In Saint-Galmier, a townhouse over three levels, yours alone. Whirlpool bath on the ground floor, bedroom under the roofs. Two guests, one bedroom and no one else in the house.
The house is yours. Three levels, one bedroom, a king-size bed of 180. You go up, you come down, you stop where you like. No one else has a key.
Here, everything is considered. Light wood, white, eucalyptus green, a touch of black. Light moves through the rooms from morning to evening. It is simple, it is gentle, it breathes.
The village is known for its Badoit spring, naturally sparkling water. Twenty-five kilometres from Saint-Étienne, an hour from Lyon. You park on the street, free of charge, and you step in.
A small entrance hall, then the bathing room. The corner bath fills the space, facing a textured midnight blue wall that catches the light. A basin on a wooden unit, a towel rail. You pass through it on arrival, and often return at the end of the day.
A kitchen corner and a dining area facing each other. Ceramic hob, microwave, mini fridge, wine glasses, crockery. A round wooden table for two, set on the light parquet floor. Enough to prepare breakfast, reheat something from the market, open a bottle of Côtes du Forez.
The bedroom, with sage green and water green walls, a painted headboard, wooden wall lights. The king size 180 bed is made up on your arrival. A large screen picks up national channels; for streaming services, bring your own logins. The window looks out over the village roofs. The bathroom and WC are on the same level, saving you a trip downstairs at night.
An entire room for water. Corner whirlpool bath with chromotherapy: you choose the shade, the water takes on colour.
The midnight-blue wall is textured, it catches the light. The basin rests on a light wood unit, the towel warmer waits. You run the bath, set the colour and the room changes mood with you.
The bath is on the ground floor, in its own room. The bedroom is on the top floor. You sleep in calm, well away from the damp and the hum of the pump. It is a real comfort, and it changes everything.
Chromotherapy — the underwater lighting changes shade
37 to 38 degrees is plenty. Beyond that, the jets warm the water further and the session soon becomes too long.
Twenty minutes serve better than an hour. The jets work harder than you think; you come out relaxed, not exhausted.
At the end of the day, after a walk in the gorges or a climb to the ramparts. Then you go up to bed, two floors higher.
A bottle of water — Saint-Galmier, of course — and towels left on the towel warmer before you begin.
The whirlpool bath is on the ground floor, in a room entirely dedicated to it. The bedroom is on the top floor: you sleep in calm, well away from the damp and the hum of the pump. A real comfort.
Listed among the Plus Beaux Détours de France, around 25 kilometres from Saint-Étienne.
This is where Saturnin Badoit began bottling, from 1837, a water that comes out of the ground naturally sparkling. The draw-off kiosk is still there and the facade of the old factory is a listed historic monument. The factory visit, however, is only possible on weekdays: production stops at the weekend. Check with the tourist office before planning.
Everything else is within a ten-minute walk: the fourteenth-century ramparts, the church built between 1420 and 1471 with its stained glass by Alexandre Mauvernay, the seven-thousand-square-metre rose garden beside the Coise. Shops and restaurants are right at the foot of the house.
You arrive when you like, the key box is waiting. Street parking is free. The house is air-conditioned and the Wi-Fi works. All that is left is to choose your dates.
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