Chateau De Berne

The accommodations, the classes, the staff, the food were all excellent! My favorite, the wine cellar tour was more interesting, in depth and enlightening. Donna S., USA

Just wanted to let you know that the trip was an experience of a lifetime. The travel went very smoothly, the weather was