River Cottage

In the village of Mas Cabardés in the heart of La Montagne Noire, this tastefully renovated apartment is on the first floor of a house which dates back to the mid 16th century. Our pictureque village is surrounded by wooded hills, with footpaths in all directions.

The accommodation

The spacious open-plan living, kitchen and dining area opens onto a lovely terrace, with table and chairs, overlooking the river Orbiel. The kitchen has everything you will need - a built-in oven and microwave, an induction hob, a fridge with freezer compartment, kettle, toaster, Senseo coffee machine, and a good selection of cookware, crockery, glasses, cutlery etc.

There is a comfortable l-shaped sofa and armchair, a 43 inch smart TV, and a Bose bluetooth speaker.

The shower room has a large walk-in shower, toilet and sink.

The spacious bedroom has a queen-size bed (160x200cm), a chest of drawers and sitting area with a sofa.

If reserving for more than two guests, the second bed is the sofa in the living room which opens out to make a bed of 140x190cm.

For cooler times of year, we provide an effective modern 3kw paraffin heater, and there are also electric radiators in the living room and bedroom, and a fan heater in the bathroom.

There is a washing machine on the ground floor, as well as some airers for your laundry.

The location

The village of Mas Cabardès, home to about 120 people, is in the valley of the Orbiel, surrounded by rugged wooded hills. Denis' shop stocks all the essentials. It's where you will meet the locals, and it's much more charming than a supermarket. In the nearby village of Roquefére (3km) you will find the excellent Sire de Cabaret restaurant, where you can eat well for a reasonable price. Head south, towards Carcassonne, and you will find Lastours (7km), which is best known for its Cathar chateaux. Here is a very fine Michelin-starred restaurant, Les Puits de Trésor, alongside L'auberge du Diable au Thym, its more affordable brasserie, and also L'auberge d'Orbiel.

Travel info

River Cottage is about 25km north of Carcassonne in the Aude, south of France. This is a very rural area with no public transport, so a car is fairly essential. There is an airport, with car hire desk, at Carcassonne, served by Ryanair with flights from Manchester and Stansted year-round. From Easter to the end of September there are also flights from Bournemouth and East Midlands, Cork and Dublin in Ireland, plus Charleroi (Belgium), Cagliari (Sardinia), Porto (Portugal), and Tangier (Morocco). The A61 autoroute passes Carcassonne, and the driving time from Channel ports is about 12 hours.

There is free parking in the village, and you will always find a space. Proximity to the house depends on the time of year. You can access the front door by car for unloading baggage.

Notes

There is plenty of space on the ground floor of the house for storage of bikes or other outdoor gear.