Rent a château in the South-East, between Uzès and the sea

For us, the South-East begins at Uzès. Château de Collias, an 11th-century fortress on the banks of the Gardon, sleeps 28 in 14 bedrooms and hosts receptions of up to 200, ten minutes from the Pont du Gard. Château Les Boissières, close by, takes 26 with a pool, sauna and air conditioning in 19 hectares. To the north, Château des Artistes, fifteen minutes from Privas, is a 12th-century house at the gateway to the Ardèche gorges. On the coast, Château de Carqueiranne, minutes from the sea near Hyères, sleeps 50 and hosts weddings of up to 180; Château des Trois-Bastides, thirty minutes from Toulon, sleeps 48 in 86 hectares of vines.

All are rented for your exclusive use: the whole estate, with its drawing rooms, kitchen, grounds and pool. The owners welcome you, then leave you the place. That is what sets these châteaux and manor houses apart from a rental mas or a hotel: nobody else by the pool, nobody to meet at breakfast.

All around, what people ask for in the South: Uzès and its Saturday market, the Pont du Gard, Nîmes and its arena, Avignon and the Popes’ Palace, Les Baux-de-Provence and Saint-Rémy, the Luberon, the Camargue and Saintes-Maries, the Ardèche gorges and Vallon-Pont-d’Arc; on the Var side, Porquerolles, Hyères, Bandol and Cassis. From 20 to 50 beds, up to 200 guests for a reception.