France is a pretty place. From the ornate promenades of Paris to the warm hills of the wine country people love to holiday here. But there is one area that is claimed to be the most beautiful and this is the Loire Valley. The river Loire has carved the valley over millions of years making a lush playground for generations of hedonists.

Today, on the banks of the river and half-built into a cliff, stands Les Hautes Roches. The long name for a cave hotel is a “troglodytic hotel” but staying there is not as complicated as spelling that thankfully. The cave used to be used by monks but now the internal corridors and cells have been converted into luxurious accommodation. Indeed half your furniture is carved out of a wall of rock.

They refer to their dining as “gastronomic” which basically means your dinner is as rich and multilayered as a Dostoevsky novel. There are canoes and boats for you to paddle in the sun during the day.