A Thursday in Provence: Château de Fonscolombe

The dreamy 18th-century Château de Fonscolombe, 5-star hotel in the heart of Provence, will make all your fairytale dreams come true!

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Getting Here

The best way to get to Château de Fonscolombe would be to fly to Marseille and rent a car from the airport. It is about half an hour away! If you are coming from Paris, you can take the TGV train down to Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, or Marseille and rent a car from the closest rental company. Either way, you definitely need to rent a car here! If you need an automatic, I recommend you book online in advance as they aren’t as plentiful as manual transmissions.

chateau in the south of france at Château de Fonscolombe — Bienvenue!

Château de Fonscolombe Décor

Built in 1730, Le Château de Fonscolombe was meticulously restored over a period of 18 months to become the 5-star, hotel today. They have done a beautiful job keeping the historic charm, while introducing modern luxuries!

chateau interiors at Château de Fonscolombe

the chateau de fonscolmbe interiors at Château de Fonscolombe

having wine in the grand salon at Château de Fonscolombe

gold candelabra — Versailles inspired gold pieces throughout!

grand salon in a chateau with a chandelier at Château de Fonscolombe — Grand salon

There are beautiful details that capture your eye throughout the property, while you explore all the hidden hallways and rooms.

18th century painting of Château de Fonscolombe

Our Historic Room

You can stay in the newer portions or the more historic rooms and suites. The differences between them are the views, décor, and the historic rooms lack air-conditioning (but you can request a standing fan). Our lovely historic room was incredibly unique and used to be Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother’s room when she visited! And what a room it was, with an amazingly peaceful view from the balcony. We had three huge windows leading out to the balcony from the bedroom and the bathroom!

chateau in the south of france Château de Fonscolombe — Me on the balcony getting our apéritif ready!

historic room selfie at Château de Fonscolombe

old 18th century radiator — the details!

secret door matching the wall leading to the bathroom — Secret door leading to….

luxurious bathroom with marble floors and balcony

huge marble bath tub — Bath is the size of a pool (takes a couple hours to fill up xD)

bath tub and champagne at Château de Fonscolombe — but I promise it’s worth the wait

beautiful chateau grounds with forest and fountain at Château de Fonscolombe — Peaceful view from the balcony of the morning fog rising through the grounds

The Best Room Service

The breakfast and dinner room service menu are extremely tempting! Especially when you have this gorgeous room to have it in.

room service at Château de Fonscolombe — We were supposed to have a private romantic dinner on the grounds, but the rain changed our plans to an equally lovely dinner in-room!

A Bit of History about Château de Fonscolombe

“The château belonged to two large families of humanists, Marquis de Saporta and Fonscolombe. The families were renowned in the sciences and weaponry, particularly in medicine and botany, as evidenced by their inventive friendship with Rabelais, their service with Henri de Navarre, and their correspondence with Darwin.”

man at dusk in salon of 18th century chateau

Things to Do

From here, you could take day trips into the villages of Provence, the beaches of the French Riviera, or just wander around the city of Aix-en-Provence. We leisurely drove into Aix-en-Provence and ran into the market (which occurs every Tuesday, Thursday, & Saturday). It was a gray and rainy day, so there were not as many vendors as there would normally be. It is a very lively city though with many places to have a good drink and meal! We brought back some pastries from a pâtisserie to enjoy during a picnic.

You can use the hotel’s bikes at your leisure and bike around the grounds and vineyards

The Spectacular Grounds

One activity I highly suggest is to spend the day exploring the grounds. There are many paths to stroll, leading to the manicured park and water fountain or the pool hidden behind the trees. Our favorite path leads through the trees and into the forest, where you’ll peacefully connect with nature. Pass by the stone benches covered in moss, sit and reflect a while. This is what “slow traveling” is – taking the time to sink into the environment you are living in instead of checking off a bunch of boxes on a list of sights to see & things to do.

chateau chapel on park grounds in france — chapel on grounds

water fountain in the park grounds at Château de Fonscolombe

forest path on chateau grounds with mossy benches at Château de Fonscolombe — This forest path takes you all around the park-like grounds in a loop! Check out my Instagram reels for a little tour

pool on chateau grounds at Château de Fonscolombe — Spend hours at the pool of course

The clock tower says “carpe diem” under the time; meaning seize the day!

L’Orangerie

Make sure to indulge at the on-site restaurant, L’Orangerie. You can sit inside or on the terrace during good weather. The menu encompasses Provençal dishes with a creative flare. The restaurant is spacious with a wall of many different wines – some of which are made here from the château’s vineyards!