Provence - wake up and smell the wisteria

South of France: €550,000An 18th century French farmhouse restored as a family home in a quiet village near Nîmes comes with a well-tended garden, a greenhouse, guest cottage and a swimming pool. Kate McMorrow reports

If this maison de village had a name, there would have to be a wisteria or bougainvillea in there somewhere. A deligh tful, lovingly-tended garden surrounds the restored 18th century stone farmhouse, for sale in the village of Vallabrix, eight km from the Provencal town of Uzés and 35 minutes from Nîmes airport.

The asking price for this French getaway - a four-bedroom house plus guest cottage and pool - is €550,000, through the Uzés office of Emile Garcin Propriétés. Not isolated, the farmhouse is in a typical small village with no cafés or shops, just the travelling "truck" visiting daily with baguettes and groceries.

This has been a French family home and, as such, has a good degree of comfort. At entrance level is a vaulted diningroom which opens onto a summer outdoor dining area, a sittingroom with big open fireplace and a kitchen/breakfastroom. Large windows look out on the colourful courtyard garden.

Up a level is a library, two bedrooms, a shower room and a main bedroom with separate study and en suite shower. On the top floor under the eaves is another bedroom, shower room and a large attic games room. A bonus with the property is a tiny mazet or guest cottage, converted from one of the stone outbuildings. This has a bedroom/livingroom, kitchen facilities and a shower.

A small greenhouse to bring on summer geraniums and start the tomatoes is a must in Provençe, which is paradise for keen gardeners. Another stone outbuilding is used as a work room. Beautiful tree-planted gardens are enclosed by old south-facing stone walls.

The farmhouse has a living space of around 230sq m (2,475sq ft), while the entire plot measures about 1,750sq m (18.836sq ft) - substantial enough for a permanent family home, yet manageable as a holiday retreat. Its position perched on a hillside provides great views over the rolling countryside.

Although Nîmes airport is closer, Irish travellers will have a UK stop-off en route. Most would prefer to fly direct to Marseilles with Aer Lingus and drive the 40 minutes or so journey to the village of Vallabrix, which is north of Uzés. Uzés is a lively Provençale town with a population of 8,400 and is capital of L'Uzège region. Truffles, olives, wine and market garden produce are the main industries.

Over 400 shops and crafts of all kinds make the town a mecca for outlying villages. Uzés was little affected by religious wars or the industrial revolution and has preserved most of its ancient buildings.

Western Provençe and Gard have so far avoided the tourism excesses of the neighbouring Côte d'Azur and Var regions. As a consequence, prices are lower and the quality of life better. St Remy de Provençe, Aix-en-Provençe, Avignon with its summer arts festival, the Camargue, Orange and the Rhone Valley wine region are all within easy reach of Uzés.

Emile Garcin is a France-wide agency with offices in St Remy, Uzés, Biarritz and Paris, specialising in period houses and vineyards. Garcin's Irish representative, David Stanley, is contactable at 01 6636363.