We stayed in Le Pastis, one of several studio apartments in this beautifully renovated farmhouse on the edge of Lourmarin. Everything about the property is gorgeous, from the manicured olive grove at the entrance, the beautiful pool, fountains and flowers throughout the grounds, and especially the million-dollar view of the village from the big common living room and private terraces of the apartments.

The apartment was comfortable, with the world's tiniest (but well-equipped) kitchen. It was great for keeping juice, wine, cheese on hand, but I don't think I would have attempted a full-scale meal. Les Olivettes delivers a basket of croissants and fresh bread to your door every morning, which makes breakfast easy. Every day, we had breakfast on our private terrace overlooking the gardens and village.

I would have liked a more comfortable sofa or chair for reading, and perhaps a small desk for the computer (there was high-speed internet access through the house wiring, something I didn't quite understand, but accepted since it worked).

The house is old and we were a little bit startled by how noisy it was with all the doors and shutters rattling and banging when we had a couple of days of the mistral wind. We used folded bits of paper towel to tighten up the door to our room and window shutters to stop the worst of the noise.

I thought the price was just a little high compared to other places we've rented in the area, but we generally avoid renting places with pools and other recreational equipment (boules court, barbecue, etc), just because we never use them and they do add to the price.