A beautiful chateau

Advantages: Beautiful, amazing History
Disadvantages: Pricey

...When Mr Tart and I went to the Loire Valley castle hunting I knew that I definitely wanted to visit Chenonceau. It's one of the castles that really said Loire to me as it seems to be one that's often used to illustrate the area. SOME HISTORY: Chateau de Chenonceau was originally a fortified castle built in the 1430s. In the early 1500s the castle was purchased by Thomas Bohier who demolished the fortified castle (apart from one tower) and began the building we see today. Unfortunately for Bohier his castle was seized by Francois I after Bohier's son failed to pay a debt. Francois's son Henry II then gave the castle to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. Diane extended the castle to include an arched bridge across the river. When Henry II died (a splinter from a joust went into his eye and he died from the infection - yuk!) his wife...

tartlette83 22.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Chenonceau

A CHATEAU I LOVE.

Advantages: A calm day out with loads to take in.
Disadvantages: None.

...The chateau of Treverez has become part of my life, in that it is situated not far from where I live, and I visit regularly. First let's tell you something about it's checkered history, though to me, the importance of Treverez lies in today and the way in which it enriches the visitor at various times of the year. The idea of the chateau was conceived in 1894, and the ideals and visions of the owner was to integrate many of the architectural features that were commonplace at the turn of the century, and he achieved that, although it is difficult to say which countries his ideas were taken from. Looking at the chateau and comparing with other buildings of a similar time frame, it is actually unusual for brick to have been used and although many of the styles used are typically french, the use of brick in this area of France is not...

thingywhatsit 19.08.2005 (20.08.2005) · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Trevarez

Chateau Cockroach

Advantages: Inexpensive, amazing sea views, walking distance into town
Disadvantages: Scruffy and run down, little atmosphere, very quiet

...As many of you will know from my epic review on Belize published last week, I recently spent 2 weeks in Belize City. The hotel we stayed in was called 'The Chateau Caribbean' I promised a longer, fuller review on this venue so here goes. How did I find out about the Chateau? ****************************************** When we decided on Belize as our honeymoon destination I took a quick look through my existing guide book, which was the Rough Guides 2003 Belize guide. I always prefer to look for independent or boutique hotels, so I quickly discounted the various Hiltons, Marriott's etc. An entry which caught my eye was on 'The Chateau Caribbean'. This was described as a colonial style establishment, right on the sea front, with 30 rooms. The guide said the hotel had actually featured in several films over the years, including...

Shoka 25.10.2006 · Read review
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Review of Chateau Carribean

A thing of beauty

Advantages: Beautiful building, beautiful setting
Disadvantages: None

...I've always found the phrase "Châteaux de la Loire" a bit of a misnomer. You could pick any stretch of tens of miles between Orléans and Saumur, tool along by car or in a boat, and be forgiven for saying at the end of it, "So where are all the châteaux?". The Loire at this stage of its journey is wide and shallow - sand and mudbanks appear in summer - and the banks are low; not ideal territory for building an imposing château to impress your peers. Many of the most famous ones are actually on tributaries, the Cher, the Indre, the Vienne. Then again, the châteaux are not a homogeneous collection of pleasure palaces. Many were built as, and remained, châteaux-forts (what we would call a proper castle, for defence), some started as châteaux-forts and were converted, and some were constructed in the renaissance style we associate...

Chouchinciao 10.10.2006 · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Chenonceau

My night in a Chateau

Advantages: Beautiful setting, lots of restaurants
Disadvantages: Very large and busy hotel and expensive

...A chateau conjures up all sorts of pictures in my mind and Fairmont Chateau at Lake Louise looked stunning on the website, with the Lake right on its doorstep. The history of this hotel is fascinating, starting with a two bedroomed cabin, but far too long for my review, if you want to read all about it the look at http://www.fairmont.com/ENFA/Property/CLL/AboutUs/HotelHistory.htm because this explains why a Canadian hotel has a Swiss flavour! We arrived at midday and had already been informed that it was unlikely that our rooms would be ready until later, one of the staff came onto the coach and told us a few details, including that the hotel was extremely busy with over 1100 guests so we would be advised to reserve a table for dinner as soon as possible. We were directed into a large area away from the main reception and were...

jo145 28.08.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

The last time I was at the chateau...

