Day seminars, workshops, training sessions and daytime private events for up to 40 people can be held at the Manoir de Genas, a 15th-century manor in the countryside of Bourg-lès-Valence, just north of Valence in the Drôme. The family that owns the estate rents two meeting rooms and three self-catering cottages, called gîtes, inside the manor.
Seminars and company events
The two rooms are let for seminars, conferences, working groups and meetings, and they can be booked separately or together. A seminar day package includes a buffet lunch. Both rooms share tables and chairs, a video projector with a screen, a mobile television, a flipchart and Wi-Fi. The rooms are let for daytime use only. Private events such as birthdays or bachelorette gatherings are accepted during the day, while evening parties and weddings are not part of the offer. The rooms are not yet wheelchair accessible, which matters when planning for a mixed group.
Rooms and capacities
Salle Hirondelles measures about 50 m². It takes 24 to 40 people seated, 40 standing or 35 in theatre style. It has an equipped kitchen with tableware and a large worktop, a relaxation corner and direct access to the courtyard and the terrace, which makes it the natural choice for breaks and lunch. Salle Renaissance measures about 35 m². It takes 18 to 20 people in a U-shape, 18 in classroom style or 30 to 35 in theatre style, and has a coffee and tea station and a microwave.
Accommodation
Three gîtes are arranged inside the manor: the Gîte du Tilleul for 1 to 4 people, the Gîte du Platane for 4 to 8 and the Gîte de la Tour for 1 to 4. Together they sleep up to 16, enough for a small team to stay the night before or after a working day.
Catering
The seminar package comes with a buffet lunch, and the kitchen in Salle Hirondelles lets groups prepare their own breaks. The estate also runs a farm shop, Arômes de Genas.
History and setting
Valence merchants began building country manors around the city in the late 14th century, and the main buildings of Genas date from the 14th and 15th centuries. Its best-known owner, François de Genas, was born in Valence in 1430 and became president of the Chambre des Comptes du Dauphiné in 1476 and treasurer general of finances in 1477. He had the chapel ceiling of 144 painted wooden coffers installed. King Louis XI stayed three days at Genas in 1478. A tower with a spiral staircase, Gothic trefoil windows and a vaulted round room links the two main buildings around a small courtyard. The manor still stands on a working farm owned by the Fourel family.
Getting there
The manor lies in open country north of Valence, about 3 km from the A7 motorway, which links Lyon to the south of France.
