Van Gogh: Explore the works of Van Gogh Provence
Nothing is better than leaving London by Eurostar early in the day and arriving in Provence to enjoy a cold, pink aperitif (tip: switch to the TGV in Lille Avoid having to change trains in Paris.
Avignon station TGV is only 10 minutes by taxi. Le Moulin d’Aure This charmingly restored home is the perfect place to relax. Mas The farmhouse is located on the outskirts of Graveson. The 19 bedrooms are all equipped with balconies and terraces that overlook the olive trees. In the garden, there is a swimming pool as well as quiet spots.
Local bike hire companies can deliver bikes for the 30-minute ride to pretty Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, with its Wednesday morning market. Vincent Van Gogh stayed here in the Saint-Paul de Mausole mental hospital after he had cut off part of his right ear. The Starry Night is one of his many works. There’s also a tour that takes you around the town to see landscapes that inspired him.
Tutti Quanti is the Italian restaurant of Le Moulin. It serves fresh pasta in a pergola. Graveson has more restaurants, located 15 minutes walk away.
Doubles starting at €75 Room-only breakfast is available €18, hotel-moulindaure.com
Normandy’s leafy and sleepy countryside
Le Perche is a rural paradise in Normandy’s Orne area, where Parisians flock to discover quiet villages and forests. Only 30 minutes from Paris by train, you can reach L’Aigle. Then, take a taxi for 30 minutes to Mortagne. Trama en Perche The new guesthouse, which has four bedrooms, is run by two former restaurateurs from Paris. Paul Hayat and Marion Trama.
Breakfast in the garden is served when the sun shines. Local produce is served with French toast, blinis and crab remoulade.
Marion and Paul are also a fount of local knowledge, and can arrange bike hire (an autumnal favourite includes a detour to family-run cider producer La Maison Ferré) or recommend walkable restaurants, such as La Biscuiterie Salads, cakes and other desserts La Vie en Rouge Natural wine and small dishes
Many of the items in Trama en perche were sourced at the antique and brocante stores located around Mortagne.
Doubles starting at about €170 B&B, tramaenperche.fr
Beach Zeeland in the Netherlands: a look at life
Cadzand in Zeeland, with its large beach that faces the North Sea is an example of this. StrandhotelOn a dune, just behind the golden beaches, you can enjoy a beautiful vantage point from which to watch any weather. Right now, it’s the perfect time to go kite- or windsurfing off shore. Or you can stay on dry land and search for fossilised shark teeth at low tide.
Just a couple of miles north of the Belgian border, the easiest route here is via Brussels, changing for a direct train to Knokke-Heist (about 1½ hours), where you can pick up a taxi across to Cadzand (30 minutes). The Netherlands has excellent cycling paths and bike rental is just across the street. The nearby Zwin nature reserve offers good birdspotting – you can also explore the salt flats and polder behind the dunes.
The hotel has an indoor swimming pool and saunas for you to relax in. There are three restaurants, from the Michelin-starred Demain, to the laid-back Beach Boy restaurant, which overlooks a marina and serves Zeeland Oysters.
Doubles starting at €212 B&B, strandhotel.eu
Families can enjoy the forest near Paris
Former royal hunting estate in the south-west of Paris, this 14,000-hectare Fôret de Rambouillet Spreads across the commuter belt in the capital. In autumn, the trails and cycle tracks cut through dense forests of oak, pine and chestnut trees. It’s all there. Le Barn It’s a country house with modern amenities for the urban-weary (train to Dourdan, or Rambouillet in Paris and then 15-20 minutes by taxi).
Equine activities, including first rides for children and hacks through the woods (riding from around PS13), are an important part of the appeal. They include children’s first rides, proper hacks through the woodland (riding from about £13) and horse whispering sessions (complimentary on daily activity schedule). Other options are yoga, archery, rowing boats on the lake – with some spooky extra fun over Halloween weekend.
There’s also a spa for grownups, and a restaurant serving classic French fare – and with no checkout deadline on Sundays, there’s plenty of time to get stuck in.
Doubles from about £175 room-only, Include a daily schedule of activities, lebarnhotel.com
Yoga, eco-living The garden restaurant of Wallonia in Belgium
Most British tourists don’t explore beyond the Belgian cities of Bruges (with its canals), Ghent (funky) and Antwerp (fashionable), but for those who do, there are dense forests, castles, and historical villages to discover.
Waterloo was fought in the village with the same name, located on the rolling Wallonia countryside to the south of Brussels. 10km southwards is another battle. Indrani LodgeA wonderful, peaceful hideaway on the outskirts of Genappe. Take a train to Nivelles and then take a taxi for 15 minutes. Formerly a medieval farm, this is now an eco-friendly yoga hotel with 12 bedrooms.
A large part of the gardens is turned over to permaculture, growing produce that makes its way on to plates in the Petits Éléments restaurant. In autumn, you might find Jerusalem artichoke or butternut squash alongside the eggs of Indrani’s chickens. Honey from bees is also available. Apple juice comes from their orchards.
You can choose from a variety of yoga classes every day (iyengar vinyasa hatha) as well as retreats. There are also twice-monthly Slow Days on Sundays that include two classes plus brunch and an activity (flower arranging, ceramics). Slow down by yourself with a spa treatment or a dip at the geothermally-heated pool in the barn.
Doubles starting at €163 B&B, indranilodge.com
Cycling – and tastings – in the vineyards Burgundy
Tom Kevill Davies is a cycling expert who also loves to eat. In 2005, he rode from New York to Rio de Janeiro on a quest for the perfect meal. He wrote a book on his journey and settled in Burgundy, adding wine to the equation. A derelict 17th century water mill in Auxey Duresses was transformed into a restaurant. The Hungry Cyclist Lodge. The lodge has a pool and guests can cycle around the vineyards each day, stopping for lunches and tastings.
Bring a bike on the train (TGV from Paris to Dijon), then a short connection to Beaune and a 10km bike – or taxi – ride from the station. Or rent one when you get there (€22 a day for a hybrid). Tom’s father produces Vin Du Moulin, a wine made from Gamay grapes. It is produced in the small vineyard located next door. Try it over a dinner that Tom whips up from fruit and veg grown in the garden and meat from the local butcher – in autumn this might include guinea fowl roasted over raisins and tarte tatin with fig leaf ice-cream.
Doubles starting at €170 B&B, dinner €40pp Excluding wine thehungrycyclist.com
