Celebrating New Years Eve.

There's always a little bit of pressure surrounding New Year, you feel as though you have to celebrate to the fullest and have the best night of your life in order to ring in the New Year. I've always felt that that puts far too much pressure on the night and then you end up having just an 'ok' time, which puts a downer on the start of the year. 

The best places to go Christmas shopping.

Having lived in France for quite a few years, I've had many Christmasses there, and thus have done a lot of Christmas shopping. About a year or two ago I discovered that you could actually purchase presents on amazon and therefore I did all of my shopping in one afternoon, which is great but not exactly festive. But before I knew amazon even existed, I had to venture outside of the comfort of my own house to find some gems.

Beziers Christmas Market.

It's November, which means that whether we like it or not (and let's face it, we do), Christmas is upon us! One of the best things about Christmas time, is going out and choosing gifts for your family and friends, and the best place to do that in my opinion, is a market. Sure, you'll have to actually leave the house and search for the perfect gift, but I find that so much better than just clicking on a web page like Amazon and then putting in your credit card details.

Languedoc events during November.

Contrary to popular belief, the festivities don't abruptly end the second that the sun disappears. Sure, lots of restaurants and businesses close and beaches resemble ghost-towns, but the events don't stop! There is so much to do during the colder months, you just have to know where to look!

Here is a list of events going on in the Languedoc region this November:

1. HAUT LANGUEDOC CHESTNUT FESTIVAL

Autumn is here!

For me, Autumn is one of the best seasons to spend in the South of France. Don't get me wrong, the summer is by far the best, but Autumn is a close second.

Halloween is coming...

Jake's pumpkin from last year. 

In my opinion, Halloween is one of the best holidays during the year. It obviously can't top Christmas or New Year, but it's a close third. I absolutely love seeing all of the shops, restaurants and houses decorate their windows with ghosts, witches and demons. Being a horror-movie lover, this doesn't really come as a surprise.

Esprit Plage - Vendres-Plage.

Hiya!

So in the last blog post I spoke about Sanders dad coming to stay for a week, one of the many things that we did with him was go to the beach. I've been to a lot of beaches in the South of France, most likely every single one; so when everyone asked me which one we should go to, I was kind of speechless because that really depends on what you're looking for. They just wanted to relax on the sand and splash about in the sea, so we went to Vendres-Plage.

We parked the car and had to walk along a boardwalk path, through loads of vegetation to even get close to the beach. The walk there is stunning though, the bushes are so thick you feel like you're walking through the prettiest swamp you've ever seen in your life, it feels really magical. 

Once you arrive at the beach, there's a massive sign advertising the beach bar on this part - Esprit Plage. The bar is great, one of the better ones I've seen in this region. A lot of places feel a bit too beachy for my liking, it feels like you're not really "off" the beach when you set foot in it, but Esprit Plage is completely different.

Béziers Cathedral and Colombiers for dinner.

Béziers Cathedral

A couple of weeks ago, Sander's dad came out to the South of France to visit us. One day during his holiday, we decided to visit Béziers. Having lived here for so many years, there's not much that I find interesting about it anymore, except the cathedral. We went up there and saw some amazing views, so we were up there for quite a while taking photos, and the results were beautiful.

Béziers - Sound and Light Festival.

The Beziers Sound and Light festival has been on everyones lips for weeks, it's something that I've never seen nor heard of before, but given how everyone is talking about it I figured it could be something worth seeing. It goes on every single Friday, Saturday and Sunday night throughout the entire summer, starting at 10pm and finishing at 10.45pm. It's basically the history of Beziers being portrayed on the Theatre using lights and sounds. Sounds weird I know, but I'll explain more.

Lou Calamaire

A couple of weeks ago Sander and me decided we needed a break from work and wanted a night out. Jake (my brother) didn't want to drive us into the center of Beziers, but suggested that we go to Lou Calamaire instead, which is just outside the center and he would be happy to drive us there. Seeing as we now didn't have much choice, we said it was fine and got in the car, not really knowing what to expect.

Béziers Plage.

 While Lisa, Simon and Becca were here, all went out for dinner at Beziers Plage. Pretty ironic seeing as Beziers Plage is neither a "plage" nor in Beziers. It's down a lot of little winding country roads that are near impossible to navigate through, especially at night. When you finally find the car park, you're welcomed by a man on a horse and shown to a parking space. There are bouncers at the entrance, so once they've let you through, you walk down a little wooden path through the woods, lit up with round lamps. As soon as you reach the main area, you'll notice that there are a lot of bar areas and a restaurant. There's loads of place to sit and it's all outside.

Best festival of my life - Electrobeach.

From left to right: Jake, Gina (me), Sander, Becca. All on our way to the festival.

