Bleus is a recently and sympathetically restored village house. Deceptively spacious, it has a wealth of old beams, chestnut floors and vaulted cellars. Everywhere has been newly furnished and equipped to a high standard; squishy settees, blonde wood, modern bathrooms, new beds and bedding and the latest in kitchens. It provides modern comfort and convenience in a mediaeval setting with awesome views and close proximity to some of the most magnificent and unspoilt countryside in the whole of France.

Restaurants, shops and boutiques are all within walking distance with swimming, riding, kayaking and golf nearby. However, the main attraction must be the easy access to walks, and by car to this beautiful area, steeped in history, mediaeval villages and chateaux.

The house is not a typical rental but the lovingly restored home of its owners who spend most of the year overseas. A perfect base, ideal for walkers, photographers and lovers of La France Profonde.

Facilities

Further details indoors:
At the front of the house, with double windows looking out on to the street, the kitchen has fitted units including self-closing drawers, granite worktop, induction hob, built-in dishwasher and fridge. Fully equipped with everything you might need. A table extends to seat six comfortably. This room also has a cosy sitting area with a settee in front of the log burner. (Electric panel heaters are fitted in all rooms).

The spacious main sitting room at the rear has comfortable settees, easy chairs, music centre , flat-screen TV (UK and French channels) and a DVD player. There is a well stocked bookcase which includes a wide selection of CDs and DVDs,
A large arched window with double glass doors open out on to a tiled upper terrace with glass balustrade providing stunning uninterrupted views across the tree tops and the valley of the Aveyron river to the countryside beyond.

On the first floor front, a large double-bedded room has French doors to a balcony overlooking the street. Perfect for viewing parades at village fête time, or just watching the world go by. This bedroom has its own WC/wash room and separate shower-room on the landing. The washing machine also lives here. At the rear a second double room with twin beds and an en-suite has a double window looking out on to those fabulous views.

On the second floor is a charming double-bedded attic room with traditional “chien assis” floor-level window overlooking the street, and a modern Velux window. This room effectively has its own en-suite bathroom as the other room on this floor is closed off and only used as storage for the owners’ clothes and other personal stuff.

Further details outdoors:
From the upper terrace external stone stairs lead down to a large tiled lower terrace. From here the views of the floodlit ruined chateau above the village are breathtaking, day or night. All the views are in fact a priceless gift for anyone remotely interested in photography.

At the rear of this terrace, through a stone arch, is the summer sitting room - from where a short flight of steps lead into a restored vaulted cellar and the summer dining room, for those days when it’s just too hot to eat outside. This is equipped with its own crockery, cutlery and glassware. Another cellar, used mainly for storage, houses the condenser clothes dryer and an overflow fridge and freezer for your use.

Beyond the lower terrace is a small gravelled area with a peach tree and below that a reclaimed garden area, not yet ready for use. At the bottom of the unfenced garden the land disappears steeply down through woodland to the river below. For this reason, (apart from all the stone steps ), we have to say the house is regrettably not suitable for children.

The house is very well equipped for outside dining and relaxing with tables, chairs, loungers, gas BBQ and sun umbrellas.

Your car may be parked outside the house during most of the year but in peak summer the street is open to residents for access only. However, there is plenty of parking space available just around the corner.

Photos

 

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morning view from the terrace

 

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Aux Volets Bleus

 

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sitting room looking towards the upper terrace

 

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sitting room

The Midi-Pyrenees / Aveyron region

The Aveyron is a beautiful, peaceful and sparsely populated region with more “Plus Beaux Villages” than any other. You will have a wonderful opportunity to explore an unspoilt and relatively undiscovered area of rural France. Within easy reach, are the caves of Roquefort, the Millau viaduct, the Gorges of the Tarn, the vineyards of Gaillac, Albi, Cordes-sur-Ciel, and many many more. There seems to be medieval architecture at every turn which, together with the stunning natural scenery, will provide you with many lovely memories of your stay in the Midi-Pyrénées.

The Najac area

Najac is a superb centre for a wide range of activities. Down by the river is an excellent lido-style swimming pool complex, with kayaking and fishing on the river itself. There are many country and riverside walks, a number starting from right outside your front door, while nearby there is pony trekking and golf.

