Le Patio in Marseillan , Hérault

Television with optional UK channels, CD player and radio and a good selection of books to browse in the living room. Outside in the mimosa shaded patio, under the pergola, sit around the glass-topped table and enjoy a meal cooked on the portable barbecue. The house has a portable airconditioning unit.

The kitchen has an electric oven with a three burner halogen hob and a separate twin- ring elctric hob There is also a fridge, microwave, washing machine and (extra luxury) dishwasher.

The Banq family make their full bodied Languedoc wines at the top of the road, and your neighbours are the fishermen who bring home the oysters from the lagoon around the corner. Just a couple of minutes walk along the waterside takes you to the main pleasure port of Marseillan, its quaysides lined with restaurants and cafes, barges and dinghies moored outside the wine coperative and Noilly Prat vermouth warehouses. By contrast, the Port Tabarka is a far more traditional affair. Whilst the house itself has no views of the waterfront and the lagoon - it is tucked away in the rue des Chantiers - a stroll towards the harbour offers a grandstand front-row view of the Etang de Thau and the sparkling contours of the Mont St Clair across the lagoon. The Tabarka park, with super facilities for children, whether trying out their skateboards and cycles at the skate park or enjoying ball games, is only a matter of 250 yards away from the house. Lovely picnic area under trees with superb views of the sailing boats, a winery just yards from the park and now a new mini-beach on the lagoon, for those who do not fancy driving round to the Med itself.

This cosy 2-bedroom, 2-storey house is just yards from the waterfront, but hidden behind a fence is a discreet courtyard garden for private barbecues of thecatch of the day.

In a small, private development, the cottage is situated in the Rive Gauche fishing port Tabarka and a short walk from the Port de Plaisance, the charming old town centre and the Marina, with private parking by the
front door.

A couple of hundred yards from the lakeside park, the house is comfortably furnished. The front door opens on to the airy living room with a kitchen area.
There are two easy chairs, a settee, coffee table, sideboard, dining table
and four chairs. UK satellite TV is available as well as French channels.

French windows open on to the private, south-facing terrace, where shade is provided by the spreading shrubbery or a parasol. There is a garden table, four chairs, two sun-loungers and a portable bbq

Upstairs: two bedrooms, one double and one twin.

Linen and towels can be provided at an additional cost.

The bathroom, unusually for the area, comes complete with a full size bath with a shower over.

A portable air conditioning unit is provided for your comfort during the hot weather.

Indoors or out, find a comfortable corner to settle down with this summer's best read - How to be very very lazy in Marseillan & a Lot of Languedoc - available in the village or from online bookshops before you travel.