La Maison des Chanoines - Hotel in Corrèze

Built for the canons (chanoines) of Turenne, this ancient hotel-restaurant has been in Claude's family for 300 years. No wonder the family held on to it: the 16th-century, mellow-stoned house with its steep slate roof is one of the loveliest in a very lovely village. Chantal, charming and gracious, takes care of guests from dawn to dusk, always with a smile. The pretty bedrooms, freshly decorated, are scattered among outbuildings, two of them approached via a little bridge from the garden. Well lit, they have parquet floors and white walls; bathrooms ooze fluffy towels. The stone-flagged breakfast room feels ancient and airy. Dining takes place in the cosy old cellar whose ceiling vaults over just six white-clothed tables – nicely intimate – or under a fairy-lit pergola in the garden amid honeysuckle and roses where you are asked to "pour your ice-bucket water onto the tomatoes." The food is a delight; Claude is the chef and will use only the freshest, most local produce for his much-praised regional dishes. Ask about their three-day gourmet stay. Great value.