A Provençal Stay at Le Galinier, a Beaumier hotel in the South of France

Let’s start with a short activity.

See the image above? Imagine you’ve been transplanted directly into the center of it. You’re now standing amongst the grasses and haze and golden hour of sunset.

As you stand there taking in all that’s around you, your senses begin to come to life.

First, you feel the warm sun on your face, its long rays reaching you across the field as it begins its descent behind the mountains beyond. Then, something within you causes your legs to start moving at an increasing rate and before you know it, you’re chasing the sunset in full sprint.

You feel the breeze blowing past you.

Your lungs begin to burn with exertion and life.

Your hands hang by your side feeling each blade and seed as you brush past.

This action alone stirs up smells of wheat and jasmine and earth.

Eventually, your run leads you to the edge of the field where a car awaits. Intuition tells you to get in the driver’s seat and you don’t delay. You begin to drive and as you do, you take in a landscape just as breathtaking as the field you came from.

You drive the car along winding roads and narrow bridges as you instinctively follow directions your subconscious has brought to the surface of your mind. At first, you aren’t sure where they are taking you, but as your journey continues, you start to remember that they are leading you back to a French countryside villa.

You begin to drive through the outskirts of what looks like a small village, and you come upon an iron gate. At your arrival, it automatically and slowly opens with welcoming arms. You may not remember it, but it most certainly remembers you.

Once fully open, you guide your car down a gravel drive, barely creeping along as to not disturb the serenity of the landscape around you. You park the car, step out. You hear the sound of frogs chirping and although you almost can’t place it, what seems like the unnoticeable hum of a thousand bees.

You take a deep breath, and your lungs are filled with hints of lavender and wildflower and something sweet. As you walk away from your car, you take in what’s around you. You’re in an otherworldly setting of ponds and stone walls and gardens. You move deeper into the scene and your pupils dilate as they gaze upon an ivy-covered stone wall, an unofficial entrance to what lies beyond it: a large building with long windows and shutters and doors.

“This must be the place,” you think to yourself.

As you gaze upon the 18th century glory of this enchanting building, your imagination can’t help but play around with what could be inside. Romantic evenings? Reflective moments? Creative spaces?

A slight, delicious smelling breeze brings you back from your thoughts, and you suddenly feel an onset of panic.

“Is my time running out?” you think. “Will I get to go deeper into the mystery of this scenery and this place?”

Your subconscious once again shows up in your time of need and softly affirms that it isn’t time to leave just yet. You let out a sigh of relief. Equal feelings of excitement and fear flood over you with the freedom you now have to explore.

Still standing in front of the old 18th-century home, you begin to notice the finer details of the façade such as the number of windows (some with shutters, some without) an arched wooden door (or is it doors?) and steps calling you up to an entrance. The building with its asymmetry beckons you to come forward and unveil even more of its mystery.

You oblige willingly.

Along the path towards the steps, you look to your right and see a building that was once a horse stable, but you note that it has been modernized and split into two separate apartments.

On your left, you see a similar sized building, that was once a chicken house, yet through its windows you can see it has also been modernized and is now a full sized, single apartment.

As your eyes wander over both of these buildings, they simultaneously soak up the variety of lush green plants in the landscape: shrubs, trees, roses and white hydrangeas are all densely planted. Your breathing tells you that somewhere jasmine is certainly in full bloom as you walk through its heavy blanket of sweet perfume.

You’ve arrive at the steps and still aren’t 100% sure which door is your entrance, but it problems you not because you decide that instead of going indoors, you’re going to continue exploring the exceedingly stunning outdoors around you. To your left, an arched stone wall invites you to explore what’s beyond.

On the other side, you find yourself in a stretch of curated garden: a fifty, maybe sixty, foot rectangular flower bed boasting perfectly balanced flowers on your left and reoccurring benches hugged within bushes on your right. Towards the end of this curated path, you notice two large concrete pools and you surmise that they were once used to water all of the livestock and animals that previously resided here. In present-day, the pools seem to be home to a few frogs and not serve much purpose otherwise. You imagine what it would like to standing near this pool with cows and chickens and horses by your side.

A simpler time.

Still daydreaming, out of the corner of your eye you see another arched stone wall and staircase connecting this piece of the property to whatever might lie beyond. With each new foot placement up its stone steps, an endlessly wild scene falls into your peripheral vision, one of lavender, clover, poppies, grasses, buzzing bees of all shapes and sizes and an abundance of small white moths fluttering by.

