Chateau de Peufeilhoux – extra adventure included!

Ethan Map J

The Chateau de Peufeilhoux is masked behind its entry walls, the little turrets and peaks of the roofs just visible beyond. Two black ducks greet you in a little muddy pond in front and there the drive passes on the right to a small guardhouse where the staff greet you and where you may park your car.

The chateau was renovated from a decrepit state by its new owner Claude Thenevin, a man of boundless energy and some musical ability who greets all his visitors. M. Thenevin previously operated an animal park on the touristic beach island of Ré in the Atlantic nearby.

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The drive up to the walls of the Chateau Peufeilhoux
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Nice tower!
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The scenic Chateau and its car park
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Inside the walls we took the opportunity for a photo

M. Thenevin was summoned and came out to greet us. He said right away that he had made a mistake and our booking had been promised to a wedding party that was filling the place that night and if we were agreeable (well, we had no choice really) he had made a reservation for us at another chateau nearby (it was a more expensive room he assured us and a cost to him), the Chateau Augustin.

He assured us we could come back for the other night of our two night booking the following day. Not yet having seen the Chateau Augustin, I was quite annoyed that our carefully-made plans had been so casually toyed with and, perhaps noting my annoyance, M. Thenevin proceed to do all he could to smooth it over for several hours, offering a coffee, sitting to talk with us, and giving us one of his famed tours of the Chateau, including a mini piano concert of Camille Saint-Saens, one of my favorites.

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Claude leads the way to tea and an explanation of how our booking
has been changed
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“We have lots of glasses here!”

 

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…”And some heads”
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“You will really like the Chateau de Augustin and it is costing me more
than you are paying me!”
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Luz saw these beautiful flowers and couldn’t resist snapping a picture
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Part of our private tour of the Chateau- the key to the tower room is on the left

Finally he took us off for an hour drive to the Chateau Augustin, which as it turned out, was a joy on its own and the subject of another post.

We returned the following day to Chateau Peufeilhox after a day of touring around the area.

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The next day we got to experience the Romantic suite ourselves (it
was great!) and it rained all night.

The next morning, we finally made it to the pool which was delightful and relaxing:

 

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Luz relaxes by the Chateau door

 

 

Chateau de Peufeilhoux

www.cramandferguson.com

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