A comfortable village apartment on the 1st and 2nd floor of a substantial village house in the heart of Ribaute, sleeping 4 to 6. The living/dining/kitchen area is over 400 sq. ft. The kitchen, which is new, has electric hob, fan-assisted oven and microwave; dishwasher; and fridge and freezer. There is a washing machine and tumble-dryer in the ground floor garage (where you may park your car). Outside the living-room is a large east-facing terrace, with a built-in BBQ. Upstairs there are 3 good-sized bedrooms (1 double, 2 twins); and a large bathroom with tub and shower; and separate WC. There is another small sitting area on the upstairs landing.

The village, Ribaute, is in the heart of the Corbières, near the Montagne d’Alaric. The River Orbieu runs through the village, with picturesque waterfalls and good swimming (2 mins walk from the flat). The village is set in excellent walking country, from gentle strolls through the vineyards to serious hill-walking. The wild flowers are magnificent from April to June; and there is abundant bird-life. In summer there is an open-air bar in the village every evening, where villagers and holiday-makers alike gather to chat and the children to play.

Ribaute has no shops but a baker’s van calls daily and the butcher comes twice a week. The next village, Lagrasse (4 kms) has a small general store, a chemist, greengrocer, bakery and tobacconist as well as several restaurants. There is a small market in a charming medieval building on Saturday mornings. Lézignan Corbières is 20 minutes away by car and has a full range of supermarkets and other shops. Lézignan has a large and bustling street market on Wednesday mornings.

Things to do

The following is only a very partial list of the attractions offered by the area. The numbers in brackets are the approximate travel times in minutes by car.

Lagrasse (5) is medieval town with an interesting Benedictine Abbey. There are numerous artists’ studios.

Fabrezan (10) has a museum devoted to the work of Charles Cros, sculptor and inventor.

On the outskirts of Lézignan (20) there is an equestrian centre where horses and ponies may be hired. Lessons available. At the small airport you may charter a plane to take you on a tour of some of the Cathar chateaux.

In Carcassonne (35) you can walk around the famous walled Cité – or take a guided tour by horse and cart – and explore its shops and restaurants. There is a museum devoted to the history of torture( !!) and another tracing the story of the Cathars. There are regular theatrical and musical events and several cinemas. 20 miunutes beyond Carcassonne is LasTours, where a group of medieval towers nestle on a hillside of cypress groves. A magical place. A son et lumière is given on weekend evenings in the summer months. Also on the outskirts of Carcassonne are an ostrich farm and an ornithological park, which features falconry demonstrations and performing parrots twice daily.

Narbonne (35) is a charming market town on the Canal de la Robine (boats available to rent by the hour). A single ticket (with 3 day validity) gives admission to the art, archaeological and lapidary musuems as well as to a network of Roman underground stores (which are deliciously cool on a hot day). The medieval Cathedral of St Just is also worth a visit. There is an indoor market every morning in a charmingly renovated art deco building, with wonderful food, and a busy street market on Tues/Thurs/Sat.

Just south of Narbonne at Sigean (50) there is an African Reserve with over 3,000 animals (visits by car – no soft-tops permitted).
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Beyond Narbonne are the beaches. Narbonne Plage (55) is quite busy and has lots of restaurants and shops. La Franqui (70) is less developed, as is the naturist beach at Toreilles Plage (80). Port Leucate (75) has an Aquamagic, with chutes, wave machines etc. All the beaches offer water/wind sports and have a lifeguard on duty

Other, longer exursions (1 to 2 hours) might be to Céret, the cherry capital of France, which is a charming little town with an excellent modern art museum with works by Picasso, Miro, Dufy and Cézanne; for a tranquil afternoon, picnic on the banks of the Canal du Midi and watch the boats go by; for splendid scenery and good river swimming, try the Gorges du Tarn (canoes for rent).

The city of Perpignan has the Palace of the Kings of Majorca, among other attractions. Montpellier is an ancient city which has been reinventing itself in recent years and boasts some architecturally exciting new neighbourhoods such as Antigone, which has an Olympic-sized pool with sliding roof. Have a drink in one of the cafés on the city’s main square and watch the world go by. There are pony-rides for the children at the edge of the square and a tourist train leaves from there, which will guide you round the main attractions.

The seaside towns of Agde (with a lively artists’ colony and restaurants overlooking the River Hérault), Béziers and Sète all have regular jousting-from-boats on summer Saturdays. Great fun to see which of the jousters will lose his balance and fall in the water.

For a complete change of ambience, cross the border into Spain. Shop till you drop in the duty-free town of Le Perthus (we call it Blackpool-by-the-Border). There are numerous monasteries and abbeys to visit in the first few miles across the border. And in Figueras there is a museum devoted to the work of Salvador Dali.

If you do make longer excursions and plan to return lateish, we can provide an evening meal by arrangement for a small charge. However, if you go to Spain, retaurant meals are gargantuan and after a substantial lunch you may only want a snack in the evening.

Other information

Ryanair flies to Carcassonne twice daily from Stansted. The earlier you book, the cheaper their fares are likely to be. If you do drive, bear in mind the cost of motorway tolls in France. Taking the car on the TGV may not be very much more expensive and it will certainly be less stressful, especially if you are travelling with small children. If you are a group of 5 or 6 and only want to rent one car, we can collect 2 of your party from the airport.

Because of the stairs leading to and inside the apartment, we do not recommend it for toddlers or the lederly or infirm.

John and Ken, the British owners live in an adjacent apartment and are there to help, should a problem arise. We will keep out of your way. Whether you see a little or a lot of us is up to you. We have a dog.

Our rates for 5 to 6 people are £500 per week (July/August), £400 (Easter and October half-terms) and £350 (April-June and September). We can offer a reduced price for smaller groups, depending on the season. Evening meals, if required, are 12-16 euros per person.
We provide bed linen and towels for use in the bathroom. Please bring your own beach towels. We provide a TV with one English language news channel; a DVD player and a mini CD player. We have a library of over 300 DVDs which you may rent for a small charge. However, not many of these are suitable for small children.

For further information, contact us by e-mail at : audetr1@hotmail.com
Or:budge.coser@tiscali.fr

By telephone on: 00 33 468 43 62 69, preferably between 6 and 8 pm (UK time) or at weekends.