Chateau le Prieuré Saumur - la Maison Younan

The hotel property is impressive and we wanted to love it, so I will start with the positives first. It’s a beautiful old building with extra rooms in an annex. Be prepared for a lot of Napoléonic/Baroque decor, gold, and blindingly bright colors. The decor is over the top and amusing. The view from the terrace is spectacular and potential guests should ask for a room off the back of the main building/chateau. The food at Le Priere is exceptional. We had a great dinner, delicious lunch, and plentiful breakfast. The morning staff were very friendly, but dinner servers not so much. However, they were very efficient and polished in their work. Our annex room was huge with plenty of storage, and the bedding and towels were nice. An upright fan and space heater are provided. The main negatives were as follows: Our room was moldy smelling and felt damp. When barefoot, the bright blue carpet seemed moist, so we kept our shoes on. The floor also had some mystery stains. The old wallpaper was peeling, and the room was very dusty and cobwebby in the corners. The small safe was not bolted to anything and therefore not practical to use. When we returned from an outing one afternoon, the slider was not locked. It’s extremely unlikely, but a determined criminal could have accessed our room. Thankfully, there were no problems with that. Weirdly enough, some guests actually wandered into our room (thankfully we were decent!) thinking it was the lobby. The signage to the reception isn’t obvious. Our large bathroom had several issues: The shower floor was moldy (pink and black slime) and hadn’t been cleaned as evidenced by hair left on the surfaces. The shampoo and soap were almost empty and we didn’t notice until the morning we checked out, so we had to improvise with what little was left. WiFi was practically nonexistent. It was a bit better in the main part of the hotel. Overall, Le Priere is an impressive hotel, and we had a decent stay. Housekeeping needs to do a better job with cleaning the showers and with dusting, and the annex room needs a good dehumidifier. The best part of our stay was the dining - bravo to the chef!

We did an overnight trip to Loire Valley and chose to stay in this chateau. We stayed in the Napoleon suite and wow!!! It was huge and beautiful. Extremely clean. We felt like a king and queen in this room. Unfortunately it was raining outside, but the view from the veranda was lovely and overlooked the Loire. The staff were friendly and welcoming. As it was off season, the chateau was very quiet with visitors which was nice. The grounds were lovely and the chateau itself is beautiful. We drove into Saumur which is fairly close by and has lots of shopping and restaurants. We also visited some wine caves that were close by to the chateau. We would love to stay here again if we visit Loire Valley.

The veiw from the bar and terrace will take your breath away. The food is exquisite. Extremely helpful staff. This was definitely a highlight of the France trip i had. Can go back again if i get a chance. People organise their proposals at this location so you can imagine how romantic the setting is.

An important criterion in selecting hotels for my vacation itineraries is the hotel's having an excellent restaurant. Castellane, the "Gastronomic French Restaurant" at Chateau Le Prieure, certainly satisfied that criterion. This allows me to enjoy an evening without having to worry about driving again. After verifying on the website that the restaurant would be open (such "gourmet" restaurants are often closed two nights a week to give the staff a break), I booked a nonrefundable stay and requested dinner. The hotel confirmed my room reservation but told me that the restaurant was not available. I decided that I would take advantage of room service and would not request a cancellation. It turned out that Castellane was not even open. Upon leaving the hotel, I heard another guest complain to the front desk that the restaurant had been closed the evening before and was not going to be open that evening as well - a most justified complaint. And room service? The poorly staffed hotel could provide us only with a charcuterie plate or a fromage plate because the kitchen was closed. So, we sallied forth into Saumur, where I have to say that we had a surprisingly excellent dinner at L'Instinct. The hotel is understaffed. The hotel is desperately in need of some tender loving care such as repair of a window with a hole in it and remediation of the sinking floor with cracked wood that you would not want to step on with bare feet. However, WiFi access is good. The staff is friendly and hospitable. The rooms are capacious and clean (although the shower had pink mildew). The bedding is most comfortable. The lounge area with its view of the Loire is spectacular as was the morning view of the river from our room.

We just returned from a stay. The staff was welcoming and very attentive, even though I could tell they seemed shorthanded ( as many others in the hospitality industry are these days ), but they always remained professional and kind. The chateau has been fully renovated, so I give La Maison Younan a big high five for making this heritage site available to enjoy. At first, I was a bit overwhelmed with the 1ere Empire décor; until I decided to take it as a " themed"décoration based on Napoleon 1ére ... If it could've toned down a little bit, it would be ideal but in any case, it does make you inquire about French history :-) I highly recommend taking the aperitif on the terrace, with a panoramic view of the Loire River. We had dinner and chose the " Au fil de nos région " menu, along with the accord des vins, Bravo au chef Prouteau pour nous faire gouter less delicieux plats! The breakfast buffet was also very good, with local products ( juices, coffee, croissants and the mushroom and carrots with the scrambled eggs do make a difference! Cheese lovers, be aware you will love their seasonal cheese selection!