In the know
- Our favourite rooms
- Superior Suite L'Orangerie is set apart from the château – this self-contained suite is huge, with an open bathroom, vast wooden bed and a wall that’s a 19th-century theatre backdrop from Barcelona. The most modern room is Superior Suite Chambre des Mysteres, romantically secluded at the top of two narrow flights of winding stairs. It’s chocolate-coloured, with flashes of neon red emanating from alcoves dug into the walls. And for a stay that’s steeped in history, go for Double Superior Chambre d’Henri IV – the very room used by the mediaeval king when he stayed.
- Packing tips
- Riding boots, helmets and a hearty appetite for cider and cheese.
Current offers
- Smith card offer
- A bottle of pommeau – a Norman apple liqueur
More photos
Château de Saint Paterne
Normandy, France[view map]
- Style
- Chic stately retreat
- Setting
- Lush lands of the Loire
Château de Saint Paterne is a luxe and lived-in family castle in the gastronomic greenlands on the Normandy border. With fairytale looks, original stone walls and cosily classic interiors, this boutique hotel offers a chic stay with a huge history – King Henri IV once slept in these very rooms.
Need to know
- Rooms
- 10, including six suites.
- Rates
- €135–€240, including a carafe of pommeau and tax; excludes breakfast (€13).
- Check-out
- 12pm, but flexible based on availability. Check-in, 2.30pm.
- Facilities
- Outdoor pool, DVD, CD and book libraries, tennis courts, in-room massages, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: flatscreen TV, DVD and CD player, iPod dock, L'Occitane en Provence toiletries.
- Hotel closed
- From 20 December to New Year and between January and early March.
- Also
- Pets are allowed for €10 a night.
Food & drink
- Hotel restaurant
- The self-taught chef, owner Charles-Henry de Valbray brings an inventive flair to the set dinner served around 8pm each evening – typical dishes include beetroot and caper gazpacho with cucumber sorbet, veal tagine with dried fruits and apricot puffs with rosemary ice cream.
- Dress code
- Bohemian and chic, to match owners Ségolène and Charles-Henry.
- Top table
- Pick from the drawing or dining rooms, out on the terrace if the sun is shining, or in the Moroccan-inspired games room, which is the perfect place for a proposal – it can be decorated especially. For views of the garden, ask for a corner table.
- Hotel bar
- There’s an honesty bar in the living room, a perfectly grand space to enjoy a nightcap and pretend you own the château, to the tunes of jazz, lounge and classical music.
Also worth knowing
Smith Members offer
A bottle of pommeau – a Norman apple liqueur
If you're a member of Mr & Mrs Smith, you can get special privileges at every Smith hotel you book through us. Just show your Smith card at check-in to claim the offer featured on every hotel page (like the one above).
Click here to become a Mr & Mrs Smith member
Book this hotel
To book this hotel please click here, or contact our travel team on 1 866 610 3867.
Château de Saint Paterne
4 Rue de la Gaiete
72610 Saint Paterne
