Chambellay : châteaux

As the Australian organiser of French language immersion trips, I chose Château Allure du Lac as the site of our inaugural trip to France (having previously organised trips to other, closer destinations, like New Caledonia). I believe that choosing to spend seven of our 14 nights of the trip at the château was a key reason as to why our first trip sold out virtually overnight, and prompted me to run as second one (hence my luck in being able to stay at this magnificent property twice). Naturally I was nervous as to how the whole trip would pan out, and I have to thank Susy and William, the property's owners, who made organising this portion of the trip so incredibly easy. From the get-go, they were unfailingly responsive to emails, charming, helpful and just seemed to turn every request into a heartfelt 'Yes, of course!'. So from an organiser's point of view, they could not have been better to deal with. From a visitor's viewpoint (and here I include not only my clients but myself, as I stayed there, too), it truly was a dream come true. The greatest thing was that, despite Susy, William and their wonderful staff's welcome, availability and care, we really felt like we were living out the fantasy of having our very own chateau. We chose to have some meals catered, and others not, and Susy and William were absolutely brilliant about us having guest speakers visit (we did a cooking school, French lessons and a wine dégustation) - they kept repeating that we were to treat the place as our own, which we did (I hope very respectfully!). The sheer size of the chateau (much bigger in real life than I had gauged from the photos) was mind-blowing, but as several others have stated, it is the enormous grounds filled with wildlife that are truly magic. That is where the real luxury lies, I think. Such a huge space, seemingly in the middle of nowhere but close enough to supermarkets (six minutes by car) and Angers (20 minutes) as to be very convenient for those who self-cater. You don't need to arrived armed with all your food and drinks, which takes out a lot of stress and hassle. I'd recommend organising a catered dinner for at least the first night, as well as breakfasts, which will give you time to lazily make your way to a supermarket when the mood strikes. Susy, William and staff, thank you so much for your incredible hospitality and we hope to see you again soon.