You spend some time beholding all of the creation that is around you and feel the truth of it deep in your soul:

This place is pure magic.

You continue to walk around this less curated side of the property, which is made up of multiple fields, another long driveway, a grove of olive trees and even what was once a pigeonry. Walking towards the center you notice a glisten of the sun off a body of water and find yourself in the swimming area, a space outfitted with a long inviting concrete pool, lounge chairs, and a stone pool house built into the side of a hill. The pool doesn’t seem to belong in that wild, nature-filled landscape, yet also seems to belong there precisely.

Standing at the edge of the pool, you look out over a field of grass, what remains of Spring’s red poppy blooms and scattered about lounge chairs and your gaze falls upon a familiar scene: that same grassy field that you ran through when you first arrived. It somehow seems more endless, more rich with color and more majestic from here than when you ran through it before.

You haven’t even made it inside the walls of the house, yet you find yourself completely and irrevocably enraptured by this place.

At long last, you find your way to the entrance of the property and are greeted by your kind hostess, who you have a feeling you will become good friends with. You’re standing in an open living room and kitchen, outfitted with long wooden French tables, soft jazz playing in the background and a fresh pitcher of infused water for your drinking pleasure. Your room is located just up the stairs off of this central part of the house and your hostess hands you a solid metal key to access your room.

Entering the room, you feel giddy with delight as you take in every detail, like the large, antiquated blue wardrobe and the traditional wooden-beamed ceiling overhead. The square footage is small, but more than sufficient for what you will need. Running along the wall of the right side of the room are the sink, a beautiful grey and white clawfoot bathtub, and a small square room that houses the toilet.

One of your favorite details is no doubt the long, delicate, lace curtains tempting you to see what views lie beyond them. Once opened, the windows reveal a giant old yew tree and the curated gardens you walked through earlier in the day.

Throughout your weeklong stay, you spend your days in Provence exploring villages, consuming as much French cuisine as possible, and trying to capture every beautiful building, landmark and piece of nature you lay eyes on. Each and every day is so utterly enjoyable that despite the abundant joy you feel, you simultaneously feel a sense of dread as you know the week’s end will come sooner than you’d like.

The closer you get to the end of the week, the more you’ve decided that the best thing for your soul is to spend as much time as possible in this place. So, rather than spend your last day in France exploring the popular tourist destination of Paris, you make the obvious decision to stay here for just one more night. And for your very last night in this wonderful, dream-like hotel, you’ll do something extra special.

Upgrade your room.

On the afternoon before your last night, you pack up all of the belongings you’ve scattered about your room (including what seems to be an endless array of souvenirs) and move your things from an upstairs room on the left of the main house, to a downstairs apartment on the right of the large bastide. Butterflies fill your belly as you walk towards this unexplored corner of the property

You arrive at the door of your new room.

You put the key in the keyhole. It turns.

You push the door open slowly.

You walk over the threshold.

*Gasp.

Never have you ever stepped foot in a more beautiful room.

There are fresh cut flowers, picked from the variety you’ve seen on the property’s grounds outside.

There are long, linen curtains, billowing as a slight breeze blows through them.

And sitting behind those curtains, there are not one, but two French doors reaching towards the ceiling and towards the world that lies beyond their reach.

Even the ground is bursting with beauty, which you notice as your feet walk across square after square of light-washed sandstone colored tiles, worn from years of wear and tear.

Looking up, you see the same old wooden beams that were in the classic room, yet this time, they don’t cover the length of the entire space. The beams stop roughly halfway through the room and are met by a vaulted, church like ceiling of curves and light. It’s evening, and the rays from the long setting summer sun bounce off these curves creating a golden glow within all corners of this room.

Still stunned by the rooms splendor, you put your luggage and things away inside a standalone wardrobe, you grab your local meats and cheeses and wine from the fridge, and you head out to your private patio to enjoy a late afternoon picnic with the one you love most.

On the last evening of your stay, you decide to opt in for the onsite meal that is provided. Around seven in the evening, garbed in your newly purchased French dress from the local village market, you take the short stroll from your apartment to the front of the property where your favorite hostess has a white tablecloth setting prepared. You bring your own wine because you already had some opened in your room and you definitely don’t want it to go to waste.

You spend your final evening sitting in the most picturesque setting, eating the most delicious food, feeling the most wonderful breeze, watching the most magical light dance through the trees. Though you feel sadness in your heart that these will be your last moments in this space, you know deep in your soul that all is well.

This place has changed you and as a result, you will always carry it with you.

