The Place
Fifteen years ago two London designers bought a semi-abandoned old presbytery in the hamlet of Cuq Le Chateau, a satellite of Cuq-Toulza. They worked painstakingly on the conversion and after several years the result was Cuq-en-Terrasses. The house, in a hilltop village square, is on a series of south-facing levels – from the street downwards – with more terraces of garden tumbling down the hillside below. The present owners bought the place in 2000 and continue to run it in much the same way, confirmed by a spate of complimentary readers’ letters. One reads: ‘We were captivated by this charming location and hotel. We had a wonderful dinner and were extremely comfortable there’.
The entrance hall leads to the upstairs rooms via a balustraded staircase and a superb beamed ceiling, uncovered during the building work. Kitchen, dining room and beautiful outside terrace (with barbecue) for summer meals are two floors down. The swimming pool is on another terrace. All quite stunning. The decoration and furnishing are original without eccentricity clean, fresh and colourful.
The view, particularly from the terraces, is breathtaking. It’s not hard to see why the local name for this small pocket of fertile country is Le Pays de Cocagne (the land of plenty). An ideal place in which to relax and enjoy the peace.