Enjoy the affordable luxury of our Château in warm, sunny Perpignan, 15 minutes from the sea and 30 minutes from the mountains. Clear skies 320 days a year, superb restaurants, fresh seafood, wonderful wines and relaxed shopping in the sun ensure a holiday to remember.
Close to the ancient centre of Perpignan, the beating heart of vibrant Catalonia, enjoy the artistic and cultural treasures of the region together with hiking, water sports, horse riding, golf, tennis and many other fun activities. Experience the cosmopolitan ambiance of a fusion of French, Spanish, Catalan, Moorish and Anglo-Saxon influences.
La Tour Apollinaire is five minutes from Perpignan airport, 45 minutes from Girona airport and under two hours from Barcelona, Toulouse, Montpellier and Carcassonne airports. Use us as your base to explore the Pyrenees Orientales and Catalonia - discover Collioure, Canigou, Castelnou, Ceret and Figueras, the scenic coastline of the Vermillion Coast as well as the northern end of the Costa Brava. This coastline combines the charms of the South of France and the Cote d'Azur with an authentic charm all of its own.
La Tour Apollinaire was built in la Belle Epoque (the 1890’s), by Baron Hippolyte Després to provide a grand residence from which to survey his wine estate and enjoy the pleasures of the region. Since 2003 the property has been transformed to blend post-modern comfort with classic French and Catalan charm, while respecting the heritage of the building and its Italian Gothic and Art Deco features. The Baron's legacy includes a Templar-inspired chapel with stained glass window, and Da Vinci Code style rose, castle and heart motifs in the ceilings and ironwork in the tower entrances and balustrades.
Perpignan was a base for both the Templars and the Crusades, and the chateau's interior design echoes their historical presence. There is every possibility that the Baron was a member of the Priory of Sion, the secret society made famous by the book and film The Da Vinci Code, and which counts Leonardo da Vinci, Sir Isaac Newton, Thomas Jefferson and numerous other historically famous people amongst its ranks.
The Baron's nephew, Guillaume Apollinaire, is one of France's greatest poets. Wilhelm Albert Vladimir Apollonaris de Kostrowitzky was born on August 26, 1880, in Rome, Italy to a Russian born mother. In Monaco he received a French college education and assumed the identity of a Russian Prince. Apollinaire was fluent in French, Russian, and Italian. He settled in Paris at the age of 20.
In 1903 he founded his own magazines, 'Le Festin d'Esope', and 'La Revue immoraliste', alluding to the 1902 work of his friend André Gide. In 1909 Apollinaire brought Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque together. Living at 'La Ruche' artists community at Monparnasse, he was arranging art shows and writing reviews about his friends, such as Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, Giorgio De Chirico, Andre Derain, Marcel Duchamp, Ossip Zadkine, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and other artists. He collaborated with writers Max Jacob, Blaise Cendrars, Jean Cocteau, Pierre Reverdy, Gertrude Stein. Apollinaire was the artistic adviser to Sergei Diaghilev and worked with the "Ballets Russes" in Paris. He wrote librettos and collaborated with composers Erik Satie and Francis Poulenc among others. Guillaume Apollinaire contracted influenza during the 'Spanish Flu' pandemic of 1918 and died on November 9, 1918, in Paris.
90 minutes from Barcelona, Perpignan combines the character of Majorca with the “edge” of Marrakech, having been the capital of the Kingdom of Majorca. Within 10 minutes walking distance you can dine in over 100 fine restaurants and brasseries all year around, while the château’s local patisserie and grocer offer fresh fare 7 days a week. Our pool is open from April to October. The château is a five minute walk from hundreds of superb restaurants and dozens of cultural and artistic treasures, as well as just a 15 to 20 minute drive to some of the finest beaches and mountain scenery in Europe. The Pyrenees Orientales in the Languedoc Roussillon is the most breathtaking region of France and one of its best kept secrets. Salvador Dali called Perpignan 'the centre of the world', and Picasso, Matisse, Derain, Chagall, Kipling and Pablo Casals all left their mark here..
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