At Marseilles House, the excitement builds as you make your way up the long, gravelled driveway and the house’s majesty and grandeur become apparent. The planting’s beautiful and the white walls are majestic.
It’s a charming home, but the large garden might enchant you the most. Stay out there all day long in the sunshine, clack the croquet balls around and turn your burgers on the gas barbecue.
Inside Marseilles House, serenity and tranquility reign. This is a place to get together with people who matter, natter, catch up and switch off. This is a beautiful space and a unique one that successfully combines the home’s historic charm with a raft of sensitive modern touches.
The main living room is a great sociable space, but you’ve got nooks and crannies too for slipping apart with music and a book. Bring your passwords to stream Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Load up on logs to keep the fire burning and the conversation flowing all evening. Feed your social media with photos on the Zoom Wi-Fi.
Marseilles House marries traditional features with contemporary conveniences and the modern kitchen is the perfect example. It comes with table and chairs for casual breakfasting, two electric ovens, large fridge-freezer, dishwasher, coffee machine and plenty of work surfaces for preparing meals.
Prefer to be waited on than wait for pans to boil? Call up Dineindulge or Côte at Home for a private-chef experience spanning everything from starters, mains and desserts to picnics and barbecues. Up for a takeaway or two? Spice Merchant and Kings Road Chippy are on hand.
Pop out for good grub at places like The Bull on Bell Street, a pub packed full of rich history, or Villa Marina, a traditional Italian serving modern fare near the river. Or perhaps you’d prefer Thailands rich ingredients from sea and land in the Giggling Squid.
Come in summer and dive face first into Eat! – a great foodie festival with live music. Or get fancy and head out to Orwell’s at Shiplake. Run by two Michelin-starred chefs, this is a sustainable dream. More than 75% of the fruit and veg is grown on site, they use local meat and keep bees for the honey they use in cocktails and desserts.
Marseilles House sleeps ten in four tastefully presented bedrooms, with four double beds and four singles, giving some flexibility with sleeping options. You’ll share two bathrooms with a range of showers, baths and toilets, all finished tastefully.
All bedrooms at this house can sleep three with a double and single bed found in each.
For some children, the only thing better than a holiday is being able to bring everyone along with you. With space for ten plus dog, and plenty of family flexibility, Marseilles House is a multigenerational gem. Four bedrooms with a single bed per room and two bathrooms should keep everyone happy.
But onto the fun. There’s a lot of house to explore here plus a charming garden complete with plenty of seating, so you can watch the kids let off steam. Bring your balls, bat, frisbee: space isn’t an issue or they can battle it out on the football table. You can supervise a little croquet while you pour your next G&T.
Indoors, the social spaces invite you to be a bit relaxed about bedtime. There are no school nights here. Stay up late with cards and charades around the squishy sofas with the logs keeping you toasty. Or bring your Netflix and Amazon Prime logins for popcorn-fuelled fun. Fast Wi-Fi comes care of Zoom.
