Villa Shambhala

The pace of life in the Dordogne is languid, laid back and positively infectious. Relax in bucolic beauty as you drift along the Dordogne River, or wander among the forests and hillside of the Périgord Natural Park.

The foodie scene too, is a relaxed affair. Take your time over your lazy lunches of local duck, black truffles and goats cheese. If you’re feeling energetic, you can even hunt for them yourself. The wine here is second to none, with infamous grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chenin Blanc all having a huge presence here.

The Dordogne is also brimming with history. Castles and chateaux are scattered throughout the region, among the enchanting medieval villages. History of an altogether more ancient sort can also be explored in the incredible prehistoric cave drawings of Lascaux and Grotte de Rouffignac.

Click to download your definitive Guide to the Dordogne >>

At Oliver’s Travels we pride ourselves on going that little bit further for our guests. If there is anything you would like to arrange for your stay, please contact the Oliver’s VIP Concierge Team (by clicking on the link in the blue Oliver’s Extras box above) who will be happy to help. We can usually put you in touch with the right people arrange any of the following:

- Maid service
- Mid-week clean (€12/hour)
- Laundry service (10/hour)
- Cook/catering
- Welcome hamper
- Local day-trips or tours
- Airport pick-up/drop-off
- Taxi / Car rental
- Babysitting service (€15/hour)
- Early check-in for luggage

This is by no means an exhaustive list, so please just contact Oliver’s VIP Concierge Team to help you arrange any of those little extras that can really make the difference.

Honesty Bar - new for Summer 2017
The fridge will be stocked with a selection of red, white and rose' wines as well as champagne! All bottles have design labels created by Eric Bourse. A limited edition of print labels will be available for sale in the artist studio.

Wine Tours
If you have a passion for wines and want to know more about them, your time here will be delightfully spent. The owner, Kit organises very special wine tours of small groups to see famous cellars of St Emilion from the inside.

Kit is often on hand to advise on sightseeing and wine tours or to leave you in peace. She also runs art and wine courses.

Art Courses
Experiential art company ‘Live in Art’ has launched a series of new residential art courses taught by acclaimed French contemporary artist Eric Bourse.

The location of the courses is Live in Art’s first permanent ‘living gallery’ space and studio, the luxurious Villa Shambhala on the banks of the beautiful Dordogne river in south west France. With its dedicated art studio and gallery space, direct private river access and only 20 minutes from world UNESCO site Saint-Emilion, it’s the perfect spot for an inspirational weekend of painting and wine tasting in the Dordogne.

Take full advantage of the expert teaching techniques of Eric Bourse who will offer you a personal guidance in developing skills and personal style through the versatile medium of acrylics. All abilities are welcome – beginners wanting a taster session to start them on their painting journey or more experienced painters who want to develop their style and technique. All materials and equipment needed to take part in the course will be provided with a small canvas completed to take home at the end of the course.

The art studio at Villa Shambhala has been developed under Eric’s direction and is hung with Eric’s own work, as well as used as his own working space. Villa Shambhala is also hung as a ‘living gallery’ of Eric’s work and other French contemporary artists.

Please note the art studio is a private area with a separate access to it.

Contact us for full details.

Enjoy gourmet dining experiences with our new Chef Service!
We’re now offering our customers the chance to enjoy some unforgettable eats with our new Chef Service! Choose from booking a single sumptuous meal with a private chef for that special occasion, or hire a chef to cook your meals for all or part of your holiday - it’s as flexible as it is delicious.

A) Single Meal Service: A chef will travel to this villa and whip up a fantastic meal for you and your guests. The chef will arrive with all the necessary ingredients as well as the talent to turn them into something unforgettable. They’ll serve the meal and clear up afterwards - an easy and entertaining way to enjoy a top quality meal in your very own villa!

B) Full Chef Service: If you really want to kick back and relax, we can arrange for a chef to cater for the duration of your holiday (or part of it). With a range of options from simple family catering to full-on haute cuisine, we can organise a meal plan and a price to suit your needs. So why worry about self-catering when you can have everything taken care of?

Of course, before booking this service, we suggest you contact the property owner as they might already offer a similar cook or chef service in-house. To find out more simply visit www.oliverstravels.com/chefs.

Villa Shambhala Reviews

• A peaceful place

  Posted by Penny L. on 14/06/2017

  Dear Kit and Eric, We stayed for a month and watched Spring unfold in 2017. The spring arrived with blossoming trees exploding in colour and the swans nesting on the Dordogne river. A promise that Life can begin anew sealed with a beautiful double rainbow on the patio at Villa Shambhala. Thank you so much for sharing your peaceful place. With Aloha, PennyLes

• A holiday to remember

  Posted by Simon, Carolyne, Eva and Phoeber M. on 24/10/2016

  We've had a fantastic holiday staying at Villa Shambhala, which has everything we have needed to make our stay special. As a family (2 girls aged 7 and 8) we have enjoyed exploring the area, especially our kayak adventure on the river, cycling in Creon and a visit to Chateau Bridoire. It's been a holiday to remember. Many thanks for your hospitality.

