Every room at Château d’Artigny Hotel is a tribute to 18th-century splendour. Elegance and grandeur in a regal style is evident at every turn with sweeping staircases, trompe l’oeil frescoes, pillared bedrooms, opulent salons and enormous windows with stunning views of the River Indre, the French gardens, the chateau or the park. Visit Château d’Artigny’s new spa and enjoy the pool with a built-in Jacuzzi, the steam room, sauna and spa treatments. There are a number of therapies specifically designed for men and women. In the evening, dine on excellent locally sourced, regional cuisine in the sumptuous Origan Restaurant complete with wood panelling, gold leaf reliefs, fluted columns and delightful river valley views.

Location
Montbazon, near Tours. Close to famous vineyards and Loire Valley châteaux. 13 km from Tours Val de Loire Airport.

Things to enjoy
Spa and fitness centre, massage treatments, pétanque, tennis, fishing, evening musical performances, cooking classes.

Follow link to know more about Chateau d’Artigny

Once home to Oscar Wilde, L’Hôtel is an intimate 20-room boutique hotel that features stunning architecture and decadent “Belle Époque” opulence in the heart of Paris’s Left Bank. This is the perfect hotel for a traveler who wants to experience a unique, quaint, and traditional Parisian experience. L’Hôtel is a legendary Left Bank hangout popular with turn-of-the-century writers and music-hall stars. TImbued with Old World elegance, this tiny Paris luxury hotel has been updated to appeal to a hip, 21st-century clientele.

When you walk through the doors of L’Hôtel, the first thing that grabs your attention is the famous six-story circular staircase leading to the opulent upstairs bedrooms, the silk and velvet furnishings of which would make Marie Antoinette feel right at home. The hotel’s “Le Restaurant” won a coveted one-Michelin star rating in 2008. Sample dishes include prawns roasted with chestnuts and griolles mushrooms, sole steamed in wine with sweet onions, cockles, razor fish, and shrimp, and roasted venison in a pepper and red currant sauce.

This Paris Luxury Hotel also boasts a private swimming pool and steam room in its catacomb basement (almost unheard of in central Paris) and is a short walk from Left Bank’s most popular attractions.

With stone walls, wood paneling, and stained glass windows, the hotel is fitted with 42 rooms and 19 suites, no two of which are alike. Some have balconies or terraces with views of the Castle. Others overlook the Citadel’s narrow cobble-stoned streets. Michelin-star La Barbacane Restaurant is a point of pride with Hôtel de la Cité. Savor the chef’s creative interpretations of traditional favorites, paired with regional wines (including the Blanquette de Limoux, the oldest sparkling wine in the world). In the summer, dine under the trees at Le Jardin de l’Evêque, a quintessential French experience.

Your first time in Carcassonne? Hotel staff will happily arrange guided tours of historic sites, cruises on the Canal du Midi, or boat trips on the River Aude.

Every inch of the property is steeped in history, its walls practically bursting with secrets stored throughout centuries. Relax in the Château’s original smokehouse-turned bar, the Le Stradivarius, with its collection of old books, a huge fireplace, and lavish furnishings. Or dine as royalty once did at the L´Opéra restaurant, located in an ancient ballroom devoted to music and theater.

For such a historic place, there are surprisingly modern activities available: a swim in the indoor pool, a workout at the fitness center, tennis and squash games, and rounds of golf.

Learn all there is to know about wine tasting in the beautiful city of Marseille. The wine tasting session focuses on developing your senses to better appreciate the wine tasting itself. Your will be taught how to read, smell and taste wine. These wine tasting courses take place each Saturday with a professional oenologist.

Course of the wine tasting experience in Marseille. Acquire and « master » the specific vocabulary of wine tasting. Develop your senses to improve and enhance your wine tasting abilities: sight, smell, taste and learn how to determine their role in the tasting process. Smelling game. Then taste: you will taste 6 different wines with the comments of the oenologist and discuss vines, assemblage as well as know more about keeping wines.

This wine tasting in Marseille is done in small groups. It takes 3 hours and costs about 70 euros per person. Follow the link to know more or book this wine tasting in Marseille.

Board a hot balloon and enjoy a magic and extraordinary experience. Fly over one of the most beautiful French regions and its vineyards. Enjoy from an exceptional balcony at 360° a sightseeing view on the Pomerol or Saint-Emilion vineyards. Unique sensations and rare pleasures are the key words of this experience.

Course of the experience : ballooning experience Bordeaux

At your arrival, you can participate to the preparation of the hot air balloon. Explanations will be given from the beginning and during the entire flight by your pilot.
Admire the beauty of the landscape: vineyards, castles, towns…
The hot air balloon takes off in general from Artigues de Lussac aerodrome, or from mountain regions, or from Saint-Emilion. The ideal situation of these 2 sites will allow you to fly over prestigious French vineyards : Pomerol, Saint Emilion, Fronsac, Lussac or Montagne.
During the whole flight (1H to 2H according to weather conditions), a car will follow the hot air balloon and operate your return to the site.

