Chateau de Valmer

Chateau de Valmer

An allée of century-old palms leads from the gates of Château de Valmer to Gigaro beach, four hundred metres away, and that walk sets the tone for a property that has stayed in the same family for three generations. The five-hectare park is worked as much as admired: organic vines, fruit trees, and a kitchen garden feed La Palmeraie, the estate's Michelin-starred restaurant, while the more relaxed La Bastide serves Provençal bistro classics under the same trees. That combination, a Michelin-starred kitchen fed by its own organic garden, is not something every address on this coast can claim. The 44 rooms range from a 23-square-metre classic double to the 70-square-metre Cabanon, with duplex family rooms and two treehouse-style cabanes perchées in between, so a family spreading across a duplex with balcony sits alongside a couple booking a Junior Suite for the view. Days settle into a rhythm: laps in the heated outdoor pool, a massage or hammam session at the adults-only Spa by Clarins, a bicycle borrowed free of charge for the ride into La Croix-Valmer, three kilometres off. Come evening the bar and poolside terrace take over. This suits travellers who want an estate to disappear into rather than a base for exploring Saint-Tropez, which sits a drive away, and who don't mind paying separately for breakfast, at twenty-nine euros for adults. It won't suit anyone bringing a dog, since pets aren't permitted, or anyone wanting nightlife within walking distance. What lingers afterwards is less the accolades than the sense that the garden fed you before you ever sat down. Château de Valmer is a three-generation family estate on a five-hectare park four hundred metres from Gigaro beach, its organic garden feeding the Michelin-starred La Palmeraie. Forty-four rooms range from a classic double to treehouse cabins, with an adults-only Spa by Clarins, though pets aren't allowed.