Maison du Sel Royale

Maison du Sel Royale is a flawless restoration of a 19th century 'Maison de Maitre', updated with a wealth of modern comforts and amenities to create a French holiday rental of the highest luxury standard.

Boasting seven individually styled double bedrooms, each with their own en-suite bathroom, Maison du Sel Royale is an immaculate mansion complete with swimming pool, tennis court and private lawns. The house sits within a landscape dotted with historic towns and quaint little villages, at the base of the Pyrenees amid lush meadows, thick green forests and serene mountain lakes.

This property offers everything you could ask for in a luxury holiday or special celebration, with several large dining areas including a large covered terrace area with barbecue, table and chairs. Alternatively, for those who seek adventure on their travels, the region could not be more accommodating, with nearby surfing and skiing resorts, and plenty of mountain biking trails.

Features

Maison du Sel Royale offers seven double bedrooms, each spacious and individual in character. Stylish and luxurious, without being fussy, they can make time in bed as alluring as hours spent exploring Southwest France. All have full en-suite bathrooms, and are furnished with king-size beds, fine bed-linen, exquisite drapery and seating areas. Molton Brown toiletries, plenty of Egyptian cotton towels, bathrobes and slippers are provided to complement the relaxed atmosphere. All ground floor bedrooms open onto the terrace, and upper floor bedrooms benefit from panoramic views of the Pyrenees and sprawling countryside. There is air-conditioning in the top suite and Dyson fans in the other bedrooms.

This is self-catering at its best. Cook up a storm in the state-of-the-art kitchen fully equipped with Miele appliances: 2 x double ovens, 7-ring induction hob, 2 x full-sized fridges, steam oven, warming drawer, convection microwave and 2 x full-sized dishwashers to cope with the aftermath. Enjoy the fruits of your labour at one of the two large dining tables in the adjoining rooms. The kitchen is pre-stocked with essentials such as tea, coffee, sugar, salt, pepper, dried herbs and spices, cooking oil and cleaning products. Should you wish us to pick up a few other essentials from the supermarket prior to arrival please let us know well in advance. There is a second kitchen and utility room located adjacent to the outdoor living area.

Enjoy different dining settings without even leaving the property: in the elegance of the formal dining room, in the relaxed and informal ambience of the breakfast room or alfresco on the undercover terrace. All tables seat 14 people or more, ideal for special-occasion entertaining or simply enjoying the company of friends and family whilst savouring your culinary creations, a wonderful French tradition. Remove the mahogany leaves from the formal dining room table and it converts to a hand-crafted Hamilton 9ft billiards table.

Guests can discover their own favourite place for reading, relaxing or enjoying a glass of wine in any of the four living areas. Unwind in the spacious double-height lounge: the imposing fireplace, exposed stone walls, French doors leading to the terrace and wooden beams of the minstrels gallery curling above, create a wonderfully peaceful atmosphere. Enjoy modern-day comforts in the TV Room equipped with a large flat-screen television, satellite TV, Blue-ray DVD player and a selection of DVDs for all ages to keep you entertained. For those seeking more traditional entertainment, challenge someone to a game of chess or delve into the reading material in the galleried library. The study also boats an extensive collection of cookery books for culinary inspiration as well as a laptop, Wifi Internet access and a printer for those requiring an IT fix or to keep in touch with the outside world.

In its secluded position the 6x12m salt-chlorinated swimming pool, surrounded by wonderful honey-coloured original stone walls and a sun-drenched terrace, offers complete privacy. Sunloungers, an alfresco shower, lilos, games and play equipment a-plenty makes it the ideal spot for keeping the children amused for hours whilst you relax and while away your time soaking up the French sunshine.

In summer the terrace is the centre of holiday life. Designed and appointed for ease and pleasure, the private and peaceful outdoor living area offers everything you need for summertime entertainment. The spacious undercover dining and BBQ area benefits from a large adjoining fully-equipped kitchen and bathroom, so very little need drag you away from enjoying the outdoors and drinking in the beautiful views over the pool, established gardens, orchard and rolling fields.

