Review of Les Ateliers de l'Image, by Mary Novakovich

Les Ateliers de l’Image in St-Rémy-de-Provence stands out among boutique hotels for the simple reason that it’s completely lacking in pretension. You get understated elegance, certainly, and just the right amount of luxurious touches. But you also get friendly, helpful staff who win you over with their easy charm. It’s chic but not chilly.

As the name implies, Les Ateliers de l’Image celebrates everything to do with photography: its walls are covered in original photographic works and regular exhibitions take place in its light and spacious public rooms. The first of the hotel’s two buildings was the town’s music hall and cinema, which was converted in 1998 into comfortable, contemporary rooms with a funky bar on the ground floor. They expanded in 2002 by converting the neighbouring Hotel de Provence, making 32 rooms including five suites.

Tranquillity is the key to Les Ateliers de l’Image. Step through the hotel and into two-and-a-half acres of lush gardens, palm trees, a large swimming pool (complete with giant poolside beanbags) and even a maze. Many of the rooms have terraces with calming views of the gardens as well as the Alpilles mountains in the distance – the same mountains immortalised by Van Gogh when he lived in St-Rémy-de-Provence.

The hotel’s restaurant serves refined Provençal dishes in its bright interior or on its relaxing garden terrace. The bar, which also serves sushi, has its own small swimming pool, and major sporting events are shown on the giant cinema screen inside. A masseuse is on hand for treatments, and one of the three meetings rooms is used for a weekly yoga class.

Simple elegance mixed with comfortable touches – big beds with proper pillows and crisp white sheets, bright red plush chairs, blond wood, cool terracotta-tiled floors. Two bottles of Evian are left by the bedside tables every morning, and some kind soul leaves a lollipop on the pillow each evening. All 32 rooms are air-conditioned, and several have large terraces that overlook the gardens.

While all rooms have flatscreen TVs, superior rooms have Bang & Olufsen sets with built-in DVD and CD players. You can borrow DVDs from the library on the ground floor. There’s free wifi and, gratifyingly, no shortage of plug sockets – which is becoming a rare thing these days.

If you really want to get away from it all – or take a trip back to childhood – stay in the tree house room, "La Cabane". You get all the facilities and comforts that come with a superior suite, with the added bonus of a completely private tree house overlooking the gardens. There’s no electricity in the tree house – only candlelight, comfy sofabeds and the sound of the cicadas.