Domaine Array Dou Sou hosts residential seminars, conferences, company parties and weddings for 30 to 876 guests, with the whole estate reserved for a single group. It occupies the former château of the bishops of Dax, built in 1304 and listed as a historic monument, on the Route du Château in Saint-Pandelon, in the Landes department of southwest France.
Seminars and company events
On weekdays the château, orangery, courtyard, park and 14 bedrooms go to one client, for programs of one to five days. Plenary sessions run in the Orangerie, with 240 theatre-style, or in the Salle du Chapitre, with up to 110. Three smaller rooms, the Studiolo, the Logis Seigneurial and the Salle des Gardes, take working groups of 12 to 30.
Technical equipment is listed in detail: laser projectors in the Orangerie and the Salle du Chapitre, a multi-zone sound system, wireless microphones, 8 Gb/s symmetric fiber with Wi-Fi 6 and a 4G backup, and programmable facade lighting that can project a company logo. Team building takes place in the park, by the lake, at the heated pool or on two pétanque courts, and cooking workshops, hikes and private tastings can be added.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings are booked as a weekend in exclusive use, from Friday to Sunday. Secular ceremonies take place in the park by the lake, in the courtyard or in the classified salons, and the village church of Saint-Pandelon is 500 meters away on foot, with Dax cathedral five minutes by car. In bad weather, the cocktail moves into the salons and the Salle du Chapitre while the Orangerie stays set for dinner.
Rooms and capacities
The Orangerie, also used as a ballroom, covers 300 square meters with air conditioning: 300 seated, 550 for a cocktail. The Cour d'honneur covers 1,000 square meters and, under a heated 650 square meter crystal tent, seats 500 for dinner or takes 876 standing. The classified salons and vestibule cover 140 square meters for 200 standing, and the Salle du Chapitre 95 square meters for 74 seated or 150 standing.
Accommodation
The estate has 14 bedrooms with 43 beds, including two accessible rooms, a 70 square meter suite and a dormitory for ten. Larger groups can use more than 2,100 hotel rooms in Dax, five minutes away, with partner hotels Le Splendid and Le Grand Hôtel and transfers on request.
Catering
There is no in-house caterer. Clients choose their own, from the estate's partner list or elsewhere, and any outside caterer must visit the site first. Two professional kitchens are available: a 40 square meter catering kitchen beside the Orangerie and a group kitchen equipped for 45 next to the Salle du Chapitre. A bar with southwest wines is included, and food trucks are possible.
History and setting
The château was built in 1304 and served as a residence of the bishops of Dax. It is listed as a historic monument and sits in a classified park of 4.5 hectares with a lake. The heated pool, 14 by 4 meters, is open from May to mid-October.
Getting there
Dax TGV station is 10 minutes away, with direct trains from Paris in 3 hours 20 minutes and from Bordeaux in 1 hour 11 minutes. Biarritz airport is 45 minutes by road and Pau airport about an hour. The A63 motorway is five minutes away, and the estate has 83 parking spaces with four EV chargers.
