WELCOME TO SUN-KISSED PROVENCE
Southern French Provence is one of the most beautiful places in Europe. You'll find just about everything there. Stunning landscapes, a lovely sunny climate, cycling adventure à volonté, history dating back to Ancient Rome, gastronomy, wine, art and culture. What's more, life moves a few seconds slower there than in the north. That Douce Provence is where our villa Le Cèdre Bleu is located. We invite you to discover this top holiday home, along with the charming village of Sablet, at the foot of the Dentelles de Montmirail. We're on top of it.... Top Provence!
Le Cèdre Bleu is located on the outskirts of the village of Sablet, along a quiet street. The gîte is newly built, entirely on the ground floor without thresholds and equipped with all modern comforts. With maximum attention to authenticity and a façade made of 'pierre de Faucon', a rustic, local stone. In terms of roofing, we chose original, old Provençal tiles.
* Individual air conditioning and heating, washing and drying machine
* Closed garage for bicycles or a car, and extra parking space
* 3 bedrooms (2 x double bed, 1 x 2 single beds) each with direct access outside
to the patio or garden
* 2 shower rooms and 2 separate toilets
* fully equipped kitchen with traditional and microwave oven, dishwasher, induction hob
* a walled patio, a small fenced garden and a swimming pool of 4 by 2.5 metres, for cool summers, heated in spring and autumn.
We will be happy to welcome you, please send an email to : info@topprovence.com
Catherine and Jo: that's Holland-Belgium in the south of France. After wandering around the world, we finally got stuck in Provence where we have a holiday home, Le Cèdre Bleu. One where you are also welcome - even with your dog.
LIFE IS GOOD IN SABLET
With a name like Sablet, it cannot be otherwise: this Provençal village at the foot of the Dentelles de Montmirail has a thing for sand. And indeed, the ochre-coloured houses spiralling around the church are located on a sandy hill. The first signs of habitation are thought to predate our era, but it is certain that the Romans pitched their tents there. Not surprisingly. Sablet is about ten kilometres from Vaison-la-Romaine, a town where the Romans, among other things, erected an amphitheatre.
For the history of Sablet as it stands sturdily on its hill today, we have to go back to the ninth century. This is when the first fortifications were erected, a long-drawn-out project. Only around 1500 were the towers and the gigantic walls that still surround the village finished. To protect its inhabitants in case of threat, a church was built in anticipation of the fortification. Dating back to the 12th century, the church, with its thick walls, provided a refuge for the villagers in case of calamity.
Around that Romanesque church, which perhaps got its typical bell tower in the 16th century, village life still takes place today. A rich village life. Unlike many a Provençal village where you can barely buy a loaf of bread, Sablet buzzes with 'commerce'. The village of some 1,300 souls not only has essential shops such as a bakery, butcher and grocery shop, in the picturesque streets around the central square you will also find a newsagent, a pharmacy, a barber shop and even a beauty salon, among others.
Of course, Sablet also has its meeting place and it is called 'Bar des sports'. As it should be, with a terrace where the locals take the aperitif before grabbing a pizza or ordering a dish next door. All in the convivial atmosphere so typical of Provence and Sablet in particular. The village prides itself on its hospitality towards visitors and you can feel it. Before you know it, you are chatting with the wine grower who does his shopping at the local market on Fridays. Speaking of wine: although Sablet is not huge, it has some 15 wine estates. There you will find mostly red wines, ranging from the renowned Gigondas to the excellent 'vin de village'.
We said it at the beginning: Sablet is located at a nub of the Dentelles de Montmirail, a mountain range whose pointed peaks are reminiscent of lace. This magnificent natural area lends itself to walks and bike rides for both the practised sportsman and the recreational cyclist. From its hilltop, Sablet looks out over the wide Rhône valley where you can cycle as flat as in Flanders. If you look in the other direction, towards Dentelles de Montmirail and the Mont Ventoux hidden behind it, the challenge of the cols beckons. The Ventoux is near Sablet and the only reason why it is still half an hour's ride to the giant of Provence is that you have to go around the Dentelles to get there. As if the experienced 'cyclist' would make a point of that.
But it is not just on cycling that Sablet is alive and well. Mainly in season - from spring through summer to autumn - the village buzzes with activity. Wine festivals, brocant markets, concerts, dance evenings and a real book festival. Yes indeed, each time with that colourful local 'touch'... but that is precisely the reason to visit Sablet. A village where life shifts down just that one gear. In short, where life is good.
AVAILABILITY & PRICING 2025
April : 1300 € / week
May : 1600 € / week
June : 1900€ /week from 1 till 14
2000 €/ week from 15 till 28
July : 2300€/ week from 1 till 12
2500€/ week from 12 till 31
August : 2500€/ week from 1 till 15
2300€/ week from 15 till 31
September : 2000€/ week from 1 till 20
1900 €/ week from 20 till 30
October : 1600€/ week
November : 990€ / week
December : 990 € / week
Note :
* minimum stay 1 week
* arrival and departure during school holidays and from 1 June to 30 September on Saturdays
* no extra charge for heating the pool if the weather allows it
* supplement per stay for cleaning including sheets and towels : 180€ (flannel, small & large towel)
* Bath towels to take with you
* official residence tax per adult (18 years or older) per night : about 0,70€/night
* supplement of 30€/week for one dog, two on request
Catharina en Jo, info@topprovence.com