Of all the places to stay in Mayenne, this is unique
Holiday homes in Mayenne are usually in open countryside (as are most of the holiday homes in France!) Lovely views come with a drive to the shops however here in the tiny town of Lassay les Chateaux you can enjoy the best of both worlds in a spectacular location.
This house stands alone by the lake and directly opposite the medieval castle. It’s also next to the walled (and well-stocked) fruit & vegetable garden and joined to an ancient lavoir. It’s only a two-minute walk around the lake into the historic town centre where you’ll find cafés and bars, patisseries and restaurants. There is also a rare commodity, the gloriously idiosyncratic and very friendly Pub Victoire.
Lassay les Chateaux is historical gem, one of very few “petite cités de caractère” set in a beautiful, little-known corner of understated, quiet countryside where the Pays de la Loire meets Normandy and Brittany. However, like all holiday homes or places to stay in Mayenne it’s a great base to explore each.
Morning coffee...
Sit in front of the huge inward-opening kitchen windows and enjoy the best view of the castle in town. Watch the occasional trout surfacing or coypu swimming by and the ever-changing colour of the castle walls as the sun crosses the sky. Night brings dappled reflections from the water playing on the bedroom ceilings.
Breakfast in the garden...
Few places to stay are only a few paces into the town’s beautiful walled garden, a perfect place to carry a warm croissant and enjoy the morning sunshine. There are several old benches and my favourite is next to the natural spring which trickles into a stone trough (though I’ve yet to meet anyone else there).
Plan your day...
The empty roads and rolling countryside of this Mayenne holiday home start right outside the door! The Brittany towns and castles of Fougéres and Vitré aren’t far, St Malo, Dinan and Mont St Michel are easy day-trips. Normandy offers Bayeaux and the D-Day Landing Beaches. Within the Pays-de-la-Loire you’ll find Laval, the vinyards of Angers and of course Le Mans with it’s motor-racing circuit. (Being about two thirds of the way to Le Mans from the port the town often fills with fascinating vehicles over race weekends).
Escape to the chateau, nearly!
There’s an unspoilt corner of the Pays-de-la-Loire where you’ll find yourself wanting to return again and again, or at least we did! (So it seems does the TV series “Escape to the Chateau” which is filmed nearby). There are few places to stay in historic Lassay-les-Châteaux but set in beautiful rolling Mayenne countryside renting a holiday home here is a good choice. Victor Hugo spent time here and Henri Rousseau’s paintings of the area hang in the Louvre, perhaps after staying, who knows, you might decide to escape too…