We spent an amazing 4 weeks during August 2025 in this wonderful villa. From booking through to departure, working with Jon was easy with Jon being able to accommodate our needs. During our stay Jon and his local team were attentive and easily contactable, not that we had any issues during our stay.
The Villa was perfect for us, we were a family of 4 plus two grandparents. The layout allowed grandparents to have the downstairs bedrooms and bathrooms, whilst we had the 3 large bedrooms upstairs with our own family bathroom which gave us all our own space when needed. The main living room easily accommodated us all when needed, but with the weather as great as it was, we spent very little time indoors. Our visit coincided with a heat wave for a 3 of the 4 weeks and the Villa's facilities and pool meant we were able to "survive" with no real hardship with Air con on the main living area and plenty of fans for each of the bedrooms. We drove from the UK (which was easy, we split over 2 days, but if you wanted to, it could be done in a day) and parking 2 large cars was no issue with plenty of secure parking that didn't interfere with the gardens and pool area. The pool was perfect for us, following Jon's recommendation we kept the cover on overnight which meant the pool was always hot and ready to use. With small children, the pool and garden were used every day, we made extensive use of the swingball and pop-up net for badminton that was available.
The villa's location meant that its no more than 5 mins drive to several beaches around Valaras, 7-10 mins to a retail park with a selection of large supermarkets and fast food outlets and an excellent local wine co-op cave. Several stunning old French villages and towns along the river all within 20 mins. On foot it's a less than a 5 min walk to the Carrefor Local (think of a larger Tesco express) and the small Vendres village center at the bottom of the road. The village's pizza and bakery were excellent, along with the small sports bar. Vendres is a very small village, but had everything we needed to explore and take walks along the lake, where flamingos are locals.
The Villa was perfectly equipped with plenty of Kitchen utensils and crockery to cater for at least 10 people 3 times a day without needing to constantly run the dishwasher with a large Fridge and Freezer meaning we could “big shop” as needed. We made good use of the charcoal BBQ and huge outdoor table, with every meal eaten outside. We would recommend buying the local citronella candles and spray to keep the gnats away, this is the same no matter where you go in the South France in the summer, so not Vendres specific! Internet and TV services are great, and both adults were able to work via a quick connection at the same time.
We had such a great time, with everything we needed for 4 weeks away in within the Villa and surrounding areas we will certainly be back!
