With its sprawling lawns, huge stone barn and graceful shaded terrace, Manoir de l'Isle is an ideal venue for a wedding, anniversary celebration or other festive event attended by up to 50 guests. Its spacious summer salon, communication facilities, resident chef and exceptional privacy also make it the perfect place for a week-long corporate seminar or retreat. The property staff can assist in arranging for the services of caterers, florists, transportation companies, nearby hotels and other local vendors. Please inquire about rates for such events.
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Manoir de l'Isle, a property of extraordinary beauty and refinement situated on a 101-hectare (250-acre) estate on a private island a few kilometers north of Avignon, offers the ultimate Provençal experience for those who wish to spend their days in the lap of luxury and convenience. A magnificent shaded terrace, five air-conditioned bedrooms, two sitting rooms, a regulation-size billiard table, modern communication facilities (including telephones in every bedroom) and vast lawns of soft grass interspersed by shade trees - everything is here for a blissful and trouble-free vacation in the heart of Provence. For added convenience guests have at their disposal a two-bedroom guest house and a chef who prepares breakfasts and most lunches and dinners. And even with its setting of perfect calm and privacy, the estate is only a 10-minute drive from Avignon, a sophisticated and historic city that is less than three hours from Paris by high-speed train.
Manoir de l'Isle's noble bearing derives in large part from its august history. The two-story manor house, at the center of the property, was built by monks of the Carthusian Order in the 18th century. The guest house, called La Forge, was constructed about 100 years later. At the time of the French Revolution in 1789 the Domaine was owned by the Knights of the Order of Malta. These origins help to explain the sense of peace and grandeur that characterizes the estate and its buildings.
The property
The manor house is situated at the end of a mile-long drive that passes through farmlands and fruit orchards. It is surrounded by more than 16,000 m2 (four acres) of gardens and sweeping lawns designed by the landscape artist Anita Pereire. Allées, wide pathways lined by tall trees, branch off into the fields. Guests are invited to pick tomatoes and fresh vegetables from the potager. All around are stands of towering cypress and plane trees. The property is actually a working farm, producing grains and fruit, and from the house and pool area there are unobstructed views of the surrounding orchards and fields of wheat, corn and sunflowers.
While it is on an island, the property is easily accessible by two roads that cross the Rhône and connect with the internal road system of the estate.
The manor house: Ground-floor common rooms
In combination with the guest house, Manoir de l'Isle can accommodate up to 14 guests in its seven bedrooms, although it is most comfortable for 12 persons. Each of the bedrooms has a well-appointed bathroom, all but one of them (in the guest house) ensuite with the bedroom.
The grandeur of the 650 m2 (7,000 sq. ft.) manor house is immediately apparent in the voluminous entry hall, where an exposed beam ceiling with eyeball spotlights rises two stories over the wide-block limestone floors. Ahead is the principal reception room, which has a large sitting area with three sofas, a huge 17th-century fireplace (not original to the house) and shelves containing an interesting collection of books in French and English. Here guests can also watch television (with full satellite reception, including CNN and BBC) or enjoy the state-of-the-art stereo system with its extensive collection of CDs.
From the entry hall a corridor leads to a guest lavatory and other common rooms on the east wing of the house. These include a sitting room with a huge ornamental fireplace, and a formal dining room with an elegant buffet and an antique chandelier that illuminates a round table for up to 12 guests. Throughout the ground floor high vaulted arches and French doors along the south facade provide abundant light and views onto the lawn and farmlands. An oil-powered under-floor radiant heat system keeps the house cozy in winter, and with its 60 cm (two feet) thick stone walls it remains cool even on the warmest summer days.
For relaxing or enjoying an after-dinner cognac there is the mezzanine, reached by a wide, sweeping staircase with wrought-iron railing that rises from the entry hall. The mezzanine overlooks the entry hall and has the woody, intimate atmosphere reminiscent of a London club. This 75 m2 (800 sq. ft.) space is dominated by a regulation-sized pocket billiards table and a Belle Époque-era bar with a brass rail and small refrigerator. There is also a sitting area with a wrap-around sofa and armchairs, as well as a desk with a telephone and a fax machine on a separate line. Currently high-speed Internet service is not available on the island, but there are numerous telephone outlets throughout the house for connecting via a modem-equipped laptop computer.
Visiting amateur cooks who want to try their skills when the resident chef is not on duty will be delighted with the superbly equipped kitchen at Manoir de l'Isle. The all-modern appliances include a six-burner stove and two ovens, dishwasher, microwave oven and a two-door American-style refrigerator with in-door icemaker. For breakfast there is a farm table that seats up to eight. The washing machine and separate tumble dryer in the adjoining pantry are to be used chiefly by the housecleaning staff, who can do guests' laundry at extra cost.
The manor house: Bedrooms on the upper level
The upper level of the manor house can be reached by the main staircase to the billiard room, which in turn connects with the upstairs hallway, or from a stone staircase from the sitting room. Here there five commodious bedrooms, each air-conditioned and decorated with French period antiques, Provençal fabrics and classic prints and oil paintings. The bedding and linens are of the best quality.
Complementing the rich but not overstated decor are colorful bedspreads with matching drapes. Each of the tiled ensuite baths has a double vanity, a bathtub, a WC, and - with the exception of the Nautical Room - an overhead shower. The master bedroom, which overlooks the front lawn and garden toward the swimming pool, is a large and sumptuously appointed room with a king-sized bed, fireplace and beautiful antique writing desk. The spacious bath has a separate stall shower.
