Oh the glorious times of châteaux! The mystery of the twilights, the walls bursting with history, the pepper-box turret, the lace of the old stones, the majesteous mornings…
“Living in this setting, yes!” exclaim Axel Garrigue-Guyonnaud and Sylvain Escarrega, the happy owners, “but in joy and luxury… without the dust!” With extensive experience from the luxury industry and having carried out the renovation of a 18th century palace in Sicily (ranked among the 100 most beautiful hotels in the world), our two “châtelains”, historical monument lovers, give a new life –after 3 years of refurbishment works– to the superb Castle of Villers-Bocage, a monument of the 17th century, in the heart of Normandy.
A castle reflecting their image, the image of the 21st century. A private home of exception, where all the old features have been carefully restored and embellished with a dream feature: A 5-star hotel service. “The best of both worlds” says Sylvain. And they haven’t spared any efforts for the luxury concept to meet their highly set requirements: the castle is only available for private hire, for up to 40 people during a weekend, a week or more, for a special occasion or for a business even; here you will experience the real “vie de château”. You will have a concierge at your permanent disposal –your wishes and desires are King and the service is unique. At your whim, treat your taste buds with a Michelin-star chef at work: you can admire the artist from a large dining kitchen overlooking a protected floral terrace, dominating a pristine landscape free from buildings, the perfect place for lunches or dinners if the weather is nice. Enjoy the benefit of a sports coach or a masseuse for the duration of your stay. Take the elevator (yes, there really is one!) serving the four levels, including the ground floor, where you will discover the 400 m2 exclusively dedicated to the spa! The indoor pool is facing a huge fireplace from the 17th century, where a fire crackles day and night, and the two saunas and the jacuzzi in Greek marble, designed for 15 people, are waiting for you. Just a few steps away, a 20-metre long pool with a jacuzzi area, offers a spectacular view of the Castle and allows for a midnight swim in water heated to 28 °C… You are at home here and you can use all the facilities 24 hours a day and decide the schedule and the type of service as you desire.
For the more adventurous, with ambitions of fun and frolic in the Normandy countryside and the courage to leave their sumptuous suites, the concierge service will accompany you in arranging visits and other attractions outside the castle. But when you find that our châtelains also have a movie theater, a unique and sumptuous collection of 500 theater costumes (many from the 18th and 19th centuries) with all their accessories (wigs, etc.), that you can wear for a party, with a costume designer who will adjust the clothing to measure, and (it does not stop there!), to finish off this spectacular evening, a real disco is installed in the walls… then you won’t really want to go outside. Except maybe, to go even higher –since they have approval for you to enjoy a ride in the hot air balloon, which will land directly in the castle’s own 50 hectares of parkland! Of course.
Upon your arrival, you’ll get the famous handover of the keys, but what will really make you dream are the tariffs for such luxury… because the rates for a weekend for 30 people in total privatization, with lunches and dinners, starts from €5,000. Divide 5,000 by 30 to better visualise the unit cost of this beautiful dream… you’ve got it… and yes, only that. Anything else?
Carole Fernandez
Château de Villers-Bocage – 14310 Villers-Bocage
+33 (0)2 31 37 03 15 – laviedechateau.com