Holiday homes in Ménerbes

Ménerbes lies in the Vaucluse, on a rocky spur at the foot of the Petit Luberon, between Oppède and Lacoste. The village has carried the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France label since 1982. From the archway beside the Tour de l'Horloge, the view opens onto the Calavon valley, the Monts de Vaucluse and Mont Ventoux. In the 16th century Ménerbes was a Protestant stronghold: the Huguenots held the village from 1573 to 1578 and withstood a siege. Stroll past the église Saint-Luc, the citadel and the old mansions. Nicolas de Staël and Dora Maar lived here, and Peter Mayle made the area famous worldwide with A Year in Provence. At the Maison de la Truffe et du Vin you can taste Luberon wines, the Domaine de la Citadelle has a corkscrew museum, and the abbaye Saint-Hilaire lies just outside the village. There is a Thursday morning market in season, and Goult and Gordes are close by.