Self-catering in Burgundy – Have it your way
Arrive at airport two hours before departure, pay £10 per kilo excess baggage for each item over 20kg, get charged £5 for a thimble-full of wine on the plane, notify of late hotel check-in or face losing the room, check-out of the hotel by 12pm or incur an extra charge, breakfast only served between 7.30am and 9.30am, pay €10 an hour for in-room plug-and-play internet - doesn’t sound much like a break? With Location Burgundy you can have your holiday your way.
Headed up by husband and wife team, David and Su Bishop, Location Burgundy has been providing luxurious self-catering accommodation at the heart of the wine villages of Côte d’Or for the best part of a decade. All Location Burgundy homes exude character, offer flexibility in terms of length of stay and provide a perfect base for exploring this key wine region.
Su comments, “Size, affordability and freedom are the keys to self-catering success. A hotel room not only has restrictions on schedules for everything from meal times to departure times, but they can be pricey and at the end of the day a room is just a room. No separate lounge, kitchen or garden to call your own. With a Location Burgundy home you can relax, entertain, dine, work and sleep in different parts of the property and pack the children safely off to bed while your evening continues. An equipped kitchen allows the flexibility of eating in thus saving money and releasing yourself from strict timetables. It’s as close to home as you can get.”
Rack rates for four-star hotels in prosperous Beaune vary from 130 euros up to 270 euros-plus per room per night. Meanwhile an entire one bedroom apartment with Location Burgundy starts from as little as 90 euros per night and you get a whole lot more for your money. All Location Burgundy rental properties are equipped with UK and French satellite television, DVD/cd player, heating, washing machine, microwave, dishwasher, free Wi-Fi and a welcome pack of groceries to include basics such as milk, coffee, fruit juice and cereal. Every day essentials from hand soap to bed linen and towels are provided.
A none-too-arduous five-hour drive south-east from Calais, Burgundy is the epitome of romantic peaceful countryside. Running through the heart of the region is the Côte d’Or, a narrow escarpment snaking from Dijon to Beaune, home to tight clusters of irresistible stone villages. Vineyards roll as far as the eye can see, over 28,000 hectares producing 192 million bottles of wine each year. From Meursault to Chablis, Pouilly-Fuissé to Corton-Charlemagne, there are many flavours to savour.
Take your car and venture beyond the picturesque wine villages to explore the Burgundy of the travel books with its great Abbeys and majestic chateaux, Romanesque churches and nostalgic arched bridges. The region has over 1,200km of navigable waterways (including France’s oldest working canal) lined with poplars and lilacs. Landlubbers can cycle or stroll along the picturesque canal paths meanwhile golfers can swing their clubs in the region’s 20 or so golf courses, some in the grounds of grand chateaux.
If the car doesn’t appeal, nearest big city Lyon is home to France’s fourth busiest airport served by BMI, BA and EasyJet to the UK whilst also being on the high-speed TGV route - as is Dijon a 20-minute drive from Beaune.
Prices for a two bedroom apartment in a converted 18th century wine-maker’s house at the heart of Pommard (3km from Beaune) start from 450 euros for three nights based on four people sharing in low season (1 October – 31 May). Prices for a one bedroom apartment in a converted 19th century home in Cissey (5km from Beaune) start from 270 euros for three nights based on two people sharing in low season. The four Cissey apartments share a communal heated swimming pool.
For more information and bookings, visit locationburgundy.com.