This hot air balloon experience costs about 215 euros per person and can be done all year round, although this experience is subject to weather conditions. Hence the best months are from April to late September.

Follow the link to book this hot air balloon ride in St Emilion.

The deep blue Provence sky casts a fond eye on this marvel crafted by Jean-André and Geneviève Charial, a more pastoral but equally exceptional version of the Oustau de Baumanière (see previous page). La Cabro d’Or is a temple to tranquillity with its clear, spacious interiors and windows opening onto an intimate, quiet garden. An experience awaits which is sure to secure your enthusiasm for the colourful, sophisticated universe of this couple who show an equally creative flair for both the culinary and decorative arts. Dinners - disturbed only by the chirping of the crickets – are accompanied, of course, by the Charial’s own wine. Named “L’Affectif”, it has woody notes and is silky-smooth on the palate.

In the very heart of Les Alpilles mountains, ideally located between Arles, Avignon and St Rémy de Provence, the 5 star hotel La Cabro d’Or was conceived by Geneviève and Jean-André Charial as a haven of peace and quiet that offers the harmony and happiness of country living.Set in a magnificent garden at the foot of the sculptured cliffs of Les Baux de Provence, savour the unpretentious, informal luxury of this Provencal house for a privileged moment of relaxation, focusing on gastronomy and well-being in the land of cicadas, grapevines and olive trees.

Activities:
Golf, Tennis, Outdoor pool, Spa, Fitness, Hammam, Mud bath, mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding

Want to know more: http://www.lacabrodor.com/

Find other another weekend in France

Activities: Golf, mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, sailing, canoeing, polo, delightful garden

Want to know more: http://www.chateaudemontreuil.com

The awarded chef Benoît Witz will welcome you in his kitchen for a gastronomic cooking class, in his 1* restaurant by the Michelin review guide. The cooking class is private and will take place on the morning of the second day for 3 hours. The menu is elaborated on the very day of the course, unless you desire to prepare a specific recipe. You will use fresh and seasonal products. The class is followed by a lunch in the restaurant, drinks included. This week-end is the ideal week-end for gourmets, and a recipe book from Alain Ducasse will be given as a gift.

The week-end includes for two:
- 1 night in a double room
- 1 breakfast for two
- 1 gastronomic 5 courses dinner at the restaurant of the Hostellerie de l’Abbaye de la Celle, drinks not included
- 1 cooking class for two followed by the lunch you have just prepared, drinks included.
- 1 recipes’ book from Alain Ducasse offered

The hotel:
This 18th century hotel is located on the site of a Royal Benedictine Abbey. Its 10 rooms were named after personalities that made an impression on the hotel’s history. The rooms open onto the park, the market place or the Coteaux Varois’ vineyards.

The restaurant:
The restaurant is under the direction of the chef Benoît Witz. You will be served a food mixing both tradition and imagination, using products from the local market and the vegetable garden. The restaurant is a 1* restaurant by the Michelin review guide. From the awarded chef and Alain Ducasse, the dishes are created between tradition and innovation, with a provençal inspiration.

The room:
You will stay in a double room, with a large closet and a provençal design of the 18th century.

Leisure on site:
- Outdoor swimming-pool
- 2, 5 hectares park
- Shaded terrace
- free visit of the Hostellerie’s Garden
- free visit of the “Salle Capitulaire”
- free visit of the Clos du Conservatoire
- visit of the Abbaye Royale de la Celle (at a charge)

Things to do in the area:
- wine tasting in the closest vineyards
- Golf courses close-by

To book this cooking weekend in France, follow the link.

Lava from volcanoes sculpted the magnificent landscapes of the Midi de l’Auvergne, creating a fabulous setting for this fairytale hotel. The heart of this Auvergne lodge, consisting of a dozen restored cottages, is the little 12th century château which sits above the village perched on a basalt spur, between two rivers. Once you cross the threshold of the austere walls, the dreamlike ambience created in each cottage beckons you to a wonderland: La Grange and its canopy made from birch trunks, straight out of an imaginary forest, or La Cabane with its bathroom hewn from lava. This place evokes a child-like wonder where emotion reigns supreme.

The entire hotel is actually a small village and creates a unique concept combining total independence of service with the warmth and personality of a friendly home.

Activities:
Golf, Outdoor pool, mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, canoeing, rafting, hot-air ballooning, helicopter, quad bikes, 4×4, scooter, canyoning, shooting, archery, nature hiking and guided medieval history tours, mycological excursions, reflexology, relaxing massage

This is a fantastic hotel to discover, in a stunning environment. To discover more: http://www.lesdeuxabbesses.com