La Forge - Appartement terrasse privée, surplombant la piscine et la Roche de Solutré

We stayed for a long week-end in this little courtyard property and thoroughly enjoyed our time in the area. The vendage had just started and the fields were alive with grape pickers. We were blessed with good weather and so made good use of the pool and the sun-loungers!

What a gorgeous place to stay! There are three apartments round a courtyard, each with private entrances and their own private terrace and bbq. The pool is shared but there is plenty of sunbathing space (and sun loungers) and this faces south (with a beautiful outlook) so it is as very sunny spot. The apartment we were in was very sympathetically renovated to a high standard, mixing period features, such as old wooden beams, with modern appliances. The village is small and quiet but full of character and completely surrounded by vines, and there were many vineyard workers tending their vines. Each village has its own restaurant and we ate - and of course drank! - extremely well. We really enjoyed the wine produced by the vineyard - delicious! All in all a fabulous place - we'll be back!

We had a warm welcome of Colette which is the concierge. She is really great! We enjoyed her support as well as her cooking very much! We stayed in La Forge which is a nice house. The only thing is that the living room, diningroom and kitchen is in one room so that there is not so much space with two children. We had perfect weather so that anyway we were most of the time outside. We enjoyed the quiteness and surrounding very much!

The area is lovely and tranquil. The gardens at the vineyard are beautifully maintained. The swimming pool is a good size (although a little cold for a heated pool) and there are plenty of sun loungers. Nicky and David were very friendly and helpful. BUT..... The Forge proved to be too small for four adults and one child, especially when the weather was unfavourable. The settee and armchairs are slotted under the staircase -head room and leg room was a problem for us. It was impossible for us all to watch the TV at the same time (which was extremely small) or to generally relax. When the sun shone we were able to extend and make use of the lovely outside space. However there was inadequate shade on the patio for our 6 month old baby. Other properties have a covered terrace. The bathroom had a damp smell due to no ventilation. We were plagued with flies but perhaps this is to be expected in the countryside? Unfortunately we were not supplied with the choice of breakfast cereals as per the information, but we had taken some of our own. I would not recommend The Forge but I would recommend one of the bigger properties at the vineyard. We enjoyed Cluny and walking up the Roche. We were disappointed that many smaller cafes etc were closed - perhaps duento the time of year and the French holidays?

This is our second stay in La Forge and it was good to see the small changes since last time - the vines which have been planted to grow over the patio area are really coming on and there look to be a good few bunches of grapes which will no doubt be enjoyed by someone later in the season. David and Nikki provivded a friendly welcome and were on hand each day for anything we needed. A day trip to Beaune by train from Macon Ville was a highlight - wonderful Hospice de Dieu and wine tasting in their cellars. Auberge in the village has new owners - very friendly, good French fayre and reasonably priced. Also open during the day for coffee/drink and now doing fresh bread each morning - perfect!