Product Description

A seductive collection of over 380 hotels, châteaux, auberges and other places, all beautiful, unusual and great value and all inspected and then selected because we like them. Seasonal, fresh and local food is de rigueur and, at many châteaux, dinners are hosted around a communal table.

Over 150 of these places have rooms for 100 or less. Wine tasting, bike trips, cookery courses, tango workshops, antique hunting, making your own scent - all these activities are possible.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13371 in Books
• Published on: 2008-03-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

French Magazine
As the undisputed master of guidebooks about places to stay in France, Alastair's hotel and gîte recommendations are always worth noting.

Synopsis
This is a seductive collection of over 320 hotels, chateaux, auberges and other places - beautiful, unusual and great value - all selected and inspected in the best Sawday tradition: they are here because we like them. At inns, or restaurants with rooms, food takes priority and le terroir - seasonal, fresh and local food - is de rigueur. In the chateaux, intimate dinners are hosted around a communal table. Alastair Sawday Publishing has earned a reputation for selecting original places that exude character and warmth and for describing them vividly in fresh and honest write-ups. We have no interest in standard star ratings and always go for atmosphere, welcome and value for money over satellite television and tea and coffee making facilities.

Customer Reviews

French Hotels and Chateaux
Great book, beautiful pictures. The descriptions give you a real feel for the places and make you want to visit them all!

French Hotels & Chateaux
Yet again Monsieur Sawday and his colleagues have surpassed themselves with this latest edition of 'French Hotels & Chateaux'. Having read just a few pages I was ready to pack my suitcase and head towards the Pyrenees (I live in Spain). The entries are superbly described, each one having its own page, the symbols are clear and the whole book is a real delight.

If you fancy a break in France that is 'special' and at a price you can afford, you must be able to find the perfect place to spend either the night or the week in this book. It's an absolute must if you are travelling anywhere in France.

claw foot baths and pepperpot turrets
We used to drive through France, gazing at all those palatial Châteaux, elegant Maisons, lush Domaines, Grande Hotels and intimate little Relais and Auberges, and wonder how on earth you got to know about them. Holiday companies never have such gems on their books and none of the guides seem to go for places of character or charm. You might be guaranteed a trouser press or a kettle to make instant coffee in your room but is that what you want when visiting France on holiday? Me, I want canopied beds or a vaulted dining room or a view over a millpond, complete with fish and herons. Then a few years ago, we discovered Alastair Sawday. French Bed and Breakfast in one hand, French Holiday Homes in another we've addressed the delightful task of planning that year's holiday many a time. But still it nagged - B&B is wonderful, self catering is grand, but how do you find a hotel that comes up to the Sawday exacting standard? And then - zut alors! He and his team did it again. French Hotels and Chateaux precisely plugs the gap. Want to stay in a 16th century manor house with deer and coypu in the grounds, sleep in a wrought iron bed and bathe in an old-fashioned claw foot bath? Or a 10th century pepperpot turret, with a canopied bed? Or off a cobbled street in old Rouen, with a view of Gothic marvels? Here are luxurious and decidedly pricy palaces side by side with small, reasonably priced inns, city haunts and rural retreats. All share one thing - they are anything but banal. They have beauty, buzz, elegance and that little bit of French je ne sais quoi. Owners pay to be in a Sawday guide but they can't buy their way in. All are checked by the editors. We've been using the guides for years and never been disappointed. This updated guide to French Hotels and Chateaux is the business. It's jam-packed with luscious treats - I can't wait for our summer holidays!

The only problem you might have is deciding whether to first choose your area - Picardy, Poitou-Charentes, midi-Pyrenees or even department - Tarn-et-Garonne, Var, Creuse - and see what is available there. There will be something, never fear. Or leaf through and pick on particular place and find the area you will be visiting that way. We've done both with Sawday and always bit the jackpot. You may find yourself burning the midnight oil or hitting the coffee. And speaking of which, do join Sawday aficionados in looking out for the joke entry; every guide has one. As for me - we've already booked 3 places for a fortnight's tour in September. So tough, if one of them was your choice!