Festivals have always been one of my favourite places to go, the atmosphere is just so awesome and everyone is happy and drunk and dancing and it's just such a fun place to go to.

A trip to the past - Carcassonne.

Some of my family's very best friends came to the South of France to visit us the other week, and we pretty much went out every day. One of the places we went to was Carcassonne - the medieval city. I've been there hundreds of times (it's a great day out so whenever we've had guests we've taken them there, which means that my family and me have been there countless times) but it's always fun and the last time I went was about 3 years ago, so there was a lot I had forgotten about.

The drive there is pretty straightforward, you just go on the motorway and then follow signs to "Cité" and then to the car park (there are a few so you can take your pick).

Montpellier - one of the best cities ever.

Place de la Comedie

I've always had a love affair with Montpellier, I went to school there for a couple of years you see and couldn't get enough of it. It's just such a relaxed atmosphere but it'd mixed with the busy-ness of a city, it's strange but enticing.

No better place than the Camargue.

I love the Camargue, and that's weird for me to say. Let me explain, I have pretty bad hay-fever, or at least what I would consider pretty bad, and the Camargue is right bang in the middle of the countryside, so you can see my struggle.

Tarzan for a day.

We all remember watching Tarzan as a kid, right? Raise your hand if you wanted to be able to soar and jump through the trees like he could. Pretty much everyone in the world ever is now raising their hand. Well you'll be glad to know that there is a way to do this.

Portiragnes bike riding.

Time to go back in time. Many many years ago, little 9 year old Gina put on her rollerblades and set off with her friends to Portiragnes Plage.

The birds.

Ever looked up at the sky and realised there was a mysterious black cloud above your head? No? You must've never been to the South of France during autumn then.

Trompe l'oeil.

Trompe l'oeil.

Have you ever looked at a building and thought "Wow, that's really pretty!", and then realised that it isn't in fact a building at all, but actually a painting on the side of a building?

Sur le pont d'Avignon.

I bet that title brought back some childhood memories, huh? Personally I can just picture myself in my little school uniform, screaming out the lyrics as loud as I possibly can, in potentially the worst French accent you've ever heard.

The Béziers bikers.

Béziers has always been really historical and such an interesting place to visit, minus the hundreds of noisy students that there are there, but every year without fail the place is packed with tourists from all around the world, taking photos of the Theatre and the churches.

During the summer the main centre is full to the brim with different kinds of markets, from food and drink to a beautiful flower market, you'll always see happy tourists wandering around.

Then you hear a bit of noise, a little bit of laughter and maybe an engine being revved; this means one thing and one thing only, the bikers have arrived.

Montpellier - Where to shop?

Montpellier is a really popular place in the South of France, it's like the capital of the South. The city is full to the brim with students because of all of the great schools there (I was one of them), during the summer full of tourists and full of locals on a regular basis. Loads of people go to Montpellier purely to go shopping, because it's got all of the best shops all in one place. If you've never been there before then it can be quite overwhelming because you'll have absolutely no clue where to go; that's where I come in.

Falling and falling again; my skiing experience.

Me coming down the slopes.

I remember the first time I ever went skiing, I was only 8 years old and I went with my mum and brother. One of our friends had an apartment up in Les Angles, so we were lucky enough to be able to use it. We were all so excited we went straight to the ski rental place and fitted into our skis, and off we went.

Roquebrun means paradise.

There's a little town somewhere in the South of France called Roquebrun, and since moving here 15 years ago, it's always been one of my favourite places.

I went there recently with Sander and my family, and it reminded me of all of the wonderful photos I took the last time I was there, so decided it was time to write about this place.

It's Bastille day!!!

Bastille day is a massive celebration in France, and it occurs every year on the 14th July. Pretty much every single place in France has big celebrations, and this year we're joining in by going on a boat in Grau d'Agde and watching fireworks. Seeing as that's happening tonight, I thought I would share what I did last year with you!

Experiencing the Monaco Grand Prix.

My cousin attended the Grand Prix a couple of years ago, and agreed to talk me through his experience there. I've been to Monaco a few times, once right before the Grand Prix whilst everything was being set up, so I know from first hand experience that it's an amazing place to visit. So here we go, a personal experience of the Grand Prix by my cousin, Damien Macdonald!

A trip to the Côte d'Azur.

Earlier this year, my mum and her friend and colleague Jill, decided to go on a business trip to the Côte d'Azur.

They started their trip by visiting a fabulous property in Grasse, the owner of the property was then kind enough to direct them to the Perfume Factory. They had a good look around the shop and then spent quite a while talking to one of the sales ladies about Argan oil. They sampled so many different perfumes and products that they even ended up buying some for themselves. (I've pinched some of these products and let me tell you first hand how amazing they are).

