House in Eaux-Bonnes - Pyrénées-Atlantiques

House Eaux-Bonnes - Eaux-Bonnes

€560,000 - £464,520**

Located in a village in the heart of Jurançon country, this maison-de-maître has so much to offer... six spacious bedrooms, an excellent energy rating (B), unconverted barns and delightful grounds perfect for a pool!

Ideal for a wonderful family home - and within easy commuting of Pau - the house would also suit you if you are looking for property to use for B&B. Not only are you halfway between the Atlantic beach and Pyrenean ski resorts, tourists visit the beautiful Béarn all year round and hope to find stylish accommodation in tranquil surroundings...

You could also offer B&B to walkers following the Chemin-de-St-Jacques-de-Compostelle pilgrim route, which is just 100 metres away... and you could welcome horse riders (and their horses!) following the "Route d'Artagnan" - a trans-European bridleway - which passes in front door!

In addition (and with permission), the barns could be converted into gîtes or used for yoga retreats, art courses or as a teashop, an art gallery...

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Built in the 18th century, this delightful maison-de-maître has huge potential... whatever your project!

Set in delightful grounds of 1.7 acres (6,894m²), which are crossed by a stream, the three-storey maison-de-maître (256m²) has six sunny bedrooms, one of which is on the ground floor, a lovely open-plan kitchen and a superb loft-style room on the top floor.

Adjoining the main house is a large two-storey barn with garage space on the ground floor and an office on the first floor, a smaller two-storey barn with office space/workshop space on the first floor and a detached two-storey barn (in need of restoration).

The three barns are set around an inner courtyard, which is also accessible from the kitchen in the maison-de-maître. It may be possible to transform the barns into gîtes, B&B suites, business premises... or you could use them to create more living space for the maison-de-maître.

The maison-de-maître overlooks an entrance courtyard, which has access for parking in the large barn or just in front. In addition, there is a private drive at the side of the property with direct access to the grounds.

From the entrance courtyard, the front door of the maison-de-maître opens into a wide entrance hall with a wooden staircase at the far end. To the right of the staircase is a sunny sitting room/dining room with a wood-burning stove and doors out to the terrace and grounds. Adjoining this room is an office/second sitting room, which is currently used as a bedroom. Opposite this room (on the other side of the entrance hall) are a luxurious shower room and a separate WC.

To the left of the wooden staircase is a delightful open-plan kitchen, which has internal access to the barns and external access to the barns via the inner courtyard. A corridor from the kitchen leads around to a large utility room, which is also accessible via a door in the entrance hall.

The first floor of the maison-de-maître comprises a master bedroom with an adjoining dressing room, four further bedrooms, a family shower room and a separate WC.

The staircase continues up to a loft-style room, which could be used to create a huge bedroom, a spacious office area, a games room, a home cinema, a gym or two or three smaller bedrooms with en suite shower rooms.

Outside, the south-facing terrace is perfect for dining alfresco and has distant views to the Pyrénées on the horizon. A stream crosses the grounds, which is ideal for keeping a horse or ponies - and there is ample flat land for installing a swimming pool, along with a summer kitchen/barbecue area, a children's play area, a boules piste...

This lovely house is situated in the delightful Béarn in south-west France in a pretty village crossed by the Chemin-de-St-Jacques-de-Compostelle pilgrim route and the "Route d'Artagnan" bridleway. Boulangeries, shops, bars and bistros are just 5 - 10 minutes away, along with schools for children of all ages. The International School of Béarn in Pau is 25 minutes away.

Set amidst the famous Jurançon vineyards, the property is just 50 minutes away from mountain trails and Pyrenean ski resorts... and 75 minutes away from Atlantic beach resorts.

THE MAISON-DE-MAÎTRE

Ground floor:
- a south-facing terrace
- an inner courtyard
- an entrance courtyard
- an entrance hall
- a sitting room/dining room with a wood-burning stove (12KW) and access to the south-facing terrace and grounds
- an open-plan kitchen with access to a large utility room, the barns and the inner courtyard
- a utility room with access to the kitchen and the barns
- an office/second sitting room, currently used as a bedroom
- a shower room
- a separate WC

First floor:
- a master bedroom with an adjoining dressing room
- four further bedrooms
- a family shower room
- a separate WC

Second floor:
- a loft-style room, which could be used as a huge bedroom/games room/office area, or divided up into smaller bedrooms with en suite shower rooms...

NB: the internal walls of the maison-de-maître have been insulated using a traditional mix of hemp-lime plaster, contributing to the property's excellent overall energy efficiency rating of B & A!


