Chateau des Arpentis (Loiré)

I usually don't go into details of the places we stayed or restaurant we ate (just the pictures of meals). But this place just exceeded our expectations so much that I had to give it proper introduction. 

When I was planning the trip... it went like this...I found a good deal on the plane ticket... better yet direct flight from Seattle to Paris. Next...which part of France do we want to see?? Hmm... that took a while since we have been to many other regions. We finally (or I should say "I") decided to have a Castle trip for Sophie... figured that would keep her interested and engaged. Then, I mapped out the route and looked for places to stay. I initially just had Mont. St. Michel, Giverny, castles around Amboise area and 2 days for Paris in mind. 

Since it's a castle trip, we should stay in one... 😉 That's what I had hoped.

While I was looking (took me a few days to finally made up my mind), I came across Chateau des Arpentis. It looked nice in photos and had great reviews on the web. It also had family room. It's always uncertain what the room is like, which room we'll actually get, and how or if the pictures might be deceiving. I was uncertain what to expect (and thought we might all stay in the same room with 2 or 3 beds).

It was a long driveway leading up to the Chateau. As the Chateau finally appeared in front of us, our smile slowly got bigger and bigger. Our excitement was through the (car) roof. We quickly checked in...our receptionist was a very young handsome man by the way led us to our room. The key opened to a two twin bed room that has a small toilet room (quickly thinking how our sleeping arrangement would be like). The young man showed us another door led through another small hall way to our room. WOW... that's a surprise... (because I though we might be all sleeping in the same room.) Then from our room...another door to the bathroom. Everything was clean and pretty. We were so happy that we were here for 5 nights. Dropped the bags, we went to check out the kitchen/ laundry room and lounge room for guests to use. Oh my god... everything was like what a castle should be. I was hoping for a good experience and this was better than what I had hoped for and I couldn't ask for more.... oh wait... one thing we could ask for... better internet connection 😄😂😆 From the Chateau de Chantore host, the internet in the country side is not very reliable. The government is planning to put fast fiber-optics in next 5 to 10 years. Guess we won't be moving to the French countryside any time soon. There is no way I can live without internet these days. 😂😂😂

In comparison, the host from Chateau de Chantroe was very personal and friendly. Although Arpentis is nice and friendly as well, it felt a bit less personal. I guessed it's due to it's large scale and many rooms and guests to serve... felt a bit more business. And the breakfast was not as special and grand.

View when driving up to the Chateau after dinner. Our room is on the top right window in the tower. 

Here... let the pictures speak for itself!