La Grande Provençale

The villa

A house of the south, made for gatherings

Pale stone walls, sage-green shutters and a terraced garden of olive trees, palms and lavender: La Grande Provençale is a classic Provençal house with room for a big family or a group of friends.

Inside, old and new sit easily together. Stone arches divide the living room, where deep sofas face a carved stone fireplace and French windows open to the terrace, and the dining room seats the whole party at one long table. The kitchen is modern and fully fitted around a large island, and a second, country-style kitchen with a range cooker has a stable door straight out to the garden.

The bedrooms are calm and light, with linen curtains and tall windows, and a bunk room opens onto the garden for the children. The bathrooms are contemporary, one with a freestanding bath.

Outside, the garden steps down to a long pool with loungers on the lawn. Lunch is under the wisteria-covered pergola beside the water, and dinner on the covered terrace, at a long wooden table looking out over the hills as the light goes.