The French Chateau: Les vacances à Aquitaine 2007

A brief review as we only stayed one night. I chose Bouliac as a destination as we were dining at one of my favourite restaurants nearby (at the Hotel Saint James, where we were unable to book a room even 2 months in advance !). Bouliac is a mere 10 km from Bordeaux; one of my favourite French cities and a place I have returned to repeatedly.
Chateau du Pian is a charming French "posh B&B" experience. The Chateau has that wonderful yet typical mix of formality and yet almost casual welcoming of guests into the family home. A plentiful breakfast and lots of invaluable advice and tourist tips from our English speaking host, Hervé Chatellier.
I wouldn't personally want to stay in a Chateau for more than one or two nights - they often lack some of the expected services and ingratiating professional touches offered by hotels - but it's a "must do" on the check list for anyone holidaying in France and travelling around. The Chateau du Pian offers that experience very nicely - some will think this is a fabulous house filled with the chattels of generations past; others will think it lacks a professional touch and is bordering on a cliche, but that is part of the charm.
This is a subjective opinion of course; one man's Ritz is another man's Travelodge and it's hard to categorise what the Chateau du Pian actually offers the seasoned traveller with high and sophisticated expectations. There are Chateaux that offer ultimate and haughty granduer, and others that offer a sad and dusty glimpse into a tarnished mirror reflecting days gone by. The Chateau Pian sits rather comfortably, and proudly, in the middle. The house in itself is really very beautiful.
All I can say in conclusion is that we thoroughly enjoyed our brief interlude (and the first night of our French holiday) in this emblamatic example of a Bon Vacance.
A truly charming hostelry, and a very pleasant and helpful host

Travel review - Sun Rocks in Santorini

We holidayed in Santorini and stayed in Firostefani (forever known as Gwen Stefani) at the beautiful Sunrocks, which is carved into the side of the Caldera - the lip of the Volcano. It was probably the last week of the tourist season. Many of the bars and restaurants were winding up to close down for the summer by mid October. Sunrocks still seemed to be full though, it takes booking through to the end of the month.

It is a very chic and stylish boutique hotel, the staff are very professional, the rooms are gorgeous; whitewashed troglodyte caves. However we did feel there was an element of style over substance.

The much feted menu at the intimate restaurant was lovely, but wasn't as good as other restaurants in the area (try Vanilla or our favourite, Saltsa, a mere ten minutes walk on the main road) The food is nice, just not as wonderful as the management seem to think it is !

Our suite was fabulous, but beware when booking that your balcony does not face away from the sun. We nabbed a mere hour or so the end of the day. Many of the balconys are not private as the steps are right next to you. My suggestion is to ask for a sun facing terrace when booking. The pool is cold but that's not unusual in the Med. And I wish that Sunrocks would invest in more comfortable sun loungers - we sun worshippers like a little padding !

The steep steps are killers, but I got used to them within a day or two, and that's part of Santorini's charm. The flatter side of the island is not half as charming as Fira, Firastefani or Oia. However the morning after I first tackled the many steps I literally couldn't walk, and hobbled like an old woman. I was actually overtaken by an elderly lady , with a zimmer frame, as I gingerly attempted to walk through the marbled streets of nearby Oia. And speaking of Oia, it's a must do destination for the incredible sunsets.

Back to Sunrocks: My main niggle is probably a little bit selfish. There was a wedding party at the hotel during our stay which seemed to take over the quiet privacy of the rest of the guests and spoiled the couples ambience that the hotel promotes - chatty family and friends of the happy couple constantly at the pool, including a small baby, which changed the nature of the romantic idyll that my husband and I were expecting. They generated a group dynamic, which wasn't what I wanted from my chosen residence on this trip. I wanted a quiet, relaxing and romantic time with my husband and expected the other guests at the hotel to be sympathetic to the desired atmosphere.

Hotel costs for the week with a few meals, room service and drinks was approx £1350 for the two of us staying in a Junior Suite. Certainly not cheap, but all in all I think it's fair for the standard.

It's a super little hotel; just not quite as top notch as it would like to be.