Au Marquis, Self-Catering Gite with swimming pool. 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms

Alison and Chris, welcome you to their home. We speak English and just a 'little' French. We first spotted this house in this idyllic, peaceful corner of France 4 years ago and decided then that it was to be our new home. We have spent the 2017/18 renovating an attached barn, which we now live in and then turned to renovating our 'Pitit Chateau - Chateau De Rianfonds'. This newly renovated 19th century Maison de Maitre will be your home during your stay with us, where you will be completely private. Our property was new to the market after completing the renovations 2019 and now has the addition of a 11m x 5m swimming pool with shallow stepped area. The pool is 1.3m deep throughout so perfect to swim, lounge or play in. The property is located near Marciac and has 4 bedrooms with 3 bathrooms. On the ground floor, there is a twin bedroom; the Willow Room with zip and link beds that can be made up into a kingsize double bed on request. This has an ensuite shower room with a mirrored heated towel rail. There are 3 further bedrooms on the first floor. Both the main bedrooms are of equal size and have flat screen TV's with French TV channels and UK Free-sat channels. The Silver Birch Room has a kingsize sleigh bed and a single sleigh bed with an ensuite bathroom with a large walk-in shower, bath and heated towel rail. The Oak Room has a Kingsize four poster bed and has a linking door to the twin room making this a lovely family suite. The upstairs twin bedroom; the Acorn Room, has zip and link beds and on request these can be made into a kingsize double bed. These 2 rooms share a 'Jack and Jill' ensuite with a large walk-in shower and heated towel rail. (Please note the twin room is an internal room and does not have its own window.) There is a bright spacious lounge with 3 large sofas and a door that leads directly out to the pool area. A flat-screen TV (French and English channels) and DVD are provided, plus a small book, games and DVD library for guest use. The large kitchen/diner comes with a dishwasher, fridge, oven, hob and microwave. There are 2 comfy chairs and a log burner for colder winter nights. There is also a large dining table with seating for up to 8 people. Outside is a large poolside terrace and garden with outdoor eating area, barbecue, sun loungers and sunshade. In addition, there is a poolside shower, an outside WC and washing machine facilities for guest use. WiFi, parking and central heating are provided free of charge. Au Marquis is set in the rolling countryside of the commune of Gazax-Et-Baccarisse which has a tennis/basketball court and a fishing lake.
 Our closest village with amenities is Bassoues (8 km). It has two restaurants, a small village shop with petrol station, local artisan shops and galleries. It is a wonderful medieval village with a large covered central square which hosts a small Sunday market. There is a medieval tower and the remains of the old walls to be explored. Marciac village, only 12 km away, holds the famous Marciac Jazz Festival which takes place each year from the end of July to Mid-August. This is well worth a visit with pop-up shops and restaurants and bands playing in the square throughout the day. There is then the big tent in the evening where this year 'Sting' will be playing on the opening night. It has a weekly market on Wednesday mornings normally held in the pretty village square but during the festival period it is relocated to Marciac lake. The village of Lupiac just 11 km away has a lake with a small beach, swimming section, woodland walks and a lovely restaurant. This village was the home of D'Artagnan one of the famous Musketeers. There is a museum in his honour and the annual festival of D'Artagnan is held in August. The pretty village of Aignan (16km) is a short drive away with restaurants, shops and a village market on Mondays. The Lake at Aignan has a high-wire obstacle course in the trees with a zip wire. It also has a small beach, water slides, woodland walks and lots of other amenities for the family. Mirande, is a 20 minute drive away and has a country and western festival during the summer, a weekly market on a Saturday and an amazing fish restaurant. Vic- Fezensac, is a 20 minute drive away and has a weekly market on a Friday. It has a fabulous 3 to 4 day Salsa festival in July with dancing in the streets and numerous stalls and kiosks for good food and gifts. Nogaro, a 30 minute drive away (31 km) has its popular motor racing circuit with various events held throughout the year. The property is located in a wine making region so there are lots of 'VINEYARDS' to visit and wines to be sampled. Madiran village is a 30 minuet drive and boast some world famous wines. If you wish to go out in the evenings or perhaps visit a winery for a wine tasting and don't want to drive, we can arrange transport for you with prior notice. Auch is our regional centre and has an historic cathedral and pretty winding streets and a weekly market on a Thursday. It’s well worth a visit for a leisurely stroll, some shopping and a coffee to finish off. For those looking for some hillwalking or skiing, we are less than 2 hours from the ski resorts in the Pyrenees with magnificent views from the Pic-du-Midi and its observatory. For those wanting to have a day by the sea, Biarritz is just a couple of hours away with shopping, restaurants, beaches and surfing. Spain is very accessible through the Pyrenees or along the coast to the pretty town of San Sebastian. The Gite is self-catering, so we provide a welcome pack of just a few essentials to get your stay with us off to good start. For an additional cost, we can provide a cold platter of regional goodies with local wine for your first night’s meal. We will need to know in advance if you require this service. Bookings are a minimum stay of 4 nights in low season and 6 nights in high season Airports: - Tarbes/Lourdes Pyrénées airport 50 km away (50 mins). Toulouse Blagnac airport 110km away (1 hr 30 mins). Bordeaux airport 190km away (1hr 55min). We look forward to welcoming you very soon.