LIFE

Claude Monet’s Former Home in Giverny Is Now an Airbnb

Your new excuse to head to Giverny, France.

by Marissa G. Muller

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Airbnb

With summer just around the corner, Europe will soon be invaded by tourists, from the South of France to the Amalfi Coast. But there’s even more reason to head to a quieter place: Claude Monet‘s former home in Giverny is now an Airbnb. For less than the price of some hotels, you stay in the charming house and experience what drew the famed painter to country life in the village where he lived from 1883 until he died in 1926.

Dubbed The Blue House, Monet’s former home now goes for $226 a night and includes three bedrooms, two living rooms, and three bathrooms. The two-story home also contains a garden that Monet tended and found inspiration in. According to the listing, “‘The Blue House’ (‘La Maison Bleue’) was purchased by Monet at the end of the 19th century because the garden was ideal to cultivate the vegetables he loved to cook. The house was located in a neighborhood of artists, some American painters lived in this area.”

Nowadays the neighborhood is still a chill enclave, away from the throngs of tourists. “This home is perfect for couples, solo travelers, business travelers, families,” the listing continues. “We are at the heart of Giverny but in the quieter part.” The listing also states that the house “is surrounded by 1500 m2 of gardens and is just minutes from museums and restaurants. There are 200 m2 of living that were completely renovated in 2016, is furnished with modern and antique furniture.”

Airbnb
Airbnb
Airbnb

The vacation rental is all the more attractive considering it’d be impossible to become as intimate with anything else formerly belonging to the French impressionist. At his other residence — the one he lived most of his time at while in Giverny, and where he created some of his masterpieces — no one is allowed to touch any of the objects or furniture inside. That is, after paying admission.

Airbnb
Airbnb

The Monet-approved Airbnb may also be the most enticing art-adjacent listing that the rental service has to offer. Most recently, it offered the experience of an impossibly coveted night at the Louvre, sleeping alongside The Mona Lisa. As otherworldly as that sounds, though, the chances of securing it are slim — which makes the Monet Airbnb all the more appealing as summer option.