Le Pont du Gard

I'm sure you've heard of the Pont du Gard and how amazing it is, but you have to be there and see it for yourself first hand in order to understand what everyone is talking about.

Bulls and beaches.

Ever heard of a Toro Piscine? No, I didn't think so. Now, if you just google translated that, it should've come up with something along the lines of "Bull Swiming Pool", and you're probably really confused right now, so let me explain.

Storms? In the South of France?

As everyone knows, one of the best things about France is the sunny weather. Having said that, when a storm comes along, it hits you with everything its got, and is the most amazing thing to witness.

A review of Andorra

There are few places, in my opinion, more spectacular than the Pyrenees mountain range. Since living in Herault, I am fortunate enough to be able to view the Pyrenees from the French side, the Spanish side, and in Andorra - one of the world's smallest countries. And boy, what a view!

Following in the life of a holiday villa rental agent...

We've had quite some experiences over the years, and sometimes it's nice to reminisce about some of them. You know the stories I'm talking about, the ones that are tragic and awful at the time, the ones when some idiot (usually me) says "we'll be laughing about it this time next year!" . Well, young, idiotic me was right, and now even 3 years on, we're still laughing about it.

As a business, we rent holiday villas in the South of France, but there are other services we offer too - such as visiting our owners' properties on a regular basis to ensure all is well...or not...

French food? Yes please!

French café.

So it's pretty well known that the French have some of the best food in the world, and that the English have some of the worst; now while I put my foot down when anyone at all says that English food is terrible (Cadburys Flakes - am I right?), I will gladly admit that the French food is, let's say, AMAZING. All you have to do is think of Brie, Baguette, garlic being used in every dish (not so much a myth as it is a fact), croissants...I could go on all night.

Holidaying in Nissan.

The village of Nissan Lez Enserune is a small, mediaeval wine-producing village. In the village centre you will find bars, several restaurants, banks, ATM. grocery store, salon, local wine outlet, bakery, post-office and chemist. Nissan has a traditional street market every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning.

Why you should stay in Colombiers.

Canal du Midi. There are often jousting competitions on the water, during the summer months. 

When you visit Colombiers, you will find a pretty network of old streets in the village which nestles in a curve in the Canal du Midi. A port was built here, on the Canal du Midi, in 1989 and there are many boat hire companies from which to choose, if you fancy a relaxing cruise along the canal.
A good company to choose from is Rive de France.

Collioure

Collioure is a beautiful little village at one of the most south-western points of France, near the border of Spain and situated on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It was in this village that Picasso, Derain and Matisse lived and painted.
The little bower of bliss is host to some of the most spectacular views you might see; majestic snow-capped mountains, vast expanses of golden sand and aquamarine water. It's no wonder Picasso, Derain and Matisse found such inspiration here!

Why you should rent in Valras-Plage.

There are countless beaches in the South of France. No, really. Literally countless. But one of my all time favourites is Valras-Plage.

We have quite a few villas there, one of our most preferred properties is in a residence in Valras itself.

Weirdest requests from 2011.

Working in the holiday rental business, you're constantly in contact with people from all over the world, with different life stories and quite frankly, different ways of life; so you're bound to have a few... let's say... different types of people. One of our qualities that we pride ourselves on here at South France Holiday Villas, is that we try our very best to fulfill any and all requests from our renters, and it's safe to say we've had a few strange ones over the years. Here are the funniest and strangest ones from 2011. Be prepared for a chuckle!

Pont Royal Golf, Mallemort, Provence.

 We asked one of our owners to share with us their reasons for choosing Pont Royal, for their holiday home. This is what they said.

A review of Capestang.

There are so many different villages and towns in the South of France, and every single one of them has something different to offer! We asked one of our property owners to describe life in Capestang for you, so you can get a really solid idea of the wonderful town itself. If you would like to see his property, click HERE!

"The village of Capestang is situated in the beautiful wine growing region of Languedoc, 25 minutes by car to the nearest Mediterranean beaches.
A typically Frencg working village quite unspoilt by tourism, which has a selection of bar sand restaurants, all within walking distance of the house.

7 Things to know before you book your holiday.

Holidaying in the South of France is just as amazing as it sounds. The sunny days, sandy beaches and crystal clear swimming pools aren't all myths, but there are some things that you need to be aware of before booking your holiday; just small things that you wouldn't usually think of, so I'm here to help!

Welcome!

Hello! Welcome!

My all time favourite photo - Marseille Harbour. 

My name is Gina, I'm 20 years old and I work for a wonderful business called South France Holiday Villas. As the name suggests, we rent villas in the South of France.