Château de Villiers-Le-Mahieu

Stayed at the Chateau de Villers-le-Mahieu for 4 nights for a business meeting. This is a very remote hotel great for meetings or a quiet weekend getaway. The location is about 1.5 hours from CDG airport or 1 hour from central Paris. The grounds are amazing with rooms in the main Chateau, and several building around the grounds. The restaurant is very nice with good food selections. There is a nice pool area and many areas to just relax. My room was int eh main Chateau. The size of the room was not bad at all for Europe. Nice closet for storage and a safe in the room. Large TV and desk to work form. There was a coffee machine and kettle for team in the room. I also like the small refrigerator in the room. The only negative was the very short window in the room; however, I left it open most nights to let in the cool breeze. The bathroom was updated and very large. Overall, a great stay with nice staff. Quite county location.

The place was special for us as we got married there in 2008. Since last year, we came back 3 times, once as a couple and twice with our two kids. The last stay in July 2022 maked our decision to never return. I have the impression that the place was bought by private equity and the focus was focused on profitability instead of hospitality and services. Every attention or service will be given if you pay extra money. For example, if your room is not ready before the check-in time, if you pay 50€ then the room will be ready shortly. There is no longer traditional sense of service such as " let me find if there is a room which is ready..." by the reception which a normal 4 star hotel would propose. Besides the breakfast is very basic, not worth a 4 star standing and finishes at 10 am even during the weekends, which is not in sync with the relaxing atmosphere they're trying to build. The room in the farmside has been rebuilt more recently than the rooms in the château but no fridge in the room for a 4 star hotel is shocking. No normal guest kits in bathroom. I've invited a long dated friend over for lunch whilst not staying for the night, she had to pay the day package (80€) instead of the bruch price (45€) to spend the afternoon with us as it was explained by the hotel manager that it is a private domain and for guest who doesn't have a room in the hotel, she had to pay the full price which included all sports activities even if my friend will not use the facilities. The last draw is that there was a fire alarm at 3am in the rooms of the farmside and it was proven to be a mistaken alert due to the heat/hot weather. All in all, the new buyer of the hotel is taking advantage of the charm of the place and turning it to a cash machine, obsessed by how to make more money instead of focusing on services! They've definitely lost us as a loyal customer which is a shame ! The all inclusive packages are good alternatives for families not far from Paris, but super expensive for the kind of services / activities they propose. The staff seemed depressed and pressured. I would encourage the hotel to rethink about their strategy, aiming at caring their customers first and the profitability will come. And the hotel manager needs basic training of customer servicing and hospitality, not in par with luxury hotels.