Kennedy429

Hello - I am planning to stay in St. Remy for four nights and then will travel to the French Riviera for four nights and would like to base there in Villefranche or perhaps Nice.

Would anyone have a recommendation in either location for an apartment or small home or perhaps a reliable rental agent? It's just my husband and I so we don't need anything big. We would also like to be in walking distance to shops and restaurants.

I have been looking on Home Away but since I'm staying less than a week, it limits choices. I'm also a little hesitant to rent so far away without a recommendation. I also looked at a Gite site I saw listed on this board, but can only find it in French.
We'd like to keep the budget under $200/night if possible.

Thank you for any recommendations.

Kennedy

CaliNurse

I think in "peak" season especially, you'll have a difficult time renting a flat for less than the entire week.

Would a small B and B (which does not have the one-week requirement) be ok for you?

We are staying here, but she has minimum of a week. But it never hurts to ask if it is ok for less time.

http://www.locationdecharmeenprovenc...es-anglais.htm

Bellarosa

ttt

Bellarosa

We stayed at a farm outside St. Remy, so you would need a car to access it. The apartment we stayed in Nice was wonderful--centrally located, about a block from the beach, grocery stores, and restaurants. We found it on Homelidays.com, property #278934. The propery owners are a lovely Irish couple who had renovated the apartment themselves. We would definitely stay there again.

Christina

I think the gite program, which is a govt. program, is only in French.

I think you are going to find it difficult to get what you want if it is during peak season as many places have min. stays. Four nights is pretty short for vacation rentals for any season, actually. And you are being pretty picky when you say it has to be within walking distance of restaurants, so that rules out most gites, anyway, as they are not usually in city center. If you want to walk to restaurants and stay in the city, you might consider just staying in a hotel, it would be a lot easier for such a short stay. Of course, I am thinking mainly of St Remy, getting an apt in Nice which is such a huge city is much more do-able.

But I am not clear on when you are looking for, so that might make a difference. It would be helpful if you gave your dates, as that might help people giving recommendations. $200 a night is now around 135 euro or 945 euro a week.

I would suggest you look at VRBO, you will get a lot of English-speaking owners on there and it might be more flexible than a letting agency for four night stays.

Shanti

I stayed here: http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/Fra...ice/p69300.htm

The advantages: I liked it and the owner was a pleasure to deal with. It’s just a block from the beach and there’s lots of stores and restaurants in the area. And the price is certainly reasonable. He has a three night minimum.

The disadvantages: It’s small. It was plenty enough for me and I think it would be ok for two people (as long as they like each other) but I wouldn’t recommend it for more than two people. It’s a bit west of Old Nice so it would be a bit of a walk or a short bus ride. I actually liked the location and enjoyed being a bit away from the center of activity, but some people prefer to be in the center of things. It’s also booked for much of the summer.

Nice is wonderful! I hope to go back.

CYESQ

Check out the apartments in Nice on Nicepebbles.com, ownersdirect.com and Home Away Holiday Rentals. Plenty of apts that are near the beach or close to the train station, bus etc. Generally require three night minimum. Lots to do in Nice with shops and restaurants nearby. Don't need a car; the public transportion is great for day trips.