Villa Karli, France - anyone been?

[giddybiddy]

Hi
Am thinking of booking this for next year and from the looks of things some Mumsnetters have been. Any reviews/feedback would be great.
Thank you!

Hi, it depends on what your expectations are. I think mine were a bit high! I hadn't booked a house before so had no idea of prices. I think Villa Karli is probably cheap? The village is lovely - though very sleepy. It has a nice baker, a van that sells chickens and cheese, a supermarket within driving distance. The coast is easily accessible by car - and Valras Plage is lovely. The accommodation was big enough but decor quite dated - particulary the bathroom. No power shower and took a good while to get warm. The decor in the bathroom was circa 70s (dark brown). There were some cleanliness issues in the kitchen (cutlery tray/drawer etc.) which put us off a lot because we thought if something so obvious hadn't been cleaned, what where the less obvious areas like? We did document these issues in a feedback questionnaire so maybe (if others have mentioned it too) things have improved since then? There is not much outside space at the house for kids (not a problem for us as we were out a lot of the time, or ds watched dvds). The pool is circular and very small (and freezing) but was nice for a dip when very hot. The region itself is lovely and we would like to go back again to explore the different towns/villages along the canal-du-midi. HTH

Thanks that is really helpful. Anyone else have thoughts and know if the cleanliness issue has been addressed since? When did you go LL?

Hi probably a bit late now but we went a few years ago and this was the worse holiday ever.

The oven didn't work and we had planned to cook to save money. The food available in the supermarkets was poor quality (but we are used to waitrose). We found it hard finding restaurants and would drive for ages, the food was expensive and the quality poor. We arrived on a sunday and the restaurants dont open sundays.

Villa Kari is in a remote place and we were very misled. There was nothing to do, we found a beach about an hour away and it was like benidorm. The small shop and bakery that you could walk to opened very odd times and had a small selection. We lived on cheese and ham bread rolls.

The deco is very dated, and the shower very small.

The pool is smaller than expected and the patio also small not much small to move around. When we arrived the pool looked quite dirty, but the pool man did visit several times.

Generally we found the french very unwelcoming, in restuarants we were ignored, the didnt have highchairs, and the toilets were filthy, no where had loo roll. We did go to casscone (sp) castle and that was lovely but again the toilets were filthy not ideal when you have toddlers.

Hi there
I have just read some of the comments regarding villa karli and was shocked!!
The villa is in an area of rural south france so of course it is sleepy and quintessentially french.
The info provided by the owner is great telling you lots of places to see and visit
The food in the supermarket are the same as rest of France and have found the food out to be lively especially the fresh moules by the beach. The pool is not huge but good for playing in, the childrens facilities and toys at the villa are brilliant so when travelling with children dont have to take whole house with u!!!
Bathroom is a but dated but works fine and public toilets in france renowned to be gross

In all i think villa karli great place to stay and would recommend to anyone

Just returned from 2 weeks at Villa Karli. There were 7 adults and 2 children aged 4 years and 18 months. We had a wonderful family holiday! The house is so well equipped for children. Our grandson loved the brio train set! It was a great way to keep him happy during the hot afternoons when everyone wanted a rest. Loads of other toys, games ( garden Jenga anyone?) and books and pool toys! Our granddaughter especially loved the baby swing and the paddling pool! The pool was perfect for the family- our grandson regained his confidence with some arm bands and regularly wore himself out in the pool while the adults played volley ball in the pool with the beach balls provided. Spare car seats meant we could take the grand kids out without moving them from our son's hire car. Shopping was easy at the large Intermarche in Capestang (including fresh oysters!) the small shop in Creissan sold some fantastic cheeses and pork sausages. Capestang became a favourite for our runners in the family to run along the Canal du Midi. Bastille Day celebrations in Creissan, St Chinian and the fireworks in Capestang were great fun! The canal locks at Beziers are not to be missed! The local boulangerie has a fantastic bread and pastry selection. The local Cave is worth a visit for tasting and buying very good wines! The Wifi enabled our son to keep in touch with his lab and we could watch le Tour on the Internet! I was grateful for the quick cycle on the dishwasher! The notes provided give details of many places to visit and things to do. We were able to do things together and in smaller groups. We especially enjoyed the BBQ! Miles came often for the pool and was very helpful. I couldn't care less about the decor in the bathroom. It felt very much like a family home and I would return again.

I have just been to Villa Karli for the third time and cannot recommend it enough. We were looking for a relaxing homely holiday villa and Villa Karli ticked the boxes.

It is amazingly equipped for families with toys, swings and books. It has a comfy living room with a great dining area if not warm enough to sit out on the front or back terraces. The use of a bbq is lovely and The pool is well kept and clean. The villa was spotless and well equipped.

The village is what you would expect in the rural area of France.. A lovely bakery and small store that sells the essentials as supermarkets in the bigger towns nearby. Plenty of great places to dine out and the owner gives a great info pack with the local knowledge.

The area has lovely wine which I would recommend trying!!! Perfect sitting on the front terrace sampling the local wine!!

We walked everyday around the local village by the vines and visited nearby villages. Capestang was a real favourite as was Valras the nearest beach!

We look forward to our next visit!