Only a five hour drive from Utrecht, our cozy and very complete villa, with lots of living space and bedroom and bathroom, is located on the ground floor in Mesnil-Val, a small village by the sea, with beautiful Anglo-Normandes. These houses have a building style from the beginning of the last century, with small balconies, bay windows and turrets. Real "Pippi Longstocking Houses"!
Villa Vigneau is a former farmhouse, also from the early 1900s. There are two terraces. One at the front, with a door from the dining room, where you can have breakfast in the morning in the sun. There is sun there until about two o'clock. At the back is a spacious terrace, with sea views and a terrace on the veranda. There the sun is from about twelve o'clock until sunset. A nice place for a bbq
The garden is completely fenced. The driveway has space for two cars. There is a play area for the little ones.
Mesnil-Val has a bakery for fresh croissants and baguettes, but also for tasty pies. There is also a more exclusive restaurant, "La veille ferme" and a restaurant on the beach, "Resto de la plage", here you can eat delicious mussels, oysters, fish and meat dishes from the charcoal grill for not too much money. There is a terrace and a fenced playground for the little ones.
The pebble beach of Mesnil-Val is special, because of the tranquility, but especially because of the big difference between low tide and high tide and the impressive chalk cliffs. The beach is a five minute walk from the house. The sea and the beach are different every time of the day and every time of the season. Usually you can search and find your own mussels at low tide. Large areas of sand will then also be dry, where you can relax (the garage has beach chairs with wheels).
If you like walking you can walk the GR21 (grande randonnée), this is a route from Le Havre to Calais. This walk passes Villa Vigneau. It is of course also an option to walk smaller parts, for example from Villa Vigneau to Criel Plage, over the beach or over the falaises (chalk cliffs), depending on the tide. That is about 2 km.
Criel is a small seaside town south of Mesnil. You can also walk over the falaises to the north, to Le Tréport (3 km). From the falaise there is a free funicular (cable car) to the town. Le Tréport has an indoor fish market, many restaurants, terraces and shops. There is a beautiful cathedral and there is a casino. So plenty of fun.
In the area there is anyway much to do and see. Culturally, there are the cities of Abbéville, Rouen, with the famous cathedral and Le gros Horloge. Dieppe, a pleasant harbor town, is about 20 km away
with shops, restaurants and a large marina. Close by are the towns of Eu (with a beautiful palace) and Mers les Bains (with its multicolored facades). Furthermore, many castles, gardens and villages.
In the field of sports there are many hiking options, but cycling (special cycling routes), golf and all kinds of water sports (windsurf, sailing, sea kayak, stand-up paddle) are also possible.
15 to 20 km north of Mesnil-Val you will find the bird sanctuary "Le Maquentaire" and the "Baie de Somme" with all kinds of boat trips and the seals. We also saw seals near Villa Vigneau.
If you want to drive a little further, you can visit Etretat (with the famous rock formations), the landing beaches and Monet's gardens. In short, plenty of options!
In winter it is also wonderful to stay in Villa Vigneau. The sea is beautiful in every season and by the wood stove (firewood is in the garage) you can read a book and/or drink a glass of wine.
The house is suitable for all kinds of groups, especially because of the bedroom on the ground floor and the spacious living room, where you can do all kinds of things at the same time: watch TV or DVD in the TV corner, read a book on the couch, "chill out" at the bar or a game in the dining room.
Villa Vigneau is a lovely house, in a beautiful setting. We can talk about it, because we love being there ourselves!