Advantages: Elegant, strong, keeps getting better
Disadvantages: None

...the strongest of cheeses and main courses, though perhaps is better attended by mild cheeses or moderate (rather than heavy) main courses. Margaux can be a confusing name. This is a commune (regional) name; thus there are several types of Margaux, including the primary and famous Chateau Margaux, and the Chateau's secondary, Pavillon Rouge. Other wines that come from the communal region of Margaux do not use the words Chateau Margaux, but will often be of another Chateau; my wine rack currently boasts, in addition to the original Chateau Margaux, Chateau de Clairefont, Chateau Prieure-Lichine, Chateau Durfort-Vivens, Chateau D'Issan, Chateau du Tertre, and Chateau Cantenac Brown, Margaux varieties all -- they all have aspects of the Margaux, but vary in quality, consistency, and longevity. After all, any wine that impressed Ernest Hemmingway...

frkurt 19.05.2004 · Read review
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Review of Chateau Margaux Pavillon Rouge

The Rain of Louis XIV

Advantages: Opulence, gardens, paintings
Disadvantages: Crowds

...topiary, small shaped hedges containing flowerbeds, fountains and the usual manor house type gardens. The prospect of queuing and paying again for the grounds in the middle of a monsoon was not attractive, so I skipped this little delight and returned to the coach and my awaiting baguette. PALACE HISTORY The Palace was built by Louis XIV in 1664 (to 1715) after he had become jealous of his one of his minister's houses, the beautiful chateau at Fontainebleu. After his death the Palace was left vacant for a while until inhabited by Louis XV, remaining the official residence of the royal family until the Revolution in 1789, after which it was left to stand and decay until it was turned into a museum in 1837, although it was not until the 20th century that full restoration works began. VISITING INFORMATION Cost: 7.50 Euros (plus...

Ophelia 09.09.2003 · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Versailles, Paris

A Weekend In The Country

Advantages: Beautiful Scenery, Amazing Hotel, Good Staff
Disadvantages: A Little Out Of The Way, A Bit Far Outside Paris

...I took The Blonde (If you haven't read many of my reviews, it's my beautiful girlfriend Helen) here for a romantic weekend in June. I wanted somewhere outside of Paris that was high quality and high class. I got just that. We travelled into Gard Du Nor on the Eurostar and then hunted around for a connection in the maze that is Gar Du Nor for the connection out to Chateau Montvillargene since we discovered that it wasn't actually on the Metro network. You need to purchase an SNCF travel card for the length of the stay. It works out far cheaper than buying tickets every day. That is my only complaint about the hotel's location. It is a good 20 minute journey outside Paris on the train, it's not on the Metro network and it is still a good taxi journey from the station in Chantilly. Chantilly itself is a beautiful little...

beevorm 06.11.2006 · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Montvillargenne, Chantilly

Powderhorn Chateau- five star hotel in Tongariro National Park,NZ

Advantages: Luxury, friendly atmosphere
Disadvantages: Middle of nowhere if you aren't skiing or hiking

...The Powderhorn Chateau is a luxury hotel located on the outskirts of a small skiing town called Ohakune, about half a day?s drive north of Wellington. If you are driving through the area, I strongly recommend it as a place to stay. We came here in April 2009, which is Autumn in New Zealand and not ski season. The price Surprisingly for a luxury hotel, the price is affordable by UK standards even given the current terrible exchange rates, but New Zealand is generally a lot cheaper. Prices are currently around NZD$200 (about £90) per room per night in the summer and NZD$230 (about £100) in the winter. If you can?t afford this for your whole trip, I can recommend a camp site half a mile further down the road for you instead for $6 a night where you can stay for the rest of your holiday! The area It is located...

beckyXX 12.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of Powderhorn Chateau Mount Ruapehu, Ohakune

I'd Love A Hunting Lodge Like This

Advantages: A very impressive, historical location
Disadvantages: The audio guide isn't really worth the money

...The Loire Valley located in Central France is famous for its historical towns such as Blois and Amboise, however it is probably more famous for the famous Chateau?s. Perhaps the most famous of these would be the Chateau de Chambord. Designed in the French Renaissance style the Chateau is the best known within the region. The Chateau was originally built as a hunting lodge for King Francois 1st. Situated within 13,000 acre forest the setting for Chambord couldn?t be any more impressive. From your first view of the Chateau it is a truly magnificent building. Positioned on the side of an expanded River the Ford around the front of the Chateau adds to the overall impression of the Chateau. The front of the building looks exactly as you would expect a Chateau or Castle to look as it towers above everything in the area and really gives that...

Andy.mack 23.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Chateau de Chambord, Loir-et-Cher