You look around and you thank Le Galinier (the name of this magical place) from within your heart for all it allowed you to see, feel and experience.

And the next morning as you pack up to leave, it doesn’t feel like goodbye. Because at some point and some time in your future, you will return to this place and experience it once again.

My sincerest hope is that you both enjoyed that imaginative experience and feel as if you’ve visited Le Galinier in person.

If the journey above left you with a feeling of longing to physically experience this place yourself, then enjoy the images in the remainder of this post and find details on when to visit, what’s nearby, and of course, how to book your stay.

WHEN TO VISIT le galinier & Provence

The Provence region and the villa itself are seasonal. Le Galinier is only available to book March-October, as most of the region shuts down in the winter months. July and August are the busiest months as a result of the European holiday, warming temps, and seasonal lavender. Late September and October welcome Autumn and its foliage, making it a unique time to visit the property. For reference, we were there late June and the temperatures were around 85 F during the day and 58 F at night. The lavender was in bloom, although not at peak, and we had a week full of sunshine. There were even some poppies still remaining from the spring blooms.

Despite all of the above, we’ve visited Provence in March and absolutely enjoyed our travels during that time. The weather is cool, yet pleasant, there are few to no crowds, and many of the villages are still accessible with restaurants and markets open.

WHAT’S NEARBY

Le Galinier is just steps away from Lourmarin, a small village in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. The village was our favorite out of all we visited during our stay and for good reason.

According to francethisway.com, Lourmarin is considered one of the most beautiful villages in France. The village has been settled for over a thousand years and though small, boasts endless Provençal charm and even its own chateau, Château de Loumarin. The village is a short two-minute walk from the villa and when strolling through you’ll find traditional curbside French cafes, boutiques, antique shops, art galleries and buildings covered in ivy.

You can read our full Lourmarin guide here.

Lourmarin hosts a market every Friday morning, one that is surprisingly large for how small the village is. At the market you can shop all of the local produce, cheeses, meats, breads, soaps, lavender, and local art your heart could desire. We explored a few markets during our stay, but the Lourmarin market was by far the best in our opinion, so be sure to book dates with a Friday included so you can experience it yourself.

(Below: the village of Lourmarin, France)

Less Than 30-Minutes from Le Galinier

In under a thirty-minute drive from the property, you can reach famous villages from such as Bonnieux (stop here for the view), Roussillon (go here for the ochre-colored buildings), and Lacoste (visit for a quieter, college town).

1-hour from Le Galinier

Within an hour's driving distance of Le Galinier, you can reach destinations like Gordes (41-minute drive, go here for a village on a hilltop view and also be sure to check out Abbey Notre-Dame de Senanque), Aix en Provence (42-minute drive, known as the unofficial capital of the region), L’isle-sur-la-Sorgue (48-minute drive, known as the Venice of Provence and famous for its antiques), the famous Valensole lavender fields (1-hour drive, go in August to see both the lavender and sunflowers), and even the bustling coastal city of Marseille (1-hour drive).

Click here for a map of driving directions to all of the locations listed above.

Above (left to right): Abbey Notre-Dame de Senanque, the village of Lacoste

ADDITIONAL STAY OPTION

During our stay at Le Galinier, we discovered that the hotel has a sister property in the village, Le Moulin Lourmarin, and we did a mini tour of the hotel and the rooms to give you a first look at the newly renovated space.

Le Moulin Lourmarin is a traditional hotel ready to welcome guests with its refreshingly modern interior and effortless design. The difference between it and in Le Galinier is that where Le Galiner is wild and big and old and mysterious, Le Moulin is modern and hip and cool and open.

If Provençal hipster was a thing, Le Moulin Lourmarin would be it.

The lobby and rooms and restaurant all boast an earthy golden hour color scheme of orange and mustard and whitewash and sandstone and jute and dried flowers and straw hats. The hotel also has a full bar and restaurant, which you can enjoy whether you are guest or not.

Rooms range from $$$-$$$$$

Book your stay at le galinier

Now that you’ve imagined yourself in the French Countryside spending a week at Le Galinier, and have all the details you need to plan your trip, what do you think? Will you be booking your stay at Le Galinier Villa in the South of France? This ivy-covered stone apartment awaits your decision.

STICK AROUND FOR A WHILE

Need help planning the rest of your trip through Provence?

Be sure to read our Complete Provence Travel Guide, see our list of other beautiful hotels to book in Provence, and read our guide to visiting Lourmarin.

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