Domaine et Château de Valinches hosts seminars, study days, team building programs and weddings, with a 290 m² hall for up to 250 people, three meeting salons and beds for 109 guests. The estate is a restored 19th-century château in Marols, in the Loire department, about 30 minutes from Saint-Étienne and 1 h 15 from Lyon. It can be booked in full for a company or a wedding.
Seminars and company events
The estate sells seminars and professional events, with modular rooms equipped for meetings and a hotel on site for residential programs. Groups can hold cocktails, meals or outdoor activities on the château esplanade and use the park and games areas during breaks. Team building challenges are offered, along with nature, sports and wellbeing activities such as yoga, pétanque and a golf practice area. A seminar brochure is available on request.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings are a core activity. A secular ceremony can be held beside the pond, under trees about two hundred years old, with an island used for photographs. The drinks reception takes place in a 150 m² covered area on the château forecourt and an outdoor space for up to 300 people; marquees can be rented to extend the covered area. Dinner and dancing take place in the reception hall. Family meals, birthdays and other receptions are also hosted.
Rooms and capacities
The Grand Reception Hall, in the former stables of the château, measures 290 m² with a stage and stone walls and exposed beams. It seats 180 for dinner and takes 250 standing. Furniture on site includes 18 round tables, 15 rectangular tables and 200 chairs. The Salon Roseraie (42 m²) takes 42 people, the Salon Parc (29 m², with a balcony over the pond) takes 30, and the Salon Tour (43 m², several layouts) takes 43.
Accommodation
The four-star hotel has 30 rooms, including 4 suites, in the château and the north wing of the former stables. All rooms can at least be set up as twins, and some take three or four people, for 72 guests in the hotel. A dormitory annex for 15 and gypsy caravans for 22 bring the total to 109. All rooms can be booked as a group. Rooms have Wi-Fi, a television and a safe, and several are accessible to guests with reduced mobility. Pets are accepted with a supplement.
Catering
The estate runs its own restaurant, L'Instant Présent, with creative cooking based on local and seasonal produce and a wine list. A vegetarian dish is always offered. Catering for weddings and group meals is handled by the estate's team, which also runs a catering and takeaway service.
History and setting
The château was built in 1843 by the brothers Pierre and Joseph d'Assier. Muriel and Bruno Faure took it over in February 2020 and restored about 2,500 m² of buildings, including the 900 m² château, with geothermal heating and local contractors. The 15-hectare park includes a French garden, a wooded area, a pond with a peninsula, a chapel and a 2 km nature trail. The estate holds the Clé Verte (Green Key) ecolabel. Marols is a medieval village in the Haut Forez, and a greenway and the Saint-Jacques pilgrimage route pass within 400 meters.
Getting there
The address is 2979 route de Valinches, 42560 Marols. The estate is about 30 minutes by car from Saint-Étienne and 1 h 15 from Lyon, and within reach of Clermont-Ferrand. Andrézieux-Bouthéon and Montbrison are the nearest larger towns.
