Before low-cost flights there were French villa holidays. The kind where you’d pack the kitchen sink, drive overnight and reach some crumbling house with swallows in the loft and long-lost wine in the basement.
And while other Mediterranean destinations now offer slick, all-white palaces and sprawling aparthotels, France still does these characterful properties best – from Provençal cottages with sun-faded shutters to chalets nestled among Alpine flower meadows.
Though summer is round the corner, some of the country’s loveliest villas still have availability during the school holidays. Below, we’ve rounded up 15 of the best.
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Great-value villas
Maison Meneac, Brittany
Brittany offers brilliant value if you’re prepared to risk its sometimes unreliable weather. Among its best properties is Maison Meneac, an eccentric manor in a traditional village equidistant from the region’s two coastlines. Done up in William Morris wallpaper, four-poster beds and claw-foot baths, it’s close to a lakeside beach for paddles, as well as the village boulangerie and bar – all of which amount to a gorgeous Gallic escape.
Book it: Oliver’s Travels offers Maison Meneac, which sleeps eight, from £1,764 per week.
Lou Calvel, Lot
There’s hidden and then there’s this stone beauty in its own woodland in a quiet corner of Occitanie. With a games room and huge pool, there’s enough to keep families occupied. But if all you want to do is savour the immense peace and enjoy long lie-ins in cool, stone-floored bedrooms Lou Calvel is ideal for that too. Beyond the gates, you can cycle trails through the surrounding countryside, make for the market in nearby Cazals or drive to medieval Cahors.
Book it: Vintage Travel offers Lou Calvel, which sleeps five, from £2,650 per week.
Mas St Siffrein Villa, Provence
Country piles are nice, but sometimes it’s handy to be within stumbling distance of restaurants and grocery stores. This village house in sleepy Caromb is the best of both worlds: hidden behind courtyard walls, it inhabits a bird-filled garden that looks over vineyards towards hazy hilltop villages. Its façade faces a Caromb street, from which it’s just a stroll to the village centre.
Book it: Vintage Travel offers Mas St Siffrein Villa, which sleeps six, from £2,590 per week.
La Closerie, Dordogne
Located among a scattering of medieval towns and villages near the Lascaux caves, La Closerie has traditional family holiday written all over it. Homely and informal, it comes with a large pool, slide and swing set for kids and a sauna for adults. A short drive away on the banks of the River Vézère, Terrasson-Lavilledieu has a Thursday market and the whimsical Jardins de l’Imaginaire, too.
Book it: Oliver’s Travels offers La Closerie, which sleeps eight, from £3,274 per week.
Villas for families
Maison de Villedieu, Provence
Perfect for smaller families, this newly built villa sits on the outskirts of medieval Villedieu, with its maze of ancient lanes. Despite only having two bedrooms, it’s not lacking in amenities, with a heated pool, boules court and shady dining terrace. Inside, it is bright, with little dashes of primary colours adding to the fun.
Book it: Simpson Travel offers Maison de Villedieu, which sleeps four, from £4,129 per week.
Pin Bleu, Landes
With whitewashed interiors and a pool surrounded by pines and fig trees that heave with fruit in summer, roomy Pin Bleu, on France’s breezy southwest coast, is perfect for family holidays. A 20-minute walk away is Moliets-et-Maa; teens will love its surf town vibe, while little ones can make sandcastles on its central beach.
Book it: Holidu offers Pin Bleu, which sleeps 10, from £4,300 per week.
Les Maisons des Vignes, Languedoc
These delightful houses feel wonderfully hidden away on the chic Château St Pierre de Serjac wine estate. Each has its own pool overlooking the vines and guests can use the spa and kids’ club on the wider site, as well as taking children to pet animals in the little farm.
Book it: Château St Pierre de Serjac offers Les Maisons des Vignes, each sleeping six, from £6,305 per week.
Domaine D’Orx, Aquitaine
This blue-shuttered farm conversion in south-west France feels worlds away from other villa rentals, which can often have a similar vibe. Everything you need is here, from a fenced pool to a cinema room, and the property’s owners, who live next door, can provide babysitting and catering on request (one of them is a trained chef). The blustery beaches of Hossegor are a quick drive away, too.