• A truly magical place

  Posted by Laura S. on 16/10/2016

  Dearest Kit, what can I say. Thank you, thank you for sharing your beautiful house with me and my family. It truly is a magical place, and one I know I will return for many years to come. Perfectly suited for adults and young children. the boys especially loved the glorious bike rides through the vineyards, boating, and enjoyed new adventures at Lac de Garçon (highly recommend this place), 20 min car drive and fabulous activity for children. St Emilion is a dream come true for adults and the train ride enjoyable by all the family.

• Thank you for the wonderful time

  Posted by Paul and Nora on 10/10/2016

  Thank you so much, we have had a wonderful time. Just wish we could stay for at least another week.

• Everything we needed

  Posted by Anthony on 12/09/2016

  Thank you for a lovely, relaxing stay. I enjoyed the garden and the house had everything we needed. All set now for our the next part of our travels. Thanks from all of us.

• We would love to come back

  Posted by Liz and Dom G; Kate, John and Sam E. on 14/08/2016

  Dear Kit, thank you for a fantastic stay and your hospitality. We would love to come back. Love and best wishes.

• Sharron, Jonathan and children April 2016

  Posted by Sharron E on 12/06/2016

  Our stay at Villa Shambhala was a really welcome break, the house is beautiful with great size rooms and a warm welcoming living room with doors opening out on to a terrace overlooking the river. The weather wasn't kind but the location was, amazing views, vineyards galore and a restaurant to walk to. We made use of the bikes provided, we went fishing in the river, we had lovely walks. It is a perfect place to relax and unwind after the long drive down. At night the log fire was a great focal point for us to sit around and play games or chat and even watch a DVD.

  It is difficult to put a negative point down about the house, if anything it would be the lack of a pool, but we believe that may be on its way.

  Great holiday and we would love to go back.

• Villa Shambhala - Holiday Heaven

  Posted by Chris H on 07/06/2016

  The villa is set in a beautiful location on the banks of the river Dordogne and deep in the heart of Bordeaux wine country. Holiday heaven was achieved sitting in the beautiful surroundings either inside with all the gorgeous furnishings or outside in the salle d’été – which is an outside dining area with every facility provided. Exploring the area is a delight; visiting markets, bastide towns and the wine country. All provide the setting for some fantastic photographs. The villa has all the amenities provided; serious sunbathers will have their pick of terraces to lounge on and pedal bikes are there for anyone who would like to explore further. All the travel and car hire arrangements went without a hitch so thanks to Flora for arranging it all so well. Thank you to Oliver’s Travels for the holiday of a lifetime. You will not have a better holiday if you choose Villa Shambhala. I guarantee it.

• It has been a delight from start to finish

  Posted by Chris and Nick H. on 26/05/2016

  Dear Kit, I would like to say thank you for the pleasure and privilege of staying in your wonderful villa. It has been a delight from start to finish. The area is beautiful and we have loved our time here. I have looked after your villa with love and care. Eve's artwork is a real bonus and you have birds nesting in the pot just outside the terrace doors. How did you arrange that? We are really grateful for your kindness and generosity.

• We look forward to coming back!

  Posted by The Townsands on 20/01/2016

  Dear Kit, thank you so much for a fabulous holiday. The Dordogne has so much to offer and is so beautiful We look forward to coming back!

• Fantastic Place

  Posted by Ashraf h on 13/01/2016

  Villa Shambhala is very Place to take your vacation , you can enjoy every moment, Also it is a good place for children.

• Wonderful villa - Far exceeded my expectations

  Posted by Zoe Jones on 13/03/2014

  Villa Shambhala is truly breath-taking and far exceeded my expectations. The owner – Kit – could not have been more accommodating, welcoming us on arrival and showing us around. The villa is spectacular and finished to such a high standard, the kitchen is well-furnished and the beds so comfy that if it wasn’t for the beautiful surroundings you could easily stay in bed all day. Whilst there we made the most of walking along the river, borrowing bikes from the villa to cycle around the vine yards and sampling the delights of the local market. We had beautiful weather so had long lunches outside in the beautiful courtyard, then got the fire going in the evening for a snuggly night in. Perfect break, couldn’t recommend it more!

• I love villa Shambhala!

  Posted by Ravi | Co-Founder Oliver’s Travels on 10/03/2014

  Thank you Kit for a really super weekend at Shambhala. Everything was beautiful and so comfortable, and the views of the Dordogne from your terrace are out of this world. I wish you luck with your art projects with Eric Bourse. See you soon and expect many more bookings from us.

