Gites in Provence
 

Looking for a "Gite" near Avignon/St.Remy. After reading Stu's guide this seems to be a great location to do trips by cars all over the place. I have 4 people. I would like at least 2 beds and couch. That being its my wife and both our mothers. I imagine we'll stay 7-8 days before heading to Lyon and Paris. A budget of 1000-1500 USD would be best tops, cheaper is better if you know it. Also, never stayed at a GITE so any headsup would be nice.

Highly recommend:

www.accommodationinprovence.com/

They have 2 gites but also a house that would be better suited for your group.

Gites are normally a weekly rental, starting on Saturdays.

The location is perfect; smaller, quieter village but within easy driving distance to all the places you'd want to go and see in The Luberon.

www.accommodationinprovence.com/what-to-do/

www.accommodationinprovence.com/region/

Are you looking for this summer? Might be a bit late...

What month are you planing for, and which year??

We've rented 68 gites through Gites de France. Provence is one of the most expensive areas to rent in, and rates go up 40-75% in July & Aug. Last June we reserved a gite near Vaison, for the last 2 weeks of June this year. It has a pool, 3 bedrooms & 2 baths. We've stayed there for 8 prior weeks over 3 prior trips. We're paying about 1,000E per week for this June. It is totally booked up this year, except for the next 2 weeks, 1 week in late Aug, and after Sept 16.

We rented one near St Remy in 1999 for 2 weeks - but it was an OK gite (bottom quartile) & we stayed in it so long ago that I would not feel comfortable recommending it.

BTW, of the 68 gites we've rented, only about 5 proprietors could speak passable English. Contracts are in French only. We have only rented through Gites de France. Other "English speaking" firms will probably be more expensive.

Stu Dudley

We stayed in a very nice gîte outside of Carpentras which is east and equidistant of Avignon and Orange. It worked out well for day trips all over. The house is fully self-contained and well equipped, adjacent to the proprietors' house, on the grounds of a large vegetable farm operation.

The website for that section of the Gîtes organization is
http://www.gites-de-france-vaucluse.com
The property number is REF: 84G522, it lists under the name of Quartier De La Crozette

Gites de france is a very good site backed by authorities since decades. Stay in French selecting English will make all Gite's who didnt translate their ad disappear.

The owners of the gites I recommended above are Brits that moved to France almost a decade ago specifically to run the gites and rental house.

We stayed in one of their gites in Sept 2012. It was our first time exploring Provence and staying in a gite. It was the PERFECT experience all around; I had heard stores that you had to bring your own sheets and there was basically no supplies in the gites kitchens. These gites are fitted with <i> everything</i> one could possibly need. The hosts, Karen and David, were helpful, knowledgeable, and clearly done their homework before opening as to what made the perfect stay.

Clearly, they are doing something(s) right as they have so many return guests.

There is nothing unique about a gite compared to other vacation rentals, you can tell that if you look at the website. They aren't something special, except they are more in rural areas. At one time I think that term did have more identity, but now anything can be rented on there and called a gite, including apartments. It's just a vacation rental website that was started by the French govt long before Airbnb and VRBO to try to help the rural French economy.

But the concept is just more rural properties and in theory more like "cottages" or separate houses, but I've seen add-on modern apts on there called gites in rural areas. It doesn't include real big urban areas, though, you won't find a gite in Paris.

"you won't find a gite in Paris" Sorry to contradict, but...

Yes there are real "gîtes" in Paris (and other cities), the Gîtes de France organization has a category called "City Break en Ville" that allows for short-term rentals not bound by the traditional Saturday-to-Saturday time frame. We stayed in some in Paris.

I'm sure the Académie Française frowns upon this horrible Franglais term, but we liked the convenience of "City Break en Ville".

Im looking this year in September 9-16 or 17th

I noticed AirBNB is almost the same as the Gites now. WE basically just want a chill place to do our day trips from. Stu's guide directed me to the St.Remy area.

Airbnb is typical US and gites de france is typical French.
I have used gite a lot as well as logis de france and never airbnb.
Some gites only rent for a full week.
Hotels exist too.

" Stay in French selecting English will make all Gite's who didnt translate their ad disappear."

WOw what a PRO tip! I clicked to French and my options exploded

accomodationsinprovence has openings; contact David and tell him I sent you.

>>WOw what a PRO tip! I clicked to French and my options exploded<<

Yep. But remember - you are going to be communicating with all these French Department Gites-de-France offices (or the proprietor) in French (some can speak English), reading & understanding a contract written in French, and then contacting the gite proprietor who will most likely speak no English.

We stayed in 6 gites last year (Ardeche, Alps (2), Pyrenees, Dordogne (2)), 2 this year (Cote d'Azur, Provence), and so far 1 next year (Brittany). None of the proprietors could speak English. This is our experience with Gites de France only. Nice Pebbles & other places we've rented in Paris & Lyon had renting offices and proprietors who could speak English.

We are staying in Italy this fall (Lucca, Tuscany, Venice, and Florence), and all of our communications with the proprietors have been in English. The price of these places reflect that (more expensive than in France).

If you want my opinion, I would pursue DebitNM's place. It is in the Luberon Valley (our favorite area in Provence), and within striking distance of St Remy. The place I mentioned near Vaison (actually Bedoin), and the one near Carpentras are farther away from St Remy in an area we enjoy. But for a first-timer, I would recommend St Remy or the Luberon Valley.

Stu Dudley

Thanks. I grew up near Canada so I took 4 years of French, and french in college so I can actually real and talk very reasonably lol. Lucca is a great town, I proposed to my wife there 5 years ago. WE stay in the city...the hotel manager had to help me drive out lol