Book it: Simpson Travel offers Domaine D’Orx, which sleeps 10, from £4,835 per week.
Villas for big group gatherings
Château de Bourg, Bordeaux
Formerly owned by a family of local notaries, the storied 18th-century Château de Bourg sits among the vines at the heart of Bordeaux. Decorated with antiques and curios, each of its rooms is a trip back in time, though there’s a modern gym and pool, too. For wine lovers, this house has a surprise: its own tasting room, perfect for sampling the estate’s vintages or those from nearby Saint-Émilion.
Book it: CV Villas offers Château de Bourg, which sleeps 14, from £9,221 per week.
Chalet Alti, Haute-Savoie
With summers sizzling in the Mediterranean, out-of-season ski resorts look increasingly enticing. In Le Grand-Bornand, 40 minutes’ drive from Lake Annecy, Chalet Alti is a dream for kids, with a mezzanine bunk room and playroom complete with PlayStation and board games. Adults get a sauna and a Jacuzzi on the terrace, and there is a fantastic municipal pool just a 20-minute walk away.
Book it: Ovo Network offers Chalet Alti, which sleeps 14, from £3,830 per week.
La Joliette, Pyrénées-Atlantiques
The tree-lined drive to this 19th-century mansion (once home to the Bishop of Oloron) sets the tone for a week of faded glamour among cloudy chandeliers and marble fireplaces. La Joliette’s terrace and pool have head-clearing views of the surrounding mountains, while pretty Oloron-Sainte-Marie (the birthplace of the beret), is a 15-minute walk away. The playroom, with its PlayStation, keyboard and table football, has bases covered for all kids.
Book it: Sawday’s offers La Joliette, which sleeps eight, from £3,100 per week.
Best for a blow-out
Villa Oleander, French Riviera
Mougins, one of the chicest corners of the Côte d’Azur, is the setting for this immaculate Provençal property. A stroll from its manicured centre, Villa Oleander comes with a tangle of lavender-scented gardens hiding a peaceful pool, a terrace with views of the Mediterranean and the Esterel Mountains and a games room. Cannes is a quick 20-minute drive away too.
Book it: Simply Owners offers Villa Oleander, which sleeps six, from £9,160 per week.
Villa Syrah, Provence
Renovated in 2025, Villa Syrah is a short stroll from its sister hotel, La Bastide de Marie. Its plush rooms, accented with Pierre Frey fabrics and antique finds from L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, have views over the vines towards Provençal hills. But the real draw is the courtyard pool – hemmed by ancient walls and perfect for a dip before a sun-lit doze to a soundtrack of cicadas.
Book it: La Bastide de Marie offers Villa Syrah, which sleeps 10, from £1,475 per night, including daily breakfast, afternoon tea and housekeeping.
Villa Eddera, Corsica
Domaine de Murtoli’s hotel and 19 houses are set on a farm estate that makes cheese, honey and wine amid the scented landscapes of the maquis. Among them, Villa Eddera has pleasingly traditional terracotta floors and cast-iron beds inside, but there’s also a thoroughly modern decked pool area, as well as a hammam. Guests can also use the hotel’s restaurants and private beach.
Book it: Domaine de Murtoli offers Villa Eddera, which sleeps 12, from £9,506 per night.
Mas Saint Rémy, Provence
Hidden in 12 acres of gardens and forest, this 18th-century Provençal mas comes with an art gallery’s worth of contemporary paintings and photos, as well as daily maid services and tennis and boules courts. Its swimming pool, hidden among terraces of carefully sculpted trees and shady sitting areas, is also a highlight. From the villa, guests can walk or cycle along the canal to the sun-washed town of Saint Rémy de Provence.
Book it: Scott Williams offers Mas Saint Rémy, which sleeps 12, from £21,600 per week.
*Prices are for stays during the school summer holidays and were correct at the time of writing.