Villas and houses for sale in Mougins
MOUGINS
The Mediaeval fortified village of Mougins with its environment of pines, olives and cypress trees and truly magnificent views, lies between Cannes and Grasse and just three km north of the A8 motorway. This makes access to everywhere on the Cote d’Azur very easy.
It is just 20 minutes from Nice International Airport.
Mougins’ 430-hectare Valmasque Forest is a natural feature that enhances the quality of life that people come from far and wide to enjoy. Open to the public and a great outdoor recreational area for joggers, cyclists, walkers, dog-walkers, and picnickers in the sunshine, it contributes to making property in this area some of the most desired in France. Mougins lies approximately 300m above the Mediterranean so views across the Bay of Cannes and the sea from one’s villa or apartment in Mougins are panoramic.
Beyond Cannes, floating dreamily in the Bay are the twin historic islands, the Iles de Lerins, and looking northward the perfume capital of Grasse, with the often-snowy Alps behind it. The ancient village is seductive and charming with narrow cobbled pedestrian passages, wonderfully coloured floral displays at all times of the year, superb ancient houses and villas, picturesque doorways and window-frames, and delightful touches every way one looks.
With the character and history of the area carefully and sensitively preserved, the famous quality of light which has captivated so many famous artists for generations is greatly appreciated and remains inspirational for artists today. There are more than 20 working, living artist galleries in Mougins.
The who’s-who of artists past is impressive and includes such names as Picasso who chose to live and work here for the last 12 years of his life, from 1961 to 1973. He lived in a 'mas' (farmhouse) at Notre-Dame-de-Vie, just beside the old village of Mougins and next to the 12th-century chapel of the same name, while his studio was in the old village, in the building which now serves as the tourist office.
Jean Cocteau, Fernand Léger and Winston Churchill who painted the Notre-Dame-de-Vie, are among many other celebrated artists who also enjoyed what Mougins has always had to offer.
Celebrities past and present have loved Mougins too – but the roll-call of famous names is too long to include here. Its links to the worlds of art, culture and the influential people who have shaped our world are everywhere.
When talking of Mougins one cannot omit to dwell for a moment on its culinary past and present. Great chefs such as Roger Vergé and Alain Ducasse were synonymous with the restaurant L'Amandier, and the Four Michelin Star Moulin de Mougins. L’ situated in the heart of the old village (which during the middle ages was the court house of the Monks of Saint Honorat, and later an almond mill.) Today Denis Fetisson, who received the Jacquart Trophy for the “Rising Star in Gastronomy” in 2006, is in charge, having moved to Mougins in 2010 after an illustrious spell as head chef at the two-Michelin Star restaurant, Le Cheval Blanc, in Courchevel.
Mougins hosts the annual 'International Gastronomy Festival of Mougins', or 'Les Étoiles de Mougins', an international gastronomic event taking place every September in the village. Diarise that date!
In the hills and valleys surrounding the Old Town are luxurious properties set into wonderful Mediterranean gardens, and villas with views and surrounds to take one’s breath away. Although close and very accessible to Cannes, Antibes, Juan les Pins and Nice, Mougins itself is set in its own quiet and private world apart.
In all it has more than 40 world class restaurants including the L’Amandier and the Moulin de Mougins, two major golf courses, and famous automobile and photography museums to add to a long list of galleries and other attractions already mentioned.
