Boutique Hotels in France

Château de Castelpers

The present owner’s great-grandfather built the house in the 19th century on the ruins of an earlier mill. Visitors today find a reflective place, a rambling country house filled with old paintings, antiques and four-poster beds. Enveloping the building is a garden of rivers and tall trees. And all this at modest cost. Castelpers, 12170 Lédergues, Aveyron.

La Terrasse au Soleil

This luxurious ranch-like manor has an individual style and intimacy that is reflected in its warm colour schemes. The restaurant has a reputation for serious food, but serves brasserie-style lunches too. Bedrooms are in annexes, some with verandas. Route de Fontfrède, 66400 Céret, Pyrénées-Orientales.

Le Vieux Castillon

Spectacular views across rolling, vineyard-dotted plains meet you at almost every turn in this pocket of mellow medieval houses at the heart of a pretty hill village. They have been ingeniously transformed to create a gem of a hotel. Standard rooms can be cramped; it’s worth paying the extra to go upmarket. 30210 Castillon-du-Gard, Gard.

Le Moulin du Roc

This former walnut mill has a heavenly setting on the banks of the Dronne river, encircled by a fertile garden. The interior is a delightful clutter of carved furniture, sumptuous fabrics, huge pictures and mill paraphernalia. The kitchen prepares delicate regional food. 24530 Champagnac-de-Belair, Dordogne.

Le Mas Trilles

A delightful 17th-century former farmhouse with pool in a verdant landscape. Rooms are big and stylish but not elaborate. Le Pont de Reynès, 66400 Céret, Pyrénées-Orientales.

Lehen Tokia

1920s Basque villa. Art Deco decor. Swimming pool, garden and fine sea view. Chemin Achotarreta, 64500 Ciboure, St-Jean-de-Luz, Pyrénées-Atlantiques.

La Bonne Etape

Imaginative cuisine in a hushed setting with a pool. The rooms are stunning. Chemin du Lac, 04160 Château-Arnoux, Alpes-de- Haute-Provence.

Hôtel Casa Païral

An exotic enclosed garden lies at the heart of this alluring old Catalan-style B&B. Empasse des Palmiers, 66190 Collioure, Pyrénées- Orientales.

Manoir d’Hautegente

This 13th-century manor has been through several incarnations: first it was a forge, then a mill, before becoming a private house. The hotel’s charm is that it keeps the feel of home intact with fresh-coloured, antique-filled rooms. The menu features homeproduced foie gras. Coly, 24120 Terrasson, Dordogne.

Hôtel des Trois Lys

The elegance of this whiteshuttered honey-stone house extends from the outside in. An immense stone staircase leads to the bedrooms, some of which are huge and wood-panelled, with deep-pile carpet and pristine bathrooms. There is a pool at the back and a restaurant, Le Dauphin, next door. 38 rue Gambetta, 32100 Condom, Gers.

Le Chalet

The chalet-style logis, deep in the Bourdonnais countryside, is an unsophisticated, traditional place: rooms are colourful and jolly rather than stylish. But for simple pleasures, the place is idyllic. In the wooded grounds are a pool and a large pond where guests can fish, and the little raised dining terrace has fine rural views. 03000 Coulandon, Allier.

La Vieille Fontaine

Built within the walls of a ruined castle in the medieval village of Cornillon, this hotel is the baby of the Audiberts. He is patron and talented chef; she is in charge of decoration. Her style is Provençal and unfussy, with touches of panache like the outside staircase encased in glass. Steep steps lead through terraced gardens to a hilltop pool. 30630 Cornillon, Gard.

Grand-Hôtel Sainte-Foy

Partly timbered 17thcentury inn. Large bedrooms, with views either over the abbey church, or the garden. 12320 St-Cyprien-sur-Dourdou, Conques, Aveyron.

Auberge sans Frontière

The simple village inn in sleepy Dégagnac offers superb value for its hearty cuisine and trim bedrooms. The dining room also serves as a bar and sitting room. Le Bourg, 46340 Dégagnac, Lot.

Le Grand Ecuyer

Michelin-starred cuisine, courtesy of pastry cook Yves Thuriès, in an old hunting lodge in this perfect medieval village. 79 Grand Rue Raimond VII, 81170 Cordes-sur-Ciel, Tarn.

Hôtel de l’Esplanade

A breathtaking position on a cliff-edge above the Dordogne, superb food and pretty rooms. 24250 Domme, Dordogne.

Hostellerie de Crillon-le-Brave

A substantial former vicarage of ochre stone, set on a hilltop in Italianate gardens, houses a hotel that is luxurious and well run without losing its character. Inside, worn flagged floors, stone walls, rustic furniture, old books and comfy sofas. Place de l’Eglise, 84410 Crillon-le-Brave, Vaucluse.

Les Prés d’Eugénie

In a refined spa town, this B&B, part of a small empire owned by Michel Guérard, is run with warmth and flair by his wife Christine. Rooms in the 18th-century former nunnery are all beautifully furnished. Meals are taken across the garden in the renowned Les Prés d’Eugénie restaurant. 40320 Eugénie-les-Bains, Landes.

Cuq-en-Terrasses

This charming hotel, an abandoned presbytery until its conversion in 1990 by two London designers, is set in a fertile pocket of country known locally as Le Pays de Cocagne – the land of plenty – and its location offers stunning views of the surrounding countryside. Clean, fresh, colourful decor. Wonderful food. Cuq Le Château, 81470 Cuq-Toulza, Tarn.

La Daille

British ex-pats Derek and Barbara Brown have been in charge this red-roofed farmhouse in rolling grounds for nearly 30 years. There used to be a restaurant here; now it’s a congenial B&B, but their weekend afternoon teas have become a local institution. The bedrooms are in a separate, modern building; there is a minimum stay of three days. 24250 Florimont-Gaumiers, Dordogne.

Auberge Provençale

Owner/chef Didier Pézeril creates culinary works of art in his characterful inn. The bedrooms are sweet and simple. Place de la Mairie, 13810 Eygalières.

Hostellerie Mas dou Pastré

Exquisite Provençal furnishings in a mas looking out to the Alpilles. Light lunches on a terrace; pool in the garden. Route d’Organ, 13810 Eygalières, Bouches-du-Rhône.

Moulin de la Beune

An oasis of calm at the heart of the tourist trail, with bright bedrooms and a Périgordian restaurant in the garden. 24620 Les Eyzies-de-Tayac, Dordogne.

Le Centenaire

Glossy Relais et Château with a lovely pool, a gym and surprisingly low prices. 2 av du Cingle, 24620 Les Eyzies-de-Tayac, Dordogne.