Written on DAY 1, after our first night in the property:
The listing says there is parking for two small cars below the house. This is hugely misleading. We had 1 mid-size rental car (Opel Astra), which we were told by Nicole, who met us, couldn't drive up to the house because it was too long for the road/driveway! So we had to use public parking in the village ("luckily" a space was available, it being only mid-June and not yet the height of the summer season) and then drag our two large and two small suitcases up an incredibly steep gravel hill for 5-10 minutes in the 35 degree heat (95F). One of the suitcases didn't survive and lost a wheel. The others were thrashed in different ways, but may live another day in some disabled shape or form.
The house itself is charming on the outside, with a spectacular view. But the picture postcard vacation rental ends there, I'm afraid. The house inside has three bedrooms, as advertised, but we were asked not to use one of them. The master bedroom was so hot, it took your breathe away... as in you literally couldn't breathe. And the only possible ventilation was from a window with no bug screen and a window, with a screen held in place by wads of old tissue paper and which wouldn't close unless you removed the screen and all the wads of old tissue paper fell all over the floor. It's only mid-June, but THERE IS NO AIR-CONDITIONING, so apart from the kitchen and dining room on the ground floor, the house was a furnace. There are two fans in the house, but they are so old and noisy that they had no effect other than keeping me up all night because it sounded (and felt) like I was sleeping in the airless hold of an old steamer ship. And, as for closets to hang or store any clothes, forget it -- there aren't any in the master bedroom... and almost every inch of the closet in the only other room which has one, is full up with the owners' stuff.
And now to the bathroom(s). The listing claims there are two. There aren't. There is one, with a separate WC. And the one bathroom has a shower with a bath-type shower head that isn't attached to the wall, but on a hose to the taps, so you can only take a shower with one hand, and use the other hand to hold up the shower handle. It's also not a big shower, so this requires some expertise in gymnastics or contortionism.
As for the linens and towels, they're so old, coarse, and ratty they'd probably be okay to use for a pet's basket, but I don't think you're allowed pets so they won't be be of much use to you.
Finally, to add insult to injury, Nicole -- who is the first person working in the tourist industry we've encountered on this current trip to Italy, Spain, and France who doesn't seem to speak or understand much English -- requested (with some difficulty) that I might find the time to hand water several plants in pots on the property during our stay. I replied that after the heart attack and slipped disc I incurred getting our luggage from the car to the house that I might be unable to perform this fun duty during my vacation stay.
Finally, in fairness, the listing does come with a warning that the property might not be suitable for people in wheelchairs or children because of the steps. I would however add to that warning that you may also end up in a wheelchair and be unable to ever have children once you've got your luggage up the hill to the property. Hopefully, the information package in the dining room will contain some listings of medical practitioners, travel insurance lawyers, and a decent hotel in the area.
Toutes les réservations sont effectuées directement auprès du propriétaire 