 Per the owner's express request, photos of this property are not available on-line. Please contact JUST FRANCE to arrange for photographs to be sent to you. The single photo above gives an idea of the villa's proximity to the sea. |
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LA PETITE NICOISE
La Petite Niçoise, like a fine painting, is a reminder that sometimes the smaller but perfectly crafted work of art is infinitely more often pleasing than a grander one. With its three air-conditioned bedrooms (one of them an independent studio apartment), three modern ensuite baths, panoramic sea view and half-moon-shaped swimming pool tucked into a promontory directly above the Bay of Nice, this compact but impeccably appointed villa offers more in sophistication and modern comforts than many properties that have twice the space and are in more pedigreed locations. Luxury and good taste, reflected in the fine Art Déco furnishings and the deft choice of fabrics and colors that prevails in every room, are the order of the day in this discreetly situated property.
La Petite Niçoise is exceptionally private; a tranquil enclave on a coastline that is both supremely beautiful and infamously busy. Chiseled out of the steep hills that rise from the Mediterranean at Cap de Nice, the villa is enclosed by the sea on three sides and walls of shrubbery on the other. As the French say, the property is pied dans l'eau - directly on the coast, as it its feet were in the water.
Despite its location near Nice, La Petite Niçoise is untroubled by road noise and is almost entirely shielded from view by land or sea. The villa is situated in a private compound entered by an electronically controlled gate that opens into a flowered courtyard with a one-car garage and extra parking for another car. Flagstone paths descend from the house through landscaped gardens and shady alcoves to the pool, which is also shielded from public view. Complementing the serenity is the extraordinary view, which stretches from the Bay of Nice across the Mediterranean to the horizon, capturing after dark the sweep of the lights of the world-renown Promenade des Anglais.
The villa at La Petite Niçoise, a stone house constructed in the early 20th century, is comprised of two levels. On the upper level, entered from the courtyard, are an open-plan living and dining room with floors in late 19th-century gray and white marble tiles, a rectangular seating area that extends toward the sea, the kitchen, and a guest lavatory. French doors open from all rooms onto two broad terraces with awnings that open and retract according to wind and sun conditions-- an incomparably romantic setting for a candlelit dinner while watching the sunset. With its southwest orientation and many windows, the house receives abundant sunlight, and always enjoys soft cooling breezes from the sea.
The common rooms are decorated in a comfortable yet somewhat minimalist style that goes with the naturally breezy ambiance of the house. The furnishings are exquisite examples of the Art Déco period, fashioned from woods with deep rich tones and upholstered in fine fabrics. In the dining room is a long marble table suitable for a formal dinner. The overall environment, warm yet sophisticated, invites one to relax, to reflect, and to enjoy the calm and beauty of the sea.
One of La Petite Niçoise's most striking features is its compact but beautifully appointed kitchen. The decorative scheme is Provençal, artfully combining the colors of gray marble surfaces, blonde-wood counters, and backsplashes of green and white tiles. The stainless steel appliances include a gas cooktop with five over-sized burners, convection oven, a Bosch dishwasher, GE American-style two-door refrigerator with in-door icemaker, and - a rare thing in France - a garbage disposal. The cookware is All-Clad, the china Limoges, and in the cabinets there is a wide assortment of professional-level kitchen equipment and gadgetry.
The garden level is reached by a wooden curving staircase that descends from the dining area to a marble foyer. From the foyer are entrances to the utility room and, on the opposite side, two large and beautifully decorated bedrooms.
The master bedroom has a queen-sized bed, a wall of closets enclosed by louvered doors, stereo system and television, a large, well-lit mirror and dressing table with outlets for hair dryers, and a desk with a Xerox laser printer and outlets for a computer and modem. The commodious ensuite bathroom, luxuriously appointed and illuminated by recessed lighting, has marble double basins, a stall shower with a large showerhead and glass door, WC and a towel warmer.
The guest bedroom has a queen-sized bed, television, plenty of closet space and an ensuite bathroom that is slightly less spacious than the master bath, but has identical amenities. Both bedrooms are decorated in soft shades of white and olive green, and have a naturally cool and breezy feeling about them. French doors open from the bedrooms onto a broad terrace from which paths descend through the garden to the pool.
A third bedroom, also with a queen-sized bed, has its own entrance from the terrace overlooking the garden. This is a medium-sized room (16,45 m2, 180 sq. ft.) with generous closet space and a built-in wooden dresser. The ensuite bath has a shower, bathtub and WC. This bedroom is ideal for occasional visitors or a couple that desires extra privacy.
For warm nights, unusual on the Côte d'Azur even in August, there is air conditioning in all three bedrooms.
The garden level terrace is an ideal place for sunbathing, having cocktails, or enjoying a midday or afternoon meal overlooking the Mediterranean. It also has an awning that is activated automatically according to sunlight and wind conditions, and extends most of the length of the terrace. Extending around and beyond the terrace are immaculate gardens landscaped with palm trees, flowering shrubs, roses and geraniums, and orange, clementine and lemon trees. A secret garden patio with a dining table, chairs, wood bench and two chaise longues overlooking the sea provides a lunch and cocktail-hour oasis of quietude and seclusion.
La Petite Niçoise is replete with special amenities and comforts that elevate a property firmly into the luxury category. Entertainment and communications facilities include a television in the master bedroom with VCR and full satellite reception of CNN and BBC channels; a stereo with CD and mini-disc player in the living room (with several hundred mini-discs of jazz and classical music at guests' disposal); telephones upstairs and in all the bedrooms; an answering machine, and a fax machine on a separate phone line that may also be used for Internet connection. Other amenities include:
Being situated just outside Nice, La Petite Niçoise is ideally located for taking advantage of the beaches, museums and restaurants of the Côte d'Azur, Provence and the eastern part of Liguria. In Nice, the Promenade des Anglais, with its shops and private beaches along the Mediterranean, and Cours Salaya in Vieux Nice, which alternates daily between open-air antiques, flower and food markets, can both be reached by car in about ten minutes. Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat is a 15-minute drive to the east, with Eze and Monaco just a few minutes further and Menton and the Italian border 35 minutes by car with Ventimiglia and San Remo another five and 20 minutes respectively To the west, Antibes, Cannes and Mougins can be reached via the Autoroute in 25-35 minutes, Saint-Tropez or Aix-en-Provence in less than two hours (boat and helicopter service is also available to Saint-Tropez), and the Vaucluse and Bouches-du-Rhône regions of Provence, including Gordes and Saint-Rémy, in about three hours.
La Petite Niçoise is for discriminating guests who enjoy tranquility, proximity to the sea and a style of living that leaves no comfort neglected. When not occupied by its owners, the villa is available year-round for rental periods of at least two weeks. With its modern central heating system, it is also an ideal property for a visit in the fall or winter, when the sun shines just as brightly, but life takes along the coastline takes on a more leisurely pace.
Provence | Côte d'Azur | Côte Varoise
Loire | Périgord | Languedoc | Burgundy | Alps | South Atlantic Coast | Paris Environs | Paris | Normandy
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