HÔTELLERIE LE COUVENT ROYAL

DESCRIPTION

• Rooms : 66, Royal convent, Regional Flavours Restaurant, Most beautiful Gothic building of the Southeast of France.

• The 67 rooms are shared between two stories and now occupy the former residences of the Dominican Priests. They overlook either the cloisters or the garden. The Breakfast Buffet is served in the dinning room from 7:30 to 10:30. The restaurant is situated under the vaults of the Chapter house and overlook the cloister. During the warm seasons, meals are served outdoors in the cloister's courtyard. The Chef offers an inventive and Provençale-flavoured cuisine.

• In the heart of green Provence in the Sainte-Baume Massif, the Basilica of Saint Maximin la Sainte Baume and the neighbouring Convent were founded in 1295 by Charles II of Anjou, the King of Sicily and Count of Provence to house the relics of St. Maria Magdalena, whose tomb had been discovered here in 1279. This is the finest Provençal Gothic building in the South East of France. Placed under royal protection by Louis XII at the beginning of the 16th century, the Convent was entrusted to the Dominicans, who brought it safely through the centuries in spite of many upheavals - the war between the Catholics and the Huguenots during which it became a fortress, its abandonment in 1791 during the Revolution, and its restoration in 1859 by Father Lacordaire, who had the west wing built. When the Dominicans left in 1959, the Royal Convent became a cultural centre and tourist venue.

• Guests must visit the Basilica and the crypt that harbours the relics of Sainte-Marie Madeleine, the medieval quarter old Saint-Maximin, and the roads leading to the quaint villages. The earthenware of the Varages L'Abbaye du Thoronet (45km) hosts each year in July, the medieval festival as well as the "Musique et esprit" Festival in August , Sainte Baume : leisurely strolls, Sainte Baume Ecomuseum, the Sainte-Madeleine Grotto as well as... Saint Tropez (80km), Port Grimaud (80km), the creeks of Cassis, the Gorges du Verdon, the Luberon. Sports : Equestrian trails, and tennis courts in Sainte Baume, Golfing of the Sainte Baume at Nans les pins (8km) - a Karting Club de Bringnoles open year-round (8km), Squash at Brignoles Centre de Balneotherapie, and the Saint Maximin Beauty Institute, as well as the Sainte Baume Quad, starting number of 8 people (9km).