Chateau de Montcaud

Chateau de Montcaud

Château de Montcaud sits three kilometres outside Sabran, on a five-hectare park of century-old trees, woods and meadows, between Avignon and Uzès. The house was built in 1848 by a silk trader named Alexandre Eugène Collain, stood empty for decades, then reopened as a hotel in 1992 before a full renovation in 2018. What it has now, and what most 29-room châteaux in the region do not, is two working restaurants under one roof. Bistro de Montcaud does the everyday version, market-fresh plates on a terrace facing the park, an open fire when the weather turns. Le Cèdre de Montcaud does the other version: chef Matthieu Hervé, who has run the kitchen since the 2018 reopening and cooks with the freshness of his native Normandy alongside Provençal flavour, sends out five or seven courses with no printed menu, adjusting for allergies as he goes. Outside, there is a seasonal outdoor pool open March to October, a tennis court, a library, and bikes and fishing gear for anyone who wants to leave the grounds. Pets are allowed for a fee, and the staff manage guests in English and Spanish. Rooms range from a straightforward Classic double to the Collain Suite and a separate building called La Maison, so the seven room categories suit a couple as easily as a family wanting its own walls. This is not a hotel for anyone chasing a beach or a city view; Sabran is rural, and the pace here is set by the kitchen and the park, not by an events calendar. It rewards people who plan a trip around one very good dinner. A 29-room château between Avignon and Uzès, built in 1848 by a silk trader, now runs two restaurants: a market-fresh bistro and a menu-free tasting room from chef Matthieu Hervé. Five hectares of parkland and a seasonal pool set the pace, not a busy events calendar.