   

• Villa Shambhala

  Posted by Cathryn D on 21/09/2013

  Villa Shambhala is a real treasure; we are almost reluctant to leave a review and draw more attention to it (risking making it difficult to rebook)!

  The beautiful villa is peacefully situated besides the serene Dordorgne and comes complete with mountain bikes and a rowing boat. The accomadation both inside and outside is excellent and very comfortable, spacious and stylish - perfect for larger groups.

  A car is essential. We also used the train (Velines) for giving older teenagers some independence - they even travelled from Plymouth to Bordeaux (via Lille) and returned by train.

  There are supermarkets about 20 minutes away and more wonderful local morning markets than you can cope with. We visited Bordeaux, Bergerac, Sarlat, St Emillion and numerous smaller towns with ease. We also hired canoes locally and spent an afternoon on the Dordorgne watching herons.

  Kit is amazing and really helpful with advice for exploring the area and it's culture.

  Thank you - we loved it!!

• Amazing Stay

  Posted by Abby McSherry on 30/04/2012

  Yes, we enjoyed our stay tremendously! The villa was in impeccable condition, wonderfully decorated, clean and comfortable, with lovely outdoor spaces and a great view of the river. The villa was fully equipped, we had everything we needed (including a fully functional barbeque!) and instantly felt at home. We also found bikes in the shed and went for a wonderful bicycle ride along the river and surrounding fields! It was also great to meet the owner Kit Bentley, who was staying at the next door house at the time. She was exceedingly helpful and great fun to chat to over a glass of wine.

• Fantastic Holiday

  Posted by Abby McSherry on 30/04/2012

  We have just returned from holiday in Villa Shambhala and would like to say that it is probably the best holiday accomodation that we have ever been lucky enough to stay in. It was superbly appointed and beautifully decorated throughout. The equipment provided both in the kitchen and outdoors was superb, there really is no need to bring a thing with you, there were even DVD's for the kids, bikes and a little boat - (although we did not use this due to the river being very high). The owners were wonderful and so helpful, even so far as providing a little welcome package for us when they realised that it would be impossible for us to shop on an Easter Sunday, the day of our arrival. We had a fabulous stay and will be back we hope with a larger luggage allowance to take back a few more bottles than the 3 that Air Lingus allowed us. Visit this region if you are interested in wine (obviously), architecture, walled towns, wildlife and peace and quiet - not a very kid friendly area unless your children are content to do these things (which thankfully ours were!).

• Thank you so so much for an amazing stay

  Posted by The Hodgson Family on 11/01/2009

  Thank you so so much for an amazing stay. A wonderful place to unwind and spend time with the family. Thank you Kit for all your help and for helping us with places to visit. We had a lovely time especially the day spent canoeing on the river.

• Perfection

  Posted by G. Thorne on 19/11/2008

  Perfection........Merci Beaucoup!!!

• An amazing house in a magical location

  Posted by The Hodgson Family on 19/11/2008

  An amazing house in a magical location. Thank you so much. I will miss sitting on the sun terrace, drinking wine looking onto the Dordogne....simply beautiful! See you next time!

• The most relaxing holiday we have ever had

  Posted by Alison G on 14/10/2008

  We just wanted to thankyou for the most relaxing holiday we have ever had. The house and setting were stunning and we would have no hesitation in recommendeing Shambhala to all our friends. We really hope to be able to stay again in the future. Thanks for the wine it was a very kind thought. 

Name: Kit Bentley

How long have you owned the property:
16years

What did you fall in love with?
I fell in love with the romantic fairy tale setting on the banks of The Dordogne. I immediately called my home Shambhala, a place of peace, tranquility and happiness

Are there any interesting stories in its history?
In the 19th Century the famous art historian Élie Faure lived next door, he wrote the History of Art in France. The house was visited by many artists including Diego Rivera and Soutine. Picasso painted his portrait in 1922, the year Élie Faure bought the house, he was frequently visited by Charlie Chaplin.
Villa Shambhala continues in this artistic tradition and houses a working artist studio.

Have you ever had any famous guests staying?
Many

For any one coming to stay what should they really do?
Soak up the Spirit of Shambhala and the magic of the Dordogne.

What should one really eat?
Foie gras, truffles and cepes. Walnuts with cabacou cheese, figs and honey.

What should one really see?
St Emilion and the numerous chateaux, Medieval bastides, market towns,
Bordeaux and the Cite du Vin. The wild life of The Dordogne.

What insider tip would you pass on about the property and the area?
Escapism from city life. Getting back to nature and watching the early morning mist on the river revealing the swans gliding silently by and soaking up the glory of the evening skies, watching the stars from the roof terrace.

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