Facilities include a high-quality hard surface tennis court and basketball ring, darts, table-tennis, boules and mountain bikes for excursions. General Equipment Provided: Portable Bose iDock, pool towels, tennis racquets, tennis balls, telescope, binoculars, board games and playing cards. Maison du Sel Royale is also exceptionally well equipped to welcome visiting tots: cots, highchair, seat boosters, changing mat, playpen, baby-monitor, portable DVD players and toys are all available.

The outdoor kitchen is equipped with two washing machines, a tumble dryer, laundry detergents, iron and ironing board, cleaning products and materials, a drinks fridge, freezer and BBQ equipment. Parking: Ample parking for 5 or more cars.

Location

Coast/Beach
The Atlantic coast is under an hour away from Maison du Sel Royale and is well known as a surfing hot-spot with its endless beaches, consistent surf, world class beach breaks and long summer days. Biarritz is hailed as an old-school hang-out, with huge waves, a loyal following and home to the annual Biarritz Surf Festival in July. Along the coast, there are many other places including Hossegor, Guethary and Les Cavaliers.
Golf
Pau Golf Club, the oldest golf course in Continental Europe and not to be missed. The Artiguelouve Golf Course, at the foot of the Pyrenees, a splendid 18-hole golf course, beautifully laid out within the natural surroundings with 7 water obstacles. Biarritz boasts many top quality golf courses and is one of the best regions for golf in mainland Europe, with four courses in Europe's top 100 and a further four courses in the top 50 in France.
Fishing
Due to its geographic position, quality of the water and magnificent landscape, the whole of the Pyrenees-Atlantiques area is fantastic for fishing. From white-water rapids, lakes or rivers, fishing enthusiasts are able to enjoy wild salmon and trout fishing, fly fishing or course fishing. Our local river, the Gave d'Oloron quite often produces the largest salmon caught each year in France and is also home to the annual World Salmon Fishing Championships (April/May). The Gave d'Oloron and the Gave de Mauleon are two of France's best combined salmon and trout rivers and world renowned for the fighting qualities of the fish. Fly fishermen can enjoy 2500km of mountain trout rivers fed by melting snow from the Pyrenees making it a unique experience for all levels of abilities. For those interested in coarse fishing, the rivers and lakes are stocked with populations of barbel, chub, dace, gudgeon, roach, rudd, bream and carp. In honour of the local salmon, the town of Navarrenx holds a salmon festival, Saumonade Fete, on Bastille Day (14 July) each year where teams compete to cook various salmon dishes.
Cycling
Help yourself to the bicycles at the house and explore the lovely routes along the river, through the picturesque local villages or head off-road in the nearby woodlands. With a multitude of routes to choose from and well-surfaced, relatively traffic free roads, you'll have few excuses not to get peddling! The Tour de France requires no presentation. Having existed for over a hundred years, this gruelling three-week race has become a huge international event in the last thirty years and Maison du Sel Royale is well situated to take full advantage of this unique spectator sport. The Pyrenees Mountains are an important section of the race and often determine the eventual winner.
Skiing
With the Pyrenees on our doorstep we are naturally blessed with some fantastic ski resorts. Whether you're looking for family friendly mixed ability slopes or something more challenging, there are plenty of options to suit your needs.
Mountain Hiking
Experience the altitude of the spectacular Pyrenees, or follow ancient pilgrim routes that have been trodden for over a thousand years.
The Jurancon wine route
Jurancon is one of France's oldest appelations (it was used for the baptism of King Henri IV) producing distinctive dry and sweet white wines.
Lourdes
Anoint yourself with the world's holiest water in this world famous pilgrimage destination.

Extras

At Oliver's Travels we pride ourselves on going that little bit further for our guests. If there is anything you would like to arrange for your stay, please contact the Oliver's VIP Concierge Team (by clicking on the link in the blue Oliver's Extras box above) who will be happy to help. We can usually put you in touch with the right people arrange any of the following:

• Cook/catering
• Maid service/extra cleaning
• Local day-trips or tours
• Airport pick-up/drop-off
• Babysitting service
• Welcome hamper/pre-stocked fridge

This is by no means an exhaustive list, so please just contact Oliver's VIP Concierge Team to help you arrange any of those little extras that can really make the difference.