Auberge de Cassagne & Spa

Auberge de Cassagne & Spa

Auberge de Cassagne & Spa sits in Le Pontet, a few kilometres outside Avignon's historic centre, inside a Provençal manor house built in 1850 and restored with care to keep its original charm intact. Because the whole property runs to a single floor across its 43 rooms, guests reach many rooms directly from the garden or an internal staircase rather than a long corridor, and the buildings open onto flower-filled courtyards bordered by landscaped terraces. The distinguishing draw is the kitchen: the restaurant has carried a Michelin star since 1985, and Chef Philippe Boucher, trained under Paul Bocuse and George Blanc, still runs it alongside sommelier André Trestour, a pairing few country properties this size can claim. Downstairs, the 500 square metre Spa de Cassagne pairs an indoor pool with a hot tub, sauna, steam bath, chromotherapy shower and a fitness room, while an outdoor pool and garden sit alongside it. Membership in both Small Luxury Hotels of the World and Châteaux et Hôtels Collection signals what kind of guest the owners have in mind: someone who wants a serious table and a quiet room, not a lobby scene or a rooftop bar. Parking is free, secured and watched around the clock, and pets travel with you for a modest fee. None of this suits anyone chasing a city-centre address within walking distance of the Palais des Papes, or a traveller who wants glass towers over gardens; this is a slower stay, built around a dining room that took decades to earn its reputation. Ask for a room that opens onto the garden rather than the car park, and let the kitchen do the rest. A 1850 Provençal manor house in Le Pontet, spread across a single floor of 43 rooms opening onto flower-filled courtyards, with a Michelin-starred kitchen and a 500 square metre spa. Book it for the table and the garden, not for a walkable city address.