A well-stocked épicerie is only metres away from the house and the village has a fabulous boulangerie-pâtisserie, as you would expect! There is an excellent butcher is in the nearby next village. Half a dozen restaurants and cafes are within easy walking distance (the nearest being next door!), and many more in the area. A small traditional street market comes to the village square on Sundays during the summer and, on Thursday mornings, a much grander affair only 20 minutes away in the beautiful central square of the medieval “bastide” town of Villefranche-de-Rouergue . The large Sunday market in nearby St Antonin Noble Val (where Charlotte Gray was filmed) is also well worth a visit.

Surprisingly, hidden down by the river, the village also has its own rail station with trains to Toulouse and Villefranche de Rouergue.

In the peak summer months you will be right at the heart of busy village life with its cafes, galleries, boutiques and the local “Mairie” almost just across the narrow street. Outside of the main summer period the village takes on a different personality and becomes a charmingly peaceful haven, away from the real world.

How to get there

Aux Volets Bleus What's nearby: Attractions Restaurants Click map icons for more information

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If travelling by air Najac is about an hour from Rodez airport (Ryanair, Air France) and just over two from Toulouse (Flybe, Easyjet, Air France, BA and others).
Car rental Rodez :Europcar, Avis, Hertz
Car rental Toulouse: Avis, Hertz, Europcar, Budget, Sixt, National
There is a rail station in nearby Villefranche-de-Rouergue and also in Najac itself.

Activities near Najac

Reviews

Review: 1 to 3 of 3

11 Feb 2013

“A Gem with a View of the Fairytale Castle!” We just wanted to say that we thoroughly enjoyed staying at your lovely house! What a pleasure. It's such a well-organised, lovely place, centrally located, and yet a haven of peace. Highly... more

15 Sep 2011

“Extremely comfortable and tastefully restored” We spent a week in this wonderfull location in Spring 2011 and would not hesitate to return. It has been very tastefully decorated with everything which you could possibly need. Being in the centre of the village you close to everything - boulangerie, restaurants, shops, castle. There are many wonderful talks from the town and the scennery is stunning.

12 Sep 2011

“I would like to own this house” We stayed here for three weeks in September. It really is a house which is a home, not something set up as a holiday rental. There are masses of books, proper kitchen equipment, many different places to sit both indoors and outdoors, in the shade or in the sun. And there is a gas BBQ which you can use as the sun sets, the church bells ring, the train goes past deep in the valley and the bats start to circle round the castle ruins. I feel homesick for the place just writing this.

Review: 1 to 3 of 3

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Rental prices

Prices for group size 6
Period	From	To	Weekly	Nightly rate		Minimum  stay
				Weekday	Weekend
October 12	30 Sep 12	4 Nov 12	450£ 450	-	-	1 Week
November 12 - March 13	4 Nov 12	31 Mar 13	400£ 400	-	-	1 Week
April	31 Mar 13	1 May 13	500£ 500	-	-	1 Week
May & June	1 May 13	1 Jul 13	550£ 550	-	-	1 Week
July & August	1 Jul 13	1 Sep 13	700£ 700	-	-	1 Week
September	1 Sep 13	1 Oct 13	550£ 550	-	-	1 Week
October	1 Oct 13	1 Nov 13	500£ 500	-	-	1 Week
November - March	1 Nov 13	2 Mar 14	450£ 450	-	-	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.

Refundable £400 security deposit required with final balance payment, to be refunded within 2 weeks of your departure (subject to satisfactory property inspection)

Rates include local taxes and an average weekly amount of electricity of 180 units peak period and 120 units off-peak. Extra consumption will be charged at the current rate using meter readings. This at present is 8 cents peak and 5 cents off-peak. Wood is provided at cost.

30% of rental fee due at time of booking, with balance payable six weeks before your stay.

100% of rental fee due at time of booking if within six weeks of arrival.

We can accept payments by cheque or bank transfer in GBP, Euros and $NZ

Availability

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

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

5 years listed You are contacting Bruce & Patti Martin Landline n/a Mobile 64 212 568742 Languages spoken The owner is based in New Zealand and has advertised with Holiday Lettings since 2008. This house has received 3 reviews from previous guests.

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