We spent three nights at the lovely Aubanel Maison last week. Very large apartment that is beautifully updated yet maintains so much of the old world charm. Very well appointed though we ate out during our stay there. The inner courtyard and steps leading up to the apartment were beautiful.

Maison Aubanel is located STEPS from the famous Palais des Papes, whose towers you can see from the street in front of the home. We had a little trouble finding the apartment because the street it is on (St. Pierre) is mostly pedestrian and we had to approach from a narrow opening off of a one way street. Once we unloaded our massive amount of luggage (our fault) we parked at a lot just a few minutes walking distance from the house (and near a wonderful food hall called Les Halles.) We walked everywhere and only needed our car when we traveled to Gordes.

Upon leaving, we were able to pull over on the main street and load our luggage. A minor inconvenience for a wonderful place to stay and worth it. Beds were comfortable and we slept with the large windows open and found it to be quiet. Fans in each bedroom kept things cool.

Christine was very kind and welcomed us. Though she doesn't speak English well, we managed to communicate with my basic knowledge of French. Laurence was available from Paris to answer questions about directions. Plenty of restaurants in the area but I recommend getting reservations for dinner as the restaurants are small and many aren't open at night. There is a lovely restaurant in front of the house that is always busy -L'Epicerie. If you are arriving later in the day I recommend reserving here in advance so you aren't wandering around for a place to eat your first night. It was a great value for a family of four and very nice to have a true "home" to return to each evening.

Other restaurant recommendations (get reservations) are Chez Mimmo for delicious Italian food and La Fourchette-wonderful service and food.

We used Romain Gouvernet from Wine and Provence for a tour of the Chateauneuf de Pape region and he was excellent.

Thank you for a lovely stay.