Château de Villiers-le-Mahieu

Château de Villiers-le-Mahieu began as a 13th-century fortress, transformed into a château in 1642, with successive restorations shaping its current form. Painter Bernard Buffet lived here until 1979. The estate is set in a 12-hectare wooded park with its own moat, and was the first property of the Les Maisons de Campagne brand, Green Key-certified.

Today its 98 rooms, across three categories (Tradition, Escape/Évasion, and Château rooms), are spread across the château, a farmhouse, and outbuildings — plus a separate Cottage sleeping up to 12.

The château's origins as a 13th-century fortress, later transformed in 1642, give Villiers-le-Mahieu a layered architectural history spanning medieval and early-modern French building traditions.

Bernard Buffet's residence here until 1979 ties the château to 20th-century French art history, a specific cultural association distinct from the estate's earlier military and aristocratic past.

The estate's substantial 98-room scale, spread across the château, a farmhouse, and outbuildings, means most guests stay outside the original 1642 building despite the property's historic core.

The château's Green Key environmental certification and position 45 minutes from Paris give guests staying at Villiers-le-Mahieu a convenient, sustainability-conscious base near Versailles and the capital.