view of the sea and vineyards, in the Provençal village of Le Castellet
Location
The medieval village of Le Castellet developed around its 15th-cenutry chateau. It lies halfway between the Mediterranean cities of Marseille and Toulon upon a hill where it looks down at the vineyards of the Bandol winegrowing area, which has a protected label of origin. The house is tucked away in a calm spot free of unwanted noise. You reach it via quaint alleyways where several scenes in Marcel Pagnol’s film “La Femme du boulanger” (“The Baker’s Wife”) were shot. You can get to nurseries, primary schools and secondary schools by bus. On foot you can get to shops and a market where local producers have stalls in the shade of plane trees. The Mediterranean beaches of Bandol, Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer and Sanary-sur-Mer are nearby. Frégate Golf Club – an 18-hole golf course – and the Paul Ricard motorsport race track add to the local tourist attractions. Only 10 minutes away there is a slip road onto the A50 motorway. The high-speed train stations in Toulon and Marseille are respectively 20 and 35 minutes away. And you can get to Marseille international airport in just 50 minutes.
Description
The house
Beyond a heavy wooden entrance door lies the delightful interior of a large upper-middle-class townhouse with plain architecture and well-proportioned spaces. A stairwell leads up to the first floor, where there are many bedrooms, and down to the two lower floors, bringing together a range of rooms and bedrooms. From the ground floor, glazed doors lead out onto a large, tiled terrace that faces south. The second lower floor leads straight outside, offering a second entrance from the lower part of the village. You can also reach a separate cellar from this level. The house is crowned with a roof of barrel tiles, underlined with a double-row génoise cornice. The elevations coated with rendering, the window catches, the terracotta-tiled floors and the indoor iron fittings are typical of the 19th century and the local region.
The ground floor
The entrance hall connects to a kitchen on the right. Two windows that look out at the street Rue des Boucheries fill this kitchen with natural light. Next, there is a lavatory and stairs that lead upstairs and downstairs. The hallway also leads to an office that leads out to a terrace via a glazed door and a bedroom with a fireplace, a shower room and a lavatory. This bedroom also leads out onto the terrace. To the left of the entrance hall, there are two dual-aspect rooms that connect to each other: a dining room and a lounge with a fireplace that leads to an office with a shower room and lavatory. Two glazed doors take you out onto the terrace. Hexagonal terracotta tiles cover the floors of the different rooms.
The upstairs
A corridor connects to four bedrooms on the side that faces the street Rue des Boucheries and to two others on the south side, just above the terrace, as well as a two-room apartment with a shower room and lavatory. Two of the bedrooms have a black marble fireplace. Hexagonal terracotta tiles cover the floors up here too.
The first lower level
The first lower level only looks out at the south side, where it faces the street Rue Montée Saint-Eloi. This floor, immediately below the house’s ground floor, has a large lounge and dining room with vaulted ceilings, a kitchen with a storeroom, a shower room with a lavatory, a pantry, a utility room, and a bedroom with a shower room and lavatory. Hexagonal terracotta tiles, as well as other tiles, cover the floors.
The second lower level
You enter the second lower level via French windows on the street Rue Montée Saint-Eloi. This floor lies two levels below the ground floor. It has an entrance hall and a shower room with a lavatory. A cellar at the same level, which you can only reach from outside, completes the dwelling.
Our opinion
This unique house is a gem of architecture, tucked away in the heart of a quaint village steeped in history in south-east France’s beautiful Var department, an area known for its tourism, sport and cuisine and rightly nicknamed "Lou païs dou ben estre” – “The land of well-being” – in Provençal. The delightful dwelling is set back from the flow of visitors. It is noble, authentic and generously sized. It lends itself to a range of projects. A large family could settle into it or the place could be used as a guesthouse. The extent and layout of the property even makes both of these options possible, following a renovation that would fulfil the true potential of this home and its terrace offering a sweeping view of breathtaking landscape. The upper part of the house – the first floor and the ground floor with its terrace – offers a floor area of around 200m² and could be sold separately.
736 000 €
Fees at the Vendor’s expense
Reference 974595
| Land registry surface area | 155 m² |
| Main building floor area | 300 m² |
| Number of bedrooms | 11 |
French Energy Performance Diagnosis
NB: The above information is not only the result of our visit to the property; it is also based on information provided by the current owner. It is by no means comprehensive or strictly accurate especially where surface areas and construction dates are concerned. We cannot, therefore, be held liable for any misrepresentation.