Aquitaine, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Navarrenx, France

Built in about 1650, this charming farmhouse of 324m² is in a rural hilltop location, yet is just a short drive away from the local village, where you can buy bread, and from several small towns with supermarkets. The farmhouse is in the picturesque Jurançon wine area - a veritable haven of peace and tranquillity!

The property comprises the main house of 225m², which has three bedrooms - and an adjoining guest cottage/gîte of 97m², which has four bedrooms. Should you wish to use the property as one huge house with seven bedrooms, it would be relatively easy to create internal access between the two buildings on each of the three floors.

From a quiet country lane, a short tree-lined entrance drive leads down to the property. There is a double garage for covered parking, as well as an outdoor parking area in front of the main part of the farmhouse.

From the parking area, a paved path leads up to the front door. To the left of the path is a south-facing courtyard with a sunny dining terrace, as well as a covered seating area where you can dine in the shade.

The front door of the farmhouse opens into an entrance hall with a WC and a traditional wooden staircase to the upper floors. To the left of the hall is a spacious kitchen, which has a small dining area, a large pantry and a door out to the garden and swimming pool. Beyond the kitchen is a large sitting room with a stone fireplace and wood-burning stove. Huge curved French doors open to the dining terrace and walled courtyard.

To the right of the entrance hall is a large utility room, which leads into a wonderful dining room with a huge open fireplace. This room has a door to the outside. Adjacent to the dining room is a room of 14m², which could be used as an office.

The first floor of the farmhouse comprises a study/office area on the landing, a library area, a master-bedroom suite with a dressing room and en suite shower room, a second bedroom with a decorative marble fireplace and a family bathroom. There is also a cloakroom/storage room which could be knocked through to connect the main part of the house to the guest cottage/gîte.

The second floor of the farmhouse is currently used as a sitting room/games room with a bar area, but which could be transformed into a lovely bedroom suite for a teenager. Adjoining this room is unconverted loft space, which could be used to create an additional bedroom (permission required).

The guest cottage/gîte is accessible from the outdoor parking area via an east-facing dining terrace. Arched doors open into a large main room comprising a sitting area with a fireplace and wood-burning stove, a dining area and a kitchen area.

The first floor comprises a bedroom with an en suite shower room, a second bedroom and a family bathroom. The second floor has two further bedrooms, one of which has an en suite bathroom.

The farmhouse is set in of 1.45 hectares (3.6 acres) of meadows and woodland. Behind the property is a gorgeous swimming pool (12m x 6m) with a sun terrace and panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. There is ample space for keeping one or two horses on the grounds - and you may even like to think about creating a summer kitchen area, a barbecue area, a children's play area, a boules piste, treehouses...

The farmhouse is five minutes away from a picture-postcard village with a primary school, library, post office and a "dépôt de pain" where you can collect your fresh baguettes! A little further on, the delightful bastide town of Navarrenx has exciting watersports on the nearby "gave" (river), as well as numerous cultural and sporting activities for you - and your visitors - to participate in throughout the year. The town also has a great choice of lively bars and restaurants, shops and boutiques - and there is even a bilingual school (French/English). The International School of Béarn in Pau is just 35 minutes away from the property.

The Medieval market town of Oloron-Ste-Marie is also easily accessible, where you will find several hypermarkets, a hospital, a theatre and a twice-weekly farmers’ market. The many ski resorts in the Pyrénées are about an hour away to the south - and the surfing and family beaches on the Atlantic coast are about 70 minutes away to the west.

THE FARMHOUSE (225m²)

Ground floor:
- a south-facing courtyard with dining terrace
- an entrance hall (6m²)
- a sitting room with a fireplace and wood-burning stove (27m²) and doors opening out to the dining terrace and courtyard
- a dining room (23m²)
- a study/office adjoining the dining room (14m²)
- a kitchen (22.5m²) with a dining area and pantry
- a large utility room (10m²)
- a WC (2.5m²)

First floor:
- a landing (7m²) with a study/office area and access to a cloakroom/storage room and a library area
- a library area (7.5m²), which adjoins the master bedroom, dressing room and family bathroom
- a master bedroom with an en suite shower room (28m² + 3m²)
- a dressing room (8.5m²), which adjoins the master bedroom and library area
- a second bedroom with a fireplace and marble surround (32m²)
- a family bathroom (9.5m²)

Second floor:
- a huge salon/games room with a bar area, which could be used as an additional bedroom (25m²)
- access to unconverted loft space (17m²)