THE GROUNDS & THE OUTBUILDINGS

The property is set in grounds of 6,894m² with...
- a south-facing terrace for dining alfresco
- a stream
- a well
- an entrance courtyard with access to the house and largest barn
- an inner courtyard with access to the house, barns and grounds
- a large two-storey barn adjoining the house (80m² + 80m²), with garage space on the ground floor and an office on the first floor
- a smaller two-storey barn (60m² + 60m²), with office space/workshop space on the first floor
- a detached two-storey barn (60m² + 60m², in need of restoration)
- two plots of land (included in the 6,894m²), which are classed as "constructible" (1,220m² + 360m²)


THE POTENTIAL!

Located halfway between ski resorts in the Pyrénées and beach resorts on the Côte Basque, this super maison-de-maître of about 256m² is absolutely perfect for a characterful family home or a marvellous holiday home... and with six bedrooms to choose from (plus the huge loft room), you will have plenty of space to accommodate your friends and family whenever they come to visit!

If you have children, the area has many excellent schools for all ages - and many of the secondary schools offer specialist studies in theatre, music, dance, sports and even horse-riding! There is a bilingual French/English primary school in Navarrenx (35 minutes) and an International School in Pau, which teaches the English National Curriculum (25 minutes).

The property is within easy commuting distance of Pau, Mourenx, Oloron-Ste-Marie and Orthez. For anyone who works from home, the ground-floor sitting room/bedroom would be ideal to use as an office, as would the top-floor loft room. In addition, office space/consulting rooms have already been partially created on the first floor of the barns.

In addition, the grounds of 6,894m² also have two plots which are classed as "constructible". This allows you to apply for planning permission for building on, or you could sell one or both plots as building land.

One or more of the bedrooms in the house could be used for welcoming Bed and Breakfast guests - and with the Chemin-de-St-Jacques-de-Compostelle just 100 metres away, you would be guaranteed year-round business from pilgrims hoping to find stylish accommodation to stay in en route to Spain. In addition, the trans-European horse-riding trail - the "Route d'Artagnan" - passes the front door of the property, so you might also like to offer overnight stays to horse riders... and their horses!

There is a growing demand for Bed and Breakfast accommodation from tourists visiting this beautiful area - both for long stays and short stays. The installation of a swimming pool would definitely increase demand, as would the offer of evening meals. You could even consider providing picnic hampers for your guests' day trips... especially if the hampers are full of tasty Béarnaise delicacies!

With permission, the outbuildings could be transformed into gîtes or B&B suites, along with a yoga studio/gym or a seminar room for groups. During the quieter months of the year, you might like to offer sporting or activity holidays to your guests, such as yoga and wellness retreats or masterclasses in painting, photography, music, gastronomy, Jurançon wine-tasting...

It might also be possible to get permission to create business premises, such as a beauty salon and spa, a restaurant, a cosy teashop or even an art gallery.

NB: please note that planning permission would be required for the installation of a swimming pool and for conversion of the barns for residential and/or professional purposes


SERVICES & TECHNICAL

Cable internet connection
Double glazing throughout
Heating: wood-burning stove (12KW) + air-water heat pump + underfloor heating + radiators
Insulation: hemp-lime plaster mix on internal walls
Mains water
Mains drainage
Well + stream


THE LOCAL AREA

The maison-de-maître is located in a peaceful, rural village in the heart of the Béarn and surrounded by Jurançon vineyards. This lovely area is excellent for hiking, mountain-biking, horse-riding, fishing, white-water rafting and skiing... or for those who prefer beach-based activities, the famous coastal resorts of Biarritz and St-Jean-de-Luz are about 75 minutes away to the west.

If your interests are more gastronomic, you will love exploring the numerous vineyards can taste the locally produced Jurançon wines, along with the many farmers' markets throughout the area, where you can sample tasty Bayonne ham and fabulous Brebis, which is a cheese made ewes' milk and eaten with black cherry jam from Itxassou in the nearby Basque Country.

The property is just 5 minutes away from a pretty village with a boulangerie, a pâtisserie, a grocery shop, restaurants, bars and a weekly market - and 10 minutes away from a market town with supermarkets and many excellent amenities. Oloron-Ste-Marie (20 minutes) has several hypermarkets to choose from; Pau has all sorts of shops and amenities, along with a TGV station and a small airport (both 25 minutes).

Airports: Pau, Tarbes-Lourdes, Biarritz
Train: Gan, Pau
Coach: Pau, Orthez
Ferry: Bilbao, Santander

Ski: Eaux-Bonnes, Gourette, Artouste, Issarbe, La-Pierre-St-Martin, Val-d’Azun, Formigal (Spain)...
Beaches: Biarritz, St-Jean-de-Luz, Hendaye, Hossegor, Tarnos...

Attractions: Aqua Béarn, Le Petit Train d’Artouste, Parc'Ours, Grottes de Bétharram, Golf de Salies-de-Béarn, Thermal Spas, Casino, Base de Loisirs d’Orthez-Biron, Route d'Artagnan, Chemin-de-St-Jacques-de-Compostelle...
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Information about risks to which this property is exposed is available on the Géorisques website : https://www.georisques.gouv.fr