Finding Le Mas D’Eymard, when we recently visited southern France, was a real stroke of luck. We didn’t know the area well, but having driven over from Istria, across northern Italy, we wanted somewhere quite relaxing in Arles. This chambre d’hote, which is also a working farm, is actually about 4kms outside of Arles, and if relaxation was what we wanted, we got it in spades here.

Although not far at all from the very cosmopolitan, small city of Arles, it feels a world away from city life. Accessed over a narrow stone bridge, from a road which is really a country lane, you arrive in a real haven of peace and quiet, with honey coloured stone buildings and farm buildings, with courtyards and gardens and a beautiful swimming pool. The actual chambre d’hote is nestled behind a huge hedge of bamboos, which opens up onto a gravelled courtyard, where breakfast is served. The old farm building has been extensively renovated and now houses five rooms, named after famous Van Gogh paintings – La Terrasse, La Meule, La Chambre, Le Pont and Les Oliviers. We were allocated La Terrasse and it was perfect, after a long drive.

Quite compact, it had everything we needed, including a super comfy bed, with the most wonderful bed linen. The room was decorated in a very French style – lots of vintage, eclectic furnishings, lots of chalk paint and plenty of style and attention to detail. The window overlooked the courtyard. meaning we had a very beautiful view, across the tree tops, where we could soak up an absolutely stunning sunset.

One thing to be aware of is that there no option for an evening meal, so a trip back to Arles would be necessary if you wanted a restaurant. I’m sure a taxi could be arranged, but we didn’t ask, as once we’d arrived we didn’t particularly want to head out again, and having visited a hypermarket,we had sufficient wine & snacks to get us through the evening. There is a small village, closer than Arles, that you drive through to get the accommodation, and we did spot a couple of boulangeries which were still open early evening, so if you are desperate, this could be the answer. A longish walk or a shortish drive away.

Breakfast (included in our rate) the next morning was a lovely, typical French affair – croissants, jams and preserves, French bread, coffee and juice, as well as optional scrambled eggs, ham and cheese. As this was included in the price, we also had this and we’d suggest anyone else does the same, as then the breakfast becomes quite substantial.

Even though it was mid September, it was still very warm and sunny and people were taking breakfast outside on the very pretty gravelled terrace. We did start there, but there were also a lot of wasps and mosquitoes, so we chose to eat indoors, in the beautifully furnished dining/living room area, which also had an open kitchen. Perhaps the tiniest criticism we would have, is that the family dog is allowed to walk around, even in the dining area. He was very well behaved, and this is fine if you don’t mind dogs, but we’re not huge fans, so probably would have preferred him to be kept away from where we (and other guests) were eating breakfast. A small point, as he was absolutely no bother and left as soon as the owner called him away, but just something to be aware of.

After breakfast, we took the opportunity to explore the grounds before leaving – and it’s clear that this is a rural paradise, with a swimming pool and sunbathing area. There’s lots of evidence of it being a home and a working farm, too but the owners have put a lot of thought into the renovation of the guest accommodation areas.

All in all, we had a really lovely stay at this chambre d’hote, and its location and peacefulness was just what we needed after a long drive. I think if we’d booked in for a week, we might have had to have taken the option of taxi drives into Arles, but one night was absolutely perfect. And meant that the next morning, we were raring to go and hit the road again, on our French roadtrip around the Languedoc region.