Château de Bonnefontaine

The Château de Bonnefontaine hosts seminars, workshops and weddings in five rooms, from a 30 m² break-out room to the 250 m² Métairie, which takes 300 people in conference layout or 250 at dinner. The château stands in Antrain, in Ille-et-Vilaine, between Brittany and Normandy. It is listed as a historical monument and is run by Thibaud and Julie de Rohan Chabot, whose family has held it for generations.

Seminars and company events

The rooms sit in two buildings, the Orangerie and the Métairie, so a group can combine a plenary room with workshop rooms close by. The Orangerie takes 215 people in conference layout, and the Petit Salon and the Sellerie suit break-out groups of 40 to 50. The large park gives space for outdoor activities and breaks between sessions. The team advises on the organisation of the day and suggests local service providers.

Weddings and receptions

Weddings use the same rooms. The Métairie seats up to 250 for dinner, and the estate states that its rooms can take a cocktail for 500. Drinks and photographs move outside into the romantic English-style park around the château. The team suggests caterers and other suppliers from the area; the site does not say whether a list is imposed.

Rooms and capacities

The Orangerie covers 155 m² and takes 160 for dinner, 210 for a cocktail and 215 in conference layout. The Métairie, 250 m², takes 250 for dinner and 300 for a cocktail or a conference. The Écurie, 90 m², seats 70 for dinner and takes 100 standing. The Petit Salon, 36 m², takes 40 for dinner and 50 for a meeting. The Sellerie, 30 m², seats 30 at table and 40 in a meeting layout.

Accommodation

Two gîtes are on the estate. The Gîte de l'Orangerie has three double bedrooms, a sitting room with a sofa bed, three bathrooms and a kitchenette. The Gîte de la Porterie, at the park entrance, has two double bedrooms, a sitting room with a sofa bed and a kitchen. Larger groups book accommodation in the surrounding area.

History and setting

At the end of the 11th century Geoffroy Chaudeboeuf gave the Bonnefontaine estate to the abbey of Saint-Florent de Saumur. It passed to the Saint-Brice family, then in 1370 to the Porcon family by marriage; Arthur de Porcon, chamberlain to Duchess Anne of Brittany, became captain of Fougères in 1488. On 5 July 1547 King Henri II allowed Pierre de La Marzelière to fortify the house, and he built the southern part with the large machicolated tower. The estate was sold as national property during the Revolution. In 1858 François de Guiton bought it and, some twenty years later, gave the château and park their present form with the architect J-B. Martenot. The park was designed by the 19th-century landscape architect Denis Bühler. In 1910 the property passed to the Kernier family and later, by marriage, to the Rohan Chabot family. The château is a member of the Demeure Historique and Vieilles Maisons Françaises associations.

Getting there

Antrain lies close to the A84 between Rennes and Caen, about 30 minutes by car from Mont-Saint-Michel and 45 minutes from Rennes.