La Cachette

WELCOME TO THE COTE D'AZUR

Settled on a hill top, 40 minutes from Nice airport and 680 metres above sea level sits the pretty village of Berre Les Alpes. It is a commune of Les Alpes-Maritimes which it surveys to the north, however it’s region is Cote d’Azur and the Mediterranean sea which lie to the south. The Baroque style church was established in 1368 so you get a feel for the period. The vi

llage is a labyrinth of miniature streets which weave their way around this limestone hill onto which cottages cling in topsy turvy style. Do view this website http://www.mdp-berre.com/berre-les-alpes.html

Berre Les Alpes is very well placed for exploring. From the village there are fabulous walks through the hills to the next villages for lunch and then back again. Coaraze is pretty and only 10km’s away. One of the adjacent villages, L’escarene http://www.beyond.fr/villages/escarene.html has a railway station with regular trains to Nice and also up through the mountains into Italy to one of the country’s oldest ski resorts of Limone Piermonte which is fabulous in summer or winter – it really is a beautiful town and worth the visit. See this website:

http://www.limonepiemonte.it/turistico/index.php?option=com_limone&view=sezione&idSezione=6&Itemid=56&lang=en

The next village down the hill from Berre is Contes (approx 10 mins by car). This is a thriving community and has everything you could want from ATM machines, florist, fruit and vegetable store, patisserie, charcuterie, café/tobacconist, pharmacy, opticians, estate agents, a small market and restaurants. Further down the road is Drap with more facilities including a larger super market and restaurants and then La Trinite which has a hypermarket/shopping complex. You will pass La Trinite on the way from the airport on the D2204 and it is a good place to get provisions. You will have seen from Google searches that the coastline is all accessible. There are fabulous beaches at Monaco, at Villefranche which is famed for being one of the top 5 bays in the world and Beaulieu. There are beaches and restaurants along the Promenade Des Anglais in Nice which is very sophisticated. Tropez is a little further along and has great beaches, restaurants, shopping and harbour full of very expensive boats. You have the entire coastline so hundreds of km of choice. Heading towards Cannes you will discover the beautiful Antibes http://www.antibes-juanlespins.co.uk/ and for the children and big kids you will discover Marine Land and Aqua splash. This is a fun day out – take a picnic. Read more here http://www.marineland.fr/attractions/blog-2.php

The A8 Motorway serves the south coast and really does make towns accessible and easy. The Italian border is very close by and Ventimiglia is worth a visit particularly on a Friday for its amazing market. Read this interesting blog I found http://french-riviera-blog.com/2011/10/17/across-the-border-into-italy-ventimiglia-and-its-friday-market/

This website is useful and features Berres http://mynicevilla.com/things-to-do/


With Google you can plan a very memorable holiday or weekend getaway. Flights to Nice are provided by BA, Easyjet and my favourite, Norwegian http://www.norwegian.com/uk/?gclid=CIPS2Zr6xroCFSXItAodIFAA0g

The Hotel Beau Séjour is run by a charming couple, Philippe and Isabelle, and opens early for coffee, newspapers, breakfast and during the day serves all sorts including beer, wine, sweets and ice cream. Sunday lunch is home cooked by Isabelle and is a treat. Place your orders there for fresh bread, pain au chocolat or croissant delivered each morning for you to collect. Everyone is very welcoming. Hotel des Alpes has the most wonderful terrace with views to dine for. The house comes fully equipped with everything you will require. It is a great hideaway and perfect for day excursions. It will sleep 5 – 3 in the bedroom and 2 on the sofa bed. If you want more information email me [email protected] or call me on 07711 638026. We don’t have a check in or out service. Those using the house will need to give it a thorough clean on departure and launder the sheets etc, leaving them to dry for the next guests. This method relies on trust and keeps costs/price down. Please leave it how you wish to find it and that way no one has a bad experience. This is a private home which is available normally to friends, friends of friends and relatives and is not a commercial venture. It means the house gets used and enjoyed. It’s a gorgeous little bolt hole entered via the front door with a staircase leading to the upper floor. Immediately on the right is the one bedroom 3.4m x 3.2 with shuttered glazed French doors onto a small balcony. The room has a double bed with storage under, an adult size bunk bed, a wardrobe and a chest of drawers. At the top of the stairs on the right is a fully equipped and tiled shower room 3.4m x 2m (into shower) with washing machine and storage. Another door at the top of the stairs opens to a lovely living room 4.4m x 3.5m. Glazed double French doors bi-fold into the room and give access to the balcony and simply breathtaking, southerly views. A dining table will seat 6, the bureau opens for scholars to write away and the sofa folds out into a double bed with a view that looks fabulous at dusk or dawn. The room contains some beautiful pieces of art from local artists. Their work can be viewed in the village http://www.mdp-berre.com/galerie.html

The balcony has a small table and is perfect for breakfast and sundowners or roasting throughout the day in the hot months. The kitchen 3m x 2.1m is well equipped with oven, hob, microwave, fridge/freezer, toaster, kettle, loads of crockery, pans, glasses etc and cool bag and Tupperware for those important picnics either at the beach or in the mountains. It too has shuttered and glazed doors on to a small balcony. That is it – good for couples, couples with children. 3 children and their parents stayed recently and had lots of fun using it as a bolt hole for sleeping, waking and showering then off to explore. The parents enjoyed the living room sofa bed whilst the youngsters had a dormitory. Because of the cute narrow streets, you have to park close by in the square or car park. The advantage of this is peace and tranquility.