Converted Wool Mill With Pool Near Salagou

It's a funny mix, this place. It's really quite shabby and yet epic; often cosy but also austere; in some ways charming and yet also rather blunt. Our party of 10 couldn't quite figure it out. The outside space stretches in all directions, with a magical tree-lined avenue illuminated by festoon lights for boules and majestic views back to the house across the parkland from the poolside loungers two highlights. The house is huge, too, so that four adults and six teenagers were never on top of one another. The pool just about passes muster, although at 12m in length, it's not for serious swimmers, and the pool lining is in poor condition. Some of the grand French country house touches hit the right notes - flock wallpaper, original tiled floors, double doors into the bedrooms and windows you can throw open to views of the grounds. And we were glad of the pool table and table-tennis table, both of which were in good condition, where so often in holiday lets the kit is junk. Our younger members appreciated the TV and the vast DVD library. The hosts were warm and friendly and came to meet us on departure.

There's a lot to improve here, starting with directions to the property. It took us an age to find it, given the supplied directions took us to a pin a mile away from the actual location. On arrival, the house was fully shuttered, necessary because of the August heat, perhaps, but it meant the house felt ghoulish and unwelcoming, amplified by some rather odd personal possessions dotted about the house. Speaking of which, the property feels like a family home let out for extra reddies, rather than a professional holiday let. There are dog-eared teddies and slippers kicking about, odds and sods left scattered in the kitchen cupboards, locked furniture in the bedrooms, and, in the table-tennis room, a wall of dusty, dank kids toys. Fine if it's your stuff; not fine if you're on holiday and expect a pristine space. The kitchen with its vaulted ceiling is a great room, but cooking for 10 with a standard hob and just one oven was a challenge. The big low is the bathrooms, which are old and falling apart. The two off the main bedrooms had baths with hand-held showers with short extensions, horribly dated and insufficient for a property billed as a 4-star holiday let. The host said these would be renovated next year (2027), but for now, they fall far short of expectations. One bathroom has been updated with a proper shower, but the shower tray was flat and shallow and flooded after 60 seconds. Again, the host is aware of this, but it was a problem during our stay. The shame was that the pictures flattered this place, which in the flesh felt tired and unready. In all, a 6/10 review for a property that with the right investment could be spectacular.