Château de Canisy

This somewhat "little" Chateau is a wonderful place. It offers a feeling of authentic days of 'yore (if you were the regal folks in the region.) We went some time ago, and would go back in a minute. The location is great (using our rental car) to remarkable daily venues like DDay landings, Mount Saint- Michel, VilleDieu les Poelles, Bayeaux, Ste. Mere Eglise, etc. The food was great and the end of day wine/cocktail by the grand fireplace was grand. Just watching the swans through the great windows was memorable.

We (@wolfestreettravel on Instagram and wolfestreettravel.com) stayed for one night at Chateau de Canisy during a bike trip through Normandy. The chateau itself is pretty incredible. A legit, renaissance chateau with elements of the original, 11th century castle. Really incredible, historic, and beautiful. Plus, the place has been owned by the same family for more than 1000 years. Freaking amazing. That's kind of where the positive elements end, however. ||We (two couples) arrived after a long day of biking to find that the chateau has no bar - it's simply a big house with no actual hotel / lodging elements other than hotel rooms and three salons (a library, a main room, and a music room). Ultimately, a total of four drinks (two soft drinks and two beers) materialized in the main room. For four people who just completed a full day of riding. As a result, we had to ask if they had more variety and quantity, in line with what we'd expect from specialty lodging that hosted guests; the definitely did not have any variety, but we eventually secured more beers (all of their beers, we think). The manager behaved throughout this as though our requests were unreasonable and seemed very put out about something that any establishment hosting guests would be expected to provide.||Then, dinner (in the music room). We confirmed our dinner at the chateau directly with the chateau months before our trip. Two days before our arrival, we sent a re-confirmation request, and were told that they would not provide dinner and offered to recommend some restaurants in town (which we specifically wanted to avoid while staying there, hence our original request). After forwarding the email confirming dinner from months, the chateau begrudgingly capitulated and said that they would prepare dinner for us. The food was very nice, but also very basic, consisting of a soup, a chicken dish, and strawberries with whipped cream. For which we were charged 71 euros per person. We were so bothered by this that we asked for a 50% refund the next day, and the hotel ultimately agreed to a 30% refund.||Finally, our experience that night: we were left completely alone in the chateau. The manager, the front desk / office person, and the kitchen person all drove home and left us there. The surly manager informed us that they were all leaving for the night and told us to lock the door when we went to bed. As beautiful as the chateau was, the four of us looked at each other and realistically thought this was absolutely out of a horror movie and that one by one, we'd be picked off during the night. Luckily, that didn't happen, but we totally thought that only one of us would be left standing the next morning.||We've stayed at more than 270 hotels, inns, lodges, and B&Bs during 25 years of travel as WolfeStreetTravel.com and have never encountered a weirder experience as we had while staying at Chateau de Canisy.

Staying in the château has been an amazing experience for me and my friends. All is beauty. We have received such a warm greeting from the Count and Countess who made us very kindly visit the chateau and explain the history of this chateau remained for 1000 years in the same family. It is much more than a hotel, a living castle and at the same time decorated with beautiful silk fabrics and the comfort of marble bathrooms, some with copper bathtubs.||||We had the feeling to be privileged guests. My suite (Polignac) had a fantastic view of the lake, an authentic canopy, and two bathrooms. I recommend it absolutely.||||The dinner was excellent and served each evening in a different place. My favorite place was the music room and I recommend it for its very warm and unique atmosphere. Breakfast was also perfect in the great dining room. We had a half day rest after visiting the Landing beaches and we were able to do archery and cricket in the vegetable garden. I am sure we will be back! We highly recommend it.

Amazing place and experience. The grandeur of the place was slightly intimidating at first, especially when for the first night we were the only guests, by the second night we have emerged ourselves into the environment and lived the history that this amazing chateau has to offer. Remarkably maintained with the extremely friendly staff who makes you feel as if you are their personal guest. It doesn't feel like a hotel but rather a visit to a friend where your privacy is respected whilst warm welcome is offered. Out amazing bedroom and bathroom had a full view of the magnificent lake with black swans . There are also beautiful grounds to discover. Unforgettable experience.

My husband and I visited the Chateau de Canisy in March 2022. Arriving at the Chateau feels like stepping back in time with all the amenities of a modern hotel. The acres and acres of land are so beautiful to explore and we spend most of our time sitting in the meadows, hiking, and enjoying the multitude of animals on the property. The breakfast and dinner were both incredibly delicious and we felt like royalty dining in the rooms of the Chateau. The staff and the Countess were incredibly hospitable and provided us with everything we could've wanted. We felt very lucky to have stumbled upon the Chateau de Canisy and are very much looking forward to our return trip. Thank you to the de Kergorlay family for hosting us!