The four guest bedrooms are each appointed in a distinct style that reflects some aspect of the owners' personal interest or history. The Indian Room, decorated with gallery-quality pictures of great American chiefs and their tribes, has twin beds that can be joined to form a king-sized bed; the Heritage Room, which celebrates the family's role in French history, has a 140 cm (55" across) double bed; the Nautical Room, decorated with ocean charts and fascinating prints of 19th-century warships and sailing craft, has a queen-sized bed, and the Villette Room, decorated with Baroque-era prints of French country life, has twin beds that can be joined to form a king-sized bed.
La Forge (the guest house)
La Forge, a restored 70 m2 (750 sq. ft.) structure entered by French doors that open onto the terrace, has a less formal air but is no less comfortably furnished than the manor house. It provides lodging for up to four guests, and is ideal for staff, visitors or a couple that desires extra privacy. The good-sized kitchen is well equipped and decorated in a Provençal style.
On the ground floor of La Forge is a simply decorated bedroom with a 140 cm (55" across) double bed. Just across the hall is a bathroom with stall shower and a separate WC. Upstairs is a larger, charmingly decorated bedroom with a 140 cm double bed and an ensuite bath with stall shower and a separate WC.
The pool, gardens, and the former barn
The rectangular heated pool - a delight for lap swimmers at 7 m X 15 m (23' X 49') - is partially concealed behind a dense hedge of tall oleander bushes. The pool has steps at one end, and is surrounded by a wide flagstone deck with abundant lounge chairs and parasols. For the protection of children the pool is enclosed by an attractive wrought-iron fence that can be locked.
Stretching between La Forge and the manor house is a long and graceful terrace, surrounded by soft grass and shaded by centuries-old plane trees. This is one of the most idyllic settings we know of for enjoying the aperitif hour and dining outside - experiences so intimately associated with the summer lifestyle in Provence. The terrace can be reached by French doors from the dining room, and is only steps from a separate door to the kitchen. At the La Forge end of the terrace there is a fountain that flows into a stone basin, and wrought-iron chairs where guests can gather for conversation before taking their places at the long outdoor dining table.
Adjoining the west wall of the house is an unusual open space, once a barn to shelter farm animals, that provides covered parking for at least seven cars. An inventive party planner could easily convert this space into a sort of outdoor room for a wedding reception, chamber music concert or an unforgettable summer soirée for up to 50 guests. The three-story exposed beam ceiling is supported by a series of stone columns, each with a light fixture that provides a soft incandescent glow. Guests are protected from inclement weather, but they can pass freely between the stone columns to the lawn outside. One can imagine a reception on the greenery in the early evening followed by an elegant candlelight dinner under the barn's cathedral-height ceiling.
Near the old barn is a feature that will delight guests of any age - a perfectly maintained regulation-sized pétanque (boules) court cut into the grass and shaded by a tall plane tree. There is a stone bench where onlookers can relax, and - a reminder of the domaine's long history as a working farm - a giant scale, at least 100 years old, that once was used to weigh bales of hay.
Caretakers
Two caretaker couples live on the estate year-round. One caretaker resides on the ground floor of the manor house in an apartment that has its own entrance and is entirely separate from the rest of the house; the other lives on a farmhouse about 500 meters (a meter is about a yard) away. The caretakers greet guests, care for the grounds, respond in case of a technical problem and, while never intrusive, in general look out for the well-being of guests at Domaine de l'Isle. Staff is also available at extra cost to do laundry and provide chauffeur services.
Location
One of Manoir de l'Isle's great assets is its proximity to transportation, sites of interest and cultural activities, not to mention many of Provence's best restaurants. Avignon and Orange, with their architectural treasures and world-famous summer theater and opera festivals, are both within an easy drive. Within half an hour are two golf courses, eight Michelin-rated one-star restaurants (including the outstanding Auberge de Noves in Noves, and Christian Etienne in Avignon), and a variety of excellent bistros and family-run establishments. For an exceptional evening there is the two-star L'Oustaù de Baumanière at Les-Baux-de-Provence, one of the best-known restaurants in France.
Persons interested in antiques will appreciate Domaine de l'Isle’s proximity to the internationally known antiques market at L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, where more than 200 dealers offer the finest in French period antiques. For sightseeing, the celebrated villages of the Lubéron Valley are a short drive away, as are the Pont du Gard, one of the world's great engineering miracles, erected by the Romans 2,000 years ago, and the town of Uzès, whose medieval streets are brimming with cafés, boutiques and interesting shops selling local arts and crafts. The Golden Triangle of the Alpilles region - Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Les Baux, Maussane-les-Alpilles and Eygalières - is a drive of less than 45 minutes to the south.
Manoir de l'Isle is easily accessible from Paris, London and New York. It is two hours and 40 minutes by high-speed rail (TGV) from Paris' Gare de Lyon station to Avignon, and about 30 minutes more from Charles de Gaulle Airport. By the Autoroute system the drive to Provence-Marseille International Airport, which has frequent flights to Paris and London, takes an hour or less. Nice International Airport, with nonstop flights to New York, is about two and a half hours.
Manoir de l'Isle is an excellent opportunity for families and groups of couples in search of a leisurely vacation with all comforts. With its communication facilities and resident chef it is also ideal for a corporate retreat. And thanks to its extensive grounds, quiet setting and beautiful rooms, Domaine de l'Isle can be the perfect place for a wedding where the post-nuptial party can go on until the wee hours of the morning without disturbing a soul for miles around.
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