Château d'Artigny

Château d'Artigny began as a Hundred Years' War-era fortress advanced bastion tied to the Montbazon keep, incorporated into defenses along the Indre river. The present building was constructed 1912-1928 as the residence of perfumer François Coty. It was converted into a luxury hotel that opened in March 1961; purchased at the end of the 1950s by René Traversac, the château chaired the nascent "Châteaux Hôtels de France" chain and played a founding role in its 1975 merger with "Relais de Campagne" to form Relais & Châteaux.

Today its 56 rooms are spread across the château, the Pavillon d'Ariane, and the Cité des Parfums ("Fragrance House") — all elegantly decorated with views over the Indre valley, the French garden, the château, or the park.

The site's medieval origins as a Hundred Years' War bastion, predating the current early-20th-century building by roughly five centuries, give Artigny a layered defensive history beneath its present perfumer's-residence architecture.

François Coty's construction of the present building as his personal residence ties Artigny directly to the history of the French perfume industry, a connection reflected in the estate's "Cité des Parfums" building name.

The château's documented role in the 1975 merger that created Relais & Châteaux gives it genuine founding significance within the history of independent luxury hospitality in France, distinct from merely being a long-standing member of the group.

The château's position in Montbazon, in the Touraine section of the Loire Valley, gives guests staying at Artigny easy access to Tours and the wider Loire Valley château circuit.