We stayed for 2 nights at the Chateau. The property is beautiful. After our non-refundanble booking, we were informed there would be no food service on our second night. The second day, the management informed us that staff was very tired after "very important people" had stayed in the Chateau the previous nights; they needed a rest, and all staff would be given the night off because "very important people" stayed at the Chateau the day before. We were told there would be no food, no service, we would be alone in this 88+ room building (amazingly, not one other room had been booked), and we would be unable to leave the chateau until some unexplained time in the morning as the gates would be locked. The out-of-town owner/ the Countess, connected with us by phone in a very rude manner to explain that she was with more “very important people” in Newport (US), responded to our request that the gates be unlocked for our early AM departure with “don’t tell me how to run my house” and that arranging to have a staff member on hand to unlock the doors would “cost a lot of money” and was unacceptable. Eventually, a property caretaker volunteered to unlock the gates in the morning, and an intern was delegated to be on hand until the early evening. ||||The best part of the Chateau was the hostess that was with us on the 1st day. Sophie was exceptional — intelligent, responsive, friendly. ||||The food was iffy. ||||We read the other reviews here, that emphasize the lovely property and a difficult owner; again the Countess, and we definitely saw both of these. We have stayed at other private chateaux in France, and never had this kind of owner experience. We Would not recommend staying at this Chateau.

We had the opportunity to stay at this beautiful castle this past August 2019. The property was nicely maintained and very vast. My family truly enjoyed our time there and the kids ran in the grass, went fishing in the lake (and caught a fish) and we did archery as well. The castle was basically our private property during our stay and we slept so well as it was very quiet. ||||The staff was hospitable and we felt like royalty with our wonderful buffet breakfast with the tastiest strawberries and fresh squeezed juices. Our private dinner was served in the main dining room with a bottle of red and bottle of white waiting for us along with tea and port for after dinner. ||||The Countess was so gracious as she welcomed us making sure we were situated and had everything we needed. Each room is truly unique! Being in the Count’s family for so long, you can see the details and history of the chateau as you walk throughout the building...from the books, the furniture and the paintings on the wall. One of our rooms had an extravagant gold tiled bathtub and sink. Another room had my girls feeling like Rapunzel since we were literally in the top pointed tower. We also liked the shampoo and conditioner the chateau supplied. ||||We had the fortune of meeting another family visiting from another continent and we enjoyed making new friends and our kids also had friends to play with. ||||I would advise to rent a car while there. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find a rental to fit the 6 of us and our luggage. The beaches of Normandy are close by and so is Mont Saint Michel but it is quite a costly taxi ride. Learn some basic French as the people in this area don’t speak English as well but luckily my basic French from school was sufficient enough to get by. ||||Book your stay here now!!

When our group of 14 family members drove up to the castle, we couldn't believe we were going to stay someplace so impressive. Everything was as good as we could expect -- rooms, furnishings, and meals, of course,but even better was how accommodating the entire staff was, especially Sophie. They went out of their way in so many ways to make sure that we felt that this was our home for as long as we were there.||||The staff was always present and yet discreet, so we didn't feel like they were watching over us to make sure we didn't steal the silver. A good breakfast was served before we started each day's activities, and upon our return we were met with drinks (try the Calvados!) followed by a fabulous dinner. Beds and pillows were quite comfortable, and a good night's sleep left us ready for the next day.||||If you stay here (and you should), make sure you set aside some time to simply enjoy the castle and grounds, rather than treating it as simply a place to sleep. Walk around the grounds for a few hours, relax in front of the fireplace with a drink, talk with the other guests, try your hand at archery, listen to the stories about the family Kergorlay's history, and take plenty of pictures -- you'll want to remember this place for as long as possible.||||Note: This is a real castle that is hundreds of years old. It isn't just the shell of a castle from which the interior has been entirely stripped and rebuilt with modern techniques. As such, you find a lot of things which you won't find in a Holiday Inn -- a bathroom might be a little small, a floor squeaks a little, etc. None of these things should be a reason to not stay here. In fact, I think they add to the character of the place and remind you of the history of the property.

Our travel agent suggested the Chateau. We were greeted personally by Patrick upon our late arrival. We were instantly made to feel at home. After settling in, we joined our fellow travelers for a drink in a beautiful salon. We opted for the wonderful dinner created by the Chateau chef. Candlelight, wonderful wines and a tasty selection of Normandy dishes. Breakfast the next day was equally both stunning and homey. Hard to pull off but Chateau Canisy does it. The location was great for both exploring Normandy and Mont St. Michel. Can't wait to go back. Give it a try if you are exploring northeast France. Beautiful, friendly, well appointed. You will be well taken care of and pampered too.