Les Chaluts 
Fully booked for the past several summers, and an out of season favourite for couples and families alike, this absolute gem - a cosy cottage alongside Le Saint Clair and Les Hirondelles, has its super views over the quaint Port Tabarka, where "les chaluts", the traditional fishing boats, are moored overnight before heading out to the oysterbeds in the lagoon.
And the house is just across the way from the smart new boatyard where the hulls of voiliers are painted in the summer sunshine.
Summer 2012 : Booking Fast!
Port views
2 bedrooms
sleeps 4-5
Discover Marseillan's Port Tabarka, only yards from many and varied restaurants of more bustling quaysides.
Here fishermen and villagers spend their days and evenings.
You wont find huge floating gin palaces nor racing boats moored in front of the cottages.
Not in the Tabarka.
This is a genuine working port with the sleepy backdrop of fishermen and sailors preparing their boats and nets. Beyond them the distinctive outline of the the mount of Sete looming across the bay.
Summer oyster fairs and concerts by the water's edge; winter and spring hours spent buffing, sanding and painting their boats in the sunshine; year-round angling from the rocks of the breakwater in silent solitude.
Oyster-boats and modest pleasure craft, fishermen's sheds and the masts of sailing vessels frame the sea views from the outside dining terrace of this cosy two-bedroom, two-storey cottage. 
Through the front door to the welcoming ground floor salon-sejour open plan living area, freshly refurbished with warm red and grey fabrics and with its smart modern corner kitchenette, complete with microwave, mini-oven/grill, twin-hob, new fridge and worksurfaces. Out of sight, but no less important for that, the washing machine is tucked away in the pantry, with the iron, ironing board and extra appliances.
Choose to eat outside and watch the daily life of the port or inside around the dining table. Flop in the comfy lounge area, with its TV & DVD player and sofa, that cannily converts into an extra guest bed.
Upstairs to a double bedroom with views of the port, a comfy twin-bedroom and the shower / wc.
There is only one question to ask yourself when you treat yourself to a stay at Les Chaluts:
Are we eating in or dining out tonight?
If you decide to stay at home and raise a glass to the setting sun over the masts of the sailing boats, then the fun is to be had in shopping for the freshest local ingredients.
Oysters from Monsieur Azaïs or Monsieur Ricard, freshest home made pastas and savouries from Philippe Epicier and a bottle of something memorable from La Taverne du Port or the nearest cellars to the house, the always imaginative Madeleine St Jean, whose red-walled warehouse is just behind the house.
2012 RATES
price per week in £ sterling
- euro prices on request)
| January - March | 270 |
| April | 290 |
| Easter | 290 |
| May | 330 |
June | 420 |
| July - August | 525 |
| September | 420 |
| October | 330 |
| November-December | 270 |
| Christmas New Year | 399 |
Then again you could take a slow stroll past the little boatyard and around the corner to the pleasure port or up to the village streets and squares.
The walk itself is a fabulous prelude to an aperitif. The new pavement linking Tabarka to the main quaysides passes the iconic Jusqu'au Bout ever moored off-shore and perhaps Rick Stein's Canal du Midi craft Anjodi or her sister craft, the Athos, tied up midweek by the little jetty.
Dine along the harbour at Entre Ciel et Mer or mingle with the well-heeled across the port at the foodie-fave Château du Port where a new regime in 2011 took over the legendary dining room and waterside terrace.
Discover unexpected and memorable local wines as you pick up your emails on the terrace of the Taverne du Port or head into the village for flame grilled steaks and gambas at the Boulevard or fine dining under the brick vaulted ceiling of the gastronomic Table d'Emilie.
As the sun sets over the rigging treat yourself to a crêpe or two chez Camille or simply sip away the hours at a cafe or brasserie table in peak summer as the locals indulge in water jousting or the eccentric Marseillanais sport of Lou Capelet.
You could even take the car for a spin around the Etang. Moules-Frites at Cap d'Agde, platters of seafood at Bouzigues or a canalside feast in Sète. head further afield and discover the summer gastro-beaches outside Montpellier or a winegrower's feast in a domaine up in the hills. 
But the simplest pleasures are the best.
A bowl of local olives from the market, a chilled picpoul de pinet white wine at your side, a carefully positioned sunshade and a good book on the terrace.
Choose your holiday reading before you travel with a paperback or three from the www.LanguedocBookshop.com online selection, or take pot luck from the shelf at the house.
But enjoy the sheer escapism of Les chaluts in good company, be it Rick Stein, John Grisham, a Narrowdog to Carcassonne or a Year in Provence.
There is usually a good selection of popular paperbacks in the living room. feel free to borrow a summer read or swap your own holiday reading with one of our yarns.
Make a cafetiere of fresh coffee, pour yourself a cuppa and settle down to a page turner - your time is your own at Les Chaluts.
On your arrival, enjoy a glass of local wine on the terrace - with our compliments!
Enjoy our diary of events in and around Marseillan and the region during your stay, with plenty of tips on nearby markets and festivals and reviews of the best restaurants in the village and port.
Ask for information on sight-seeing, itineraries, wine tasting, dining further afield and other trips. For a true insider's guide to la vie Marseillanaise, read How to be very very lazy in Marseillan and a lot of Languedoc.
Besides the low down on the museums, vineyards, sites and sights of the village and port and wider region, read about a memorable barbecue on the terrace of this house Les Chaluts, lunch with the oyster fishermen just along the road and discover how this street was the very first port of the ancient Greeks.
The 400 page book is available from all good bookshops in the UK and from shops in France and the USA.
Click HERE to order your copy online for free delivery to the UK or HERE if you live further afield and qualify for free delivery worldwide..
The life of a fishing port continues all year round, so Les Chaluts welcomes guests whatever the season.
When the swallows return to Marseillan in Spring, they celebrate with an exhilarating swirling display of aerobatics around the rooftops of the port, flitting from rue des Chantiers to rue des Pecheurs.
In autumn, the harvest moon rises, a rich plump apricot globe hovering above the lagoon, spilling a golden trail across the water in front of the house - unforgettable.
And Christmas sees the centre of the village transformed: a skating rink, chalets selling mulled wine from the local growers and the fabulous nativity scene under the covered market, lambs, donkeys, ducks and chickens grazing contentedly amongst the lifestyle figures of wise men, shepherds and townsfolk.
Although our weekly bookings are generally Saturday 5pm - Saturday 10am, other changeover days are possible to take advantage of Ryanair's best fares, and the off-season bargain flights into the local airport up the road at Beziers - midweek fares (out of the peak period) have been as low as £10 one way, including taxes!
And now that the airport shuttle bus drops off in Marseillan - at only 1€50 each way, Les Chaluts must be the bargain break of the year!
All reservations must be accompanied by a 25% deposit.
Balance should be settled up 8 weeks before your arrival.
We also require a security deposit against breakages of £150 or 200 euros, which will usually be refunded 7 days after departure.
Prices quoted do not include linens - available at a modest charge.
A reserved parking space awaits our guests at Les Chaluts.
Click HERE to check out the best deals on car hire - with no nasty surcharges.
For more information:
Call (UK) 0844 284 4430 or (France) 04 67 21 75 66
Email stephane@marseillanvillage.co.uk