THE ADJOINING GUEST COTTAGE/GÎTE (97m²)

Ground floor:
- an east-facing dining terrace
- a large main room with a sitting area with a wood-burning stove, a dining area and a kitchen area (32m²)

First floor:
- a bedroom with an en suite shower room (15m² + 2.5m²)
- a second bedroom (17m²)
- a family bathroom (6.5m²)

Second floor:
- a third bedroom with an en suite bathroom (10m² + 2m²)
- a fourth bedroom (5.5m²)


THE GROUNDS AND THE OUTBUILDINGS

The farmhouse is set in delightful grounds of 14,553m² (1.3 acres) with...
- a swimming pool (12m x 6m) with a sun terrace
- a south-facing courtyard with a dining terrace and a covered seating area
- an east-facing terrace in front of the guest cottage/gîte
- a double garage with a workshop area (47m² + 15m²)
- two open-sided barns
- a garden shed
- a fully functioning well


THE POTENTIAL!

If you are hoping to find a wonderful family home or holiday home in a tranquil countryside setting, this charming farmhouse is for you! As well as being close to Atlantic beach resorts and Pyrenean ski resorts, this super property has seven bedrooms (four of which are in the adjoining guest cottage/gîte), grounds of 1.45 hectares, a swimming pool and ample space for a summer kitchen, a barbecue area, a children's play area...

The property is perfectly located for anyone who works in Pau, Orthez or Oloron-Ste-Marie - and the International School of Béarn in Pau is just 35 minutes away. If you work from home or you need an office/consulting room, the study/office next to the dining room in the main house would be ideal for you and which is directly accessible via an entrance door which opens into the dining room from outside.

The four-bedroom guest cottage is an ideal size to rent out as a gîte to holidaymakers during the summer months, the skiing season and for Christmas and New Year. All the furniture and equipment in the guest cottage is included in the sale, so you can start generating an income immediately!

The guest cottage could also be suitable for accommodating Bed & Breakfast guests for short breaks during the quieter months - and you could even host wellness retreats or offer your guests activity workshops for painting, photography, music, gastronomy, Jurançon wine-tasting...

If you prefer to return the property to its original size, it should be relatively easy to create one huge manor house with at least seven bedrooms. In addition, there is unconverted loft space of 17m², which could be transformed into more living space or an eighth bedroom (permission required).


SERVICES & TECHNICAL

Telephone + ADSL (cable connection possible soon)
Partially double-glazed
Heating: oil-fuelled central heating, wood-burning stoves, some electric panel heaters
Mains water
Septic tank
Well (fully functioning)


THE LOCAL AREA

This super property is located five minutes away from a peaceful village in the beautiful Béarn in South-West France. It is not far from the Pyrénées, the Atlantic coast, Pau, Lourdes and the Basque Country - and the vibrant cities of Bordeaux, Toulouse, San-Sebastián and Bilbao are all within easy reach.

Popular with tourists all year round for hiking, mountain-biking, white-water rafting and fishing, the Béarn also has numerous ski resorts about an hour away to the south for downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding and snow-shoeing. For those who prefer beach-based activities, the Atlantic coast is just over an hour away to the west, where you can picnic, swim and surf at Biarritz, St-Jean-de-Luz, Hendaye, Hossegor...

If your interests are gastronomic, there is an excellent choice of bars and restaurants in Navarrenx, Monein and Oloron-Ste-Marie. You can also explore numerous farmers' markets throughout the Béarn and Basque Country where you will be able to sample locally produced Jurançon wines, tasty Bayonne ham and fabulous Brebis cheese, which is made from sheep milk and eaten with black cherry jam from Itxassou!

Airports: Biarritz, Tarbes-Lourdes, Pau (mainly internal flights)
Train: TGV Orthez, TGV Pau, TER Oloron-Ste-Marie
Coach: Pau, Bayonne
Ferry: Bilbao, Santander

Ski: Issarbe, La-Pierre-St-Martin, Iraty, Val-d’Azun, Gourette, Somport, Candanchú (Spain)...
Beaches: Biarritz, St-Jean-de-Luz, Hendaye, Hossegor...

Attractions: Aqua Béarn, Gorges de Kakuetta, Passerelle d’Holzarte, Grottes de Bétharram, Parc’Ours, Le Petit Train d’Artouste, Chemin-de-St-Jacques-de-Compostelle, Route d'Artagnan…