Jump to: Room choices | Hotel description | Map | Amenities | Reviews
History is what gives the French countryside its soul, and at Chateau de Bagnols you are invited to plunge into the splendor of the past. Dating back to the 13th century, this enchanting member of the von Essen Hotels group is set among the vineyards, forests and verdant hills of Beaujolais Country, a few miles from Lyons in southeast France. Antiques and fine original works of art maintain the spirit of the period in a collection of just 21 rooms and apartments, while regional cuisine is served at the two Michelin-starred La Salle des Gardes.
Chateau de Bagnols
Le Bourg
Bagnols, France
69620
Nearest Airport: LYS
If you are in the area and the weather is nice good for a coffee on the terrace or an apperetief. Do take into account appertief only served until 1745. And the wine although good is not necessarily worth the 16 euro (or tea the 8 euro) But the view is lovely
Fernweh - Amsterdam, The Netherlands
This is the most spectacular venue. A really great team too who look after you very well. Food was excellent and room was great. All in all a magnificent experience and we look forward to stopping for 2 nights next time on our drive down.
R5730NJjamiec
Wonderfull experiece. It looks amazing, service great and the food was excellent! 🤩 Will definitely go back there again.
Rosalie N
Moderately disappointing . Nice reception but the room selected wasn’t too nice but they changed it to a gorgeous room . What’s not to like . /? Well the bathroom was poor quality . Chipped sinks and antiquated toilet with no proper shower seems underwhelming . We wanted a light meal so didn’t eat dinner in the hotel , but concierge selection wasn’t great . Excellent breakfast but please buy both (nice) waiters a new pair of shoes each!
richard C - Hampshire, United Kingdom
This was our fifth visit here over 25 years or so. Our first visit was shortly after the chateau opened after a major refit and under the personal hand of Lady Hamblyn. While the first two stays were magical, with a plethora of friendly, helpful staff, it probably failed to make a profit and it was inevitably taken over by a hotel group. Nonetheless, two further visits proved delightful, especially in the newly built annexe which has modern layout and bathrooms, with walk in showers. This year we returned and were grievously disappointed. I would state that all the following comments were put to the receptionist at our checkout with a strong suggestion that management and/or a director contact us to discuss further. We did receive a somewhat underwhelming response. My second main point is that several other recent reviews mention the scarcity of staff, poor breakfast offering and general laissez faire attitude. Read the negative reviews carefully before booking and don’t be seduced by the setting. For guests who don’t remember what great service is, or are happy with a self service approach, they won’t have an issue. For people who want a hotel to know how to run a proper 5 star hotel, this one isn’t for you. This hotel has been, and could be again, one of the world’s great hotels but the service severely impacted on our enjoyment. 1. Absolutely no staff anywhere. We saw more gardening and housekeeping staff than general staff. Not once were we approached to ask if we wanted a drink when we sat for several hours on the main terrace. 2. Unwelcoming. Not once did anyone put out the outside cushions or open the parasols on the main terrace overlooking the vines. Inevitably very few guests lingered around the hotel during the day and there was no atmosphere. The outside tables and some of the loungers had bird mess that remained uncleaned during our stay. 3. Crass dining service. On the first evening we had booked to eat in the main restaurant, when we arrived we were told we couldn’t eat outside because it would “spoil the gastronomic experience.” As the guests we thought we could have made that choice for ourselves and went elsewhere. On the second evening, we wanted a very simple supper outside, as has been our habit previously. After much harrumphing they decided we would need a room service meal which we then put in a table, brought some cushions and had a pleasant, if lonely time. No one bothered to remove the cushions for the next 24 hours. 4. Dining staff are inexperienced. One of the waiters at breakfast stank of cigarette smoke, having rushed back from a crafty fag break, to help guests use a thermos flask (!) to pour our coffee. 5. Breakfast very lacking, a hotel at this level would normally showcase local produce (jams, breads, cheeses etc). Everything here was minimal (only one loaf to cut) or reminded us of a Premier Inn. No one offered coffee, we were expected to pour it from a thermos flask, which didn’t work. Surely a Nespresso to allow guests some semblance of choice isn’t beyond the wit of man! No decaf available without someone disappearing for hours and no full milk, only vegan, ultra processed equivalents.
Surreyhotelguru - Oxshott, United Kingdom
Read more reviews or write a review
© 2025 TripAdvisor LLC. All rights reserved