Relais & Château Louise de La Vallière

Beautiful grounds and very accommodating staff. Worthwhile to at least spend one night in a period chateau. Room was roomy and decorated for the historical feel, although some additional lighting would have been appreciated. As our room was on the top floor, it meant two levels of circular marble stairs so not recommended for those with mobility issues. Breakfast was very good as was the restaurant.

Fun chateau to visit. The costumes were a fun touch. Excellent service and the location was beautiful. The rooms were nicely appointed and had the necessary modern amenities without taking away from the historic feel. Here’s the things I had questions about: 1. How to get there from Paris: took a train from Gare Montparnasse to Gare Saint Pierre des Corps. There was a quick direct route both ways but you need to be mindful of the timing in booking things. Took a taxi to and from both locations with a taxi line outside of the station. 2. They kindly accommodated an early check in. I thought I had booked through American Express Fine Hotels, would recommend that for early and late check in and out. I somehow made a mistake booking through the American Express website. 3. Booked bicycles. This was one of my favorite experiences on our whole trip. It was electric bikes with a sleeve for your phone. The website says there’s a gps map, didn’t have that. But we went to Chateau de Valmer and it was very fun and beautiful. Highly recommend. Food services were good. Did late lunch in the bar, they were a bit confused about this and we misread the menu times for lunch which are 12-2. Dinner was good, did the full 6 offering. Interesting dishes and ate some foods I wouldn’t usually order. It was fun. Breakfast is a nice buffet and was well appointed. We felt one night was sufficient.

We had an enjoyable one night stay at this unusual hotel. The staff greet you in period costume and explain the history of the chateau. We liked our signature luxury double room overlooking the gardens on the first floor. It felt tough on the staff to wear such a lot of heavy costume in the hot weather. The pool area was pretty with nice canopied beds but was a bit disorganised. You have to book a one hour slot for the small spa. It is difficult to know when to book before you arrive and then it was all a bit disorganised. The meal in the evening in the bar was okay and there was a nice buffet breakfast. The chocolate sauce was memorable for the dessert.

I had the great pleasure of a 3-day stay at the Château at the end of March 2025. The castle has been lovingly restored with amazing attention to detail, both in terms of the external building and interior decor. The staff wearing period costumes added to the feeling of stepping back in time to a very different era. But the stepping back in time was not taken too far. After all, old castles were in reality rather draughty and chilly places with poor plumbing - not really the kind of place you would want to stay for a luxury weekend. The restoration has managed this wonderfully - bringing modern standards of comfort to a historical setting, in an unobtrusive way. A small detail to illustrate this: a flat screen TV on the wall would rather detract from the decor - but people sometimes like TV. This is solved elegantly by hiding the TV behind a framed painting - you can swing it open to enjoy the TV (if you really must). Another mix of old and new is that all the staff I met spoke excellent English - something that I suspect would not have been the case back in the day. The staff also managed to balance professionalism with a welcoming and friendly informality. The grounds are extensive and well maintained. I was lucky enough to enjoy pleasant spring weather. It was nice to sit outside and to wander in the gardens. But the best part, for me, was simply sitting quietly outside the castle and enjoying the peaceful sounds of birdsong from the surrounding woods. I had breakfast and several lunches and dinners during my stay - all excellent. There are also interesting places to visit in the area around the castle, if you can drag yourself away from the relaxation. :-)