Le Couvent des Minimes

This elegant, 40-room retreat is located in a converted Franciscan convent and has an Occitane spa.

• The sweeping views of the countryside
• The romantic Cassine suite, perched in the ancient chapel under the bell tower
• The Occitane detox Grape Cure, with a grapeseed and crushed nut scrub and energizing warm grape and essential oil wrap

At the end of a country road, in the tiny village of Mane, the Couvent des Minimes is a honey-colored stone convent and chapel surrounded by lavender, terraced gardens and olive groves. Since June 2008, this meticulously restored landmark has been a stylish, 40-room retreat, complete with France’s first hotel spa run by L’Occitane. The herbal body-care line, which was founded in nearby Manosque, has stocked its small but lovely space, with exclusive products, including fragrant creams made with goodies grown on the neighboring hillsides, from almonds and Provencal honey to apples and olives. It offers such signature treatments as the hot and cold lemon verbena scrub and massage.

Minimalist chic prevails throughout: the rooms are deeply comfortable, with parquet floors, stained-oak armoires, fluffy white duvets and chocolate-brown ceramic-tiled bathrooms, most with double sinks, tubs and showers. Le Couvent has an unpretentious vibe that draws guests of all ages, who are happy to chill by the pool far from the over gentrified villages of southern Provence.

For meals, guests can choose between the informal Bancaou, with its whitewashed walls and vaulted ceilings, and Le Cloître, whose chef perfectly executes such dishes as Sisteron lamb with rosemary and luscious lemon tart topped with limoncello sorbet. This is a destination for all seasons: July is the height of postcard-perfect lavender season (the famed Valensole plateau fields are a ten-minute drive away), and in December the heated indoor pool and spa treatments are a reenergizing winter treat.

Couples who are seeking a quiet, scenic corner of Provence and are ready to explore the area; surrounding landscapes are straight out of Jean Giono (the writer was born in nearby Manosque).