" ESPECIALLY FOR TWO" : A cottage in AUBAIS 8km from SOMMIERES

We are thrilled to be able to welcome back guests for 2022. We have had none during 2020 and 2021. Please note that the only way that we can accommodate our guests is to have all bookings starting and finishing on a Saturday. We purchased the house in March 2014. We know from experience as holiday seekers that 8 years can be a long time on the wear and tear of any holiday home. SO Since the purchase we have returned each year to holiday and to update various aspects of the cottage in order to provide, hopefully, a sanctuary out in the country but not isolated. We always want our cottage to afford total comfort and tranquility, for our guests. Being ready for you has to be our priority in what we do during our stays as well as having Luciana our housekeeper, a professional team of cleaners, and a pool and irrigation expert, nearby for any of your immediate needs. We focus on the gardens and grounds as much as inside the house and try to keep our photos up to date so that what you see is what you get! OUTSIDE: The Mediterranean styled garden is on three levels and so we have tried to make sure that there are opportunities to relax on each. We have sought to provide plenty of comfy padded recliners and seats on the 3 levels of the riverside garden. We have also provided a ' plancha' on the upper level of the garden for all alfresco dining. The pool is considered by us, and past guests, to be an important provision for everybody who stays. Having installed a new pool we bought a robot cleaner to ensure that it is cleaned each day during your holiday without disturbing you. Having a pool means that, by law, we have to have installed an alarm system for that pool. We have updated the alarm and employed a pool man to manage both new systems for us. No guests have stayed, due to Covid, since Summer 2019. We were able to return during 2020 and 2021 and do all that was necessary to keep the cottage fresh and bright! Our highlights Most importantly for us is the fact that we have our own private access to the river and canoe, which we purchased from a local kayaking company, KAYAK VERT, together with the necessary life jackets for the safety of our guests. During October 2018 we had work done on the step down to the canoe to make entry a little easier for all of us!! Our 2019 guests much appreciated that alteration. The metal seat, by the steps to the river, allows views down river whilst the recliners afford you extended periods to relax in the sun with views upriver. We are leaving binoculars for you all but if you are a real watcher you may wish to bring your own, too. The huge cypress trees on the upper level ensure that there is always shade in which to sit on even the hottest of days. We believed, from the outset, that all guests would be spending much of their time round by the pool and cooking alfresco on the plancha on the upper level of the garden....and that has proved to be the case! We do hope that everybody will be able to take advantage of the cool that the canoe on the river and the pool offers during those hot days. We updated the watering system In September 2021 to ensure that the plants in our garden have a chance, as best we can. We also renewed the garden lighting to ensure that sitting outside when it is still very warm and welcoming is desirable even in the dark! Our 2019 guests were the last to witness these updates.......See their reviews! INSIDE UPDATES SINCE BUYING IN 2014. Inside the house we have, again, done everything we could to provide comfort and warmth within an enviable environment. Each year we have tried to make a major improvement. We have put in a new bathroom. This was again re-painted May 2018. We have subsequently installed a totally new kitchen and totally updated and decorated the guest bedroom. (See recent photos). Rather than for us try to list all of the changes it would be better for you to see the updated photos and to read the reviews of our guests over the past 5 years. We have now had our first 6 years of welcome guests. We were totally booked for our seventh set of guests booking their 2020 holidays. Sadly none were able to come and were totally refunded. We did not even make the cottage available for 2021 and we are watching carefully for 2022. We should like to thank each and everyone of our past guests for their encouraging words NOT JUST THOSE WHO HAVE WRITTEN LOVELY REVIEWS FOR THE WEB-PAGE, but also all the guests who have left equally appreciated feedback in the VISITORS BOOK and sent texts directly to us. We have learned that those return guests who have booked their 2nd, 3rd or more holidays directly with us are no longer permitted to send in reviews of their holiday. Home Away learned that some owners had abused the system and so only guests who have booked directly with them were able to write reviews and rate us on their 5 star system! We are unsure whether VRBO who took over from Home Away after our last guests left will be doing the same. We hope that everybody will be allowed to write a review! The VISITORS BOOK IS LEFT AT THE COTTAGE for you to see the comments if they are excluded from now on or should you need confirmation. We hope that your experiences at the cottage will encourage you to write, too! REGARDLESS OF HOW YOU BOOKED THE COTTAGE IN PREVIOUS YEARS: We should like to thank all guests for the care that they have taken of the property throughout their stays. It was encouraging that so many appreciated the input from Luciana, the housekeeper. We have passed on that appreciation during each of our holidays at the cottage. Luciana remains as our housekeeper who oversees the professional cleaning team who will come in after each set of guests leave. We have been waiting to work with this team since 2019.......We look forward to developing our relationship with them in Summer 2022. THANKS AGAIN TO ALL PAST GUESTS WE HOPE TO WELCOME YOU BACK AT SOME TIME IN THE FUTURE.