Situated on the mountainside above the sea, above the vineyards
The house is situated in the south of France above the sea and the vineyards in an oak forest on the steep slopes of the Albères with a fantastic view over the Roussillon plain to the snow-covered peaks around the Canigou, in the southern Roussillon or French Catalonia on the border to Spain.
Property / Garden
The property, just like the surrounding area, is situated on a wooded hillside and overgrown with holm oaks. There you will find beautiful sunny as well as semi-shady spots with a wonderful view over the plain of Perpignan in hot weather.
Terrace / Balcony
You have the most beautiful view from the balcony or the upper terrace. Over the treetops of the holm and cork oaks you look to the north over the plain of Perpignan to the mountain ranges of the Corbieres and to the west to the mostly snow-covered local mountain of the Catalans, the Mont Canigou, about 60 km away. Maison Eli has 2 terraces. The upper terrace is tiled with natural stone and partially covered. Two sun loungers invite you to relax and a teak seating area invites you to dine. The view is north-west across the lowlands to the mountain ranges of the Corbières. The lower terrace is a terracotta-tiled sun terrace. Two more sun loungers, invite you to sunbathe, another seating group is in the partial shade of the oaks. In the morning there is sun on the upper terrace from the east. In the midday heat, when the sun is high, the oaks or the large sunshade on the lower terrace provide shade, in the late afternoon it bathes everything in a golden light and in the early evening the play of colours of the sunset over the mountains begins, best enjoyed with an aperitif on the balcony.
Flats
The holiday home is about 90 square metres in size and consists of 2 independent flats connected by an external staircase.
The upper flat "Belle Vue" has
It is normally suitable for 4 adults, but a baby cot can be added if required. The large and bright living-dining room and the spacious well-equipped kitchen can be opened with large glass doors to the terrace or balcony and has views over the wide plain of Perpignan.
The kitchen is connected to the courtyard/terrace by a glass door and is equipped with a fitted kitchen. In addition to a refrigerator, cooker with ceramic hob and oven and a sink, it also has a dishwasher, microwave, coffee maker and washing machine, among other things. You will also find extensive cookware in the flat. This is not a typical narrowly equipped holiday home kitchen. You can really cook in this kitchen. And you should. Take advantage of the wide selection of fresh, locally grown food and the wonderful Mediterranean spices.
The downstairs flat "Petit Charme" has
The kitchenette has a cooker, oven, extractor fan, sink, kettle, coffee maker, toaster.
Air conditioning
The house is fully air-conditioned with a modern air-conditioning system based on a heat pump which can also be used for heating in winter in reverse mode.
Swimming pool & tennis court
The large swimming pool (about 200m as the crow flies from the house, 450m if you take the road) is shared with the residents of Domaine-des-Alberes. There are wristbands in the house which give you free access. The swimming pool, about 200m2, has a shallow area about 80cm deep for playing and a 220m deep area for swimming. It is maintained daily and the water quality is checked. There is also a toilet there and a room where you can change clothes.
Parking
You can park just to the left of the entrance, above the house in a private parking bay, or in the private lockable garage below the house.
Accessibility
The house is easy to reach. After leaving the motorway (A9) at Le Boulou, you drive 15 minutes on the country road. The last 5-10 minutes the road winds up the hill. The property is situated directly on the steep slope and the road passes it twice. Therefore, both flats are on ground level, but not wheelchair accessible because of the stairs. The house is at the top of the mountain, for shopping you have to go down to the valley, so a car is useful.
Smoking
This house is a non-smoking house. Smoking is only allowed on the terrace and only carefully. It is best to fill the ashtray with a cm of water so that the wind does not carry embers to the surrounding trees. (danger of forest fire)
Èli
The house bears the name of an old Catalan, our long-time friend of the family Éli, who showed us "the most beautiful place in the world" his home village Laroque 35 years ago. It is thanks to him that we found this enchanting spot with all its wonderful people.
Address: 24, Allée des trois Termes, 66740 Laroque des Albères, France
Size: 90.0 m², 7 Rooms, 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms
Beds: 1 Single bed, 3 Double beds, 1 Sofa bed
Prices: 50 EUR - 190 EUR / Night
More pricing information:
Prices vary greatly according to season and length of stay. In the high season we usually have a minimum stay of 14 days, in the low season 7 days, but if there is a gap we sometimes rent out only 2 nights. Increasingly we are being approached by guests who want to escape the bad weather in Northern Europe and spend several months in our house. In the low season we are open to such requests and also make special prices for long-term stays on request.
The swimming pool, tennis court and table tennis room that you see in the photos are not directly at the house, but can be used free of charge by the residents of the holiday home. The blue plastic wristbands in the flat identify you as authorised to use them. As the crow flies the swimming pool is about 200m away via the winding roads it is about 450m. The swimming pool is open during the bathing season (depending on the weather mid-June - mid-September) already in the morning from 9:00, in the evening it closes between 21:00 and 22:00. (Outside the bathing season it remains closed.) Early in the morning the pool is usually empty, from late morning it becomes a centre of attraction for families with children and young people who socialise here during the holiday season. However, it is not overcrowded even in high season. The pool is maintained daily and the quality of the water is monitored. However, it has no lifeguard and use is at your own risk. There is also a shower, changing room and toilet at the pool.
The house is situated in the Domaine des Alberes, a hamlet still well above the medieval centre and castle of Laroque on the mountain slopes of the Alberes, overlooking the vast plain of Perpignan, the mountains beyond with the fabled sacred local mountain of the Catalans, the Canigou, which is covered in snow from late September to June. It's a quiet, tranquil place, but close to the lively coastal resorts and beaches if you want to spend the day at the beach. As the Allee des Trois Termes is a cul-de-sac, there is no through traffic. Only the neighbours pass the house. A few metres from the house start some walking and hiking trails that lead through the Alberes.
The surrounding villages of St. Genis, Sorede, St. André, Argeles-sur-mer, Collioure, Port Vendres, Brouilla, Bages, Elne..... all have medieval town centres and, in addition to the typical contemplative landscape characterised by wine-growing tradition, also contain some wonderful cultural treasures.
The lintel of the monastery of St. Genis in the neighbouring village or the cathedral of Elne from the 10th century are famous throughout Europe, but also take a look at the countless small medieval chapels, hermitages and monasteries that you will stumble across on almost every walk. A walk through the medieval streets of Laroque up to the old fortified castle of Laroque, which dates back to the 12th century, is highly recommended.
Not far from the house, the towns of Collioure and Ceret have achieved a different kind of "fame", because thanks to the wonderful light of the "Cote Vermeille", many famous Impressionist artists have settled there and immortalised these places in their paintings. Collioure is considered the birthplace of Fauvism and Ceret the Mecca of Cubism. Some places will certainly be familiar to you thanks to the famous paintings of Matisse, André Derain, and Picasso. Painters such as Georges Braque, Raoul Dufy, Foujita, Othon Friesz, Juan Gris and Albert Marquet also spent a lot of time in these places, and since they were poor at the time, it was not uncommon for many artists to pay for their beer with a painting. (I guess that paid off for the landlords... ;-) And speaking of art, on the Spanish side of the Albères, about 35 minutes by car from the house, you can visit the centre of life and the place where Dalí worked. There is hardly an artist's place to visit today that is crazier than his "theatre" in Figueras, where he had himself walled in after his death.
But "activists" also get their money's worth here. Wonderful walking and hiking trails criss-cross the mountains and a breathtaking coastal hiking trail, which you can access wonderfully in stages over several days from the house, connects the coastal towns around the house all the way to the Spanish side. It is a dream area for demanding cyclists, but you should be in good shape, because this area is also used for training for the Tour de France. Water sports enthusiasts will be happy about the beautiful marina in Argeles, from where many surfers also use the last part of the sandy beach to set off for the southern area in front of the steep coast.
Speaking of sandy beaches: from Argeles to the north, you have 40 km of wide sandy beaches to choose from. Since our guests are usually spoilt for choice, you will find information in the house about which beaches are best for which purpose. For small children there are flat beaches with fine sand and few waves, water sports enthusiasts will find windy beaches, snorkellers will find steep beaches with crystal-clear water and for party-goers there are of course beaches with restaurants and discos that party until late at night. There are also naturist beaches and natural less frequented stretches of beach suitable for long beach walks.
Arrival by car
Take the A9 motorway. At the Le Boulou exit near the Spanish border, follow the road (D618) towards Argeles-sur-Mer for about 10 km until you reach St. Genis-des-Fontanes. From here the path goes 5 km up the hill via village roads to Laroque, the last 5 minutes you gain height via asphalted serpentines to the house. You will receive a precise description of how to get there after booking together with many other useful information that we have compiled for you.
Arriving by plane
The low-cost airline Ryanair flies from many airports in Europe to the nearby airports https://www.ryanair.com Tickets cost there from 20 euros per flight.
All major airlines fly to Barcelona several times a day. (Travel time to the house approx. 2 hours)
From the airport you can take a rental car e.g. via https://billiger-mietwagen.de (We fly regularly to Girona and usually pay about 20 Euro/day, with free border crossing for a small car)
Bus & Train
In Laroque there are 2 bus lines that go inland to Ceret, as well as to the beaches of Argeles-sur-mer and the coastal towns, or to the regional town of Perpignan, from where you can take further train connections. Unfortunately, no line goes up the mountain to the Domaine, where our house is located, this can only be hiked, or with your own car or taxi. Nevertheless the bus network is interesting, if you want to hike the beautiful Sentier Litoral along the coastline, the bus will bring you comfortably back to the starting point of your hike. It is very cheap and costs only 1 Euro per trip, no matter how many stations you drive and is often used by young people who want to explore the area on their own without parents. Argeles-sur-Mer and Perpignan also have railway stations. In Perpignan there is a high-speed line that will take you to Barcelona in less than 2 hours.
By bike
The bike is a wonderful means of transport to explore the Roussilon plain around Perpignan. But to cycle up the mountain to Villa Josephine you should be very well trained. The tourist office in Laroque rents out electric bicycles on a daily or weekly basis, which support the trip up the mountain if needed. The nice employees of the tourist office speak English and French. Feel free to contact us, we will be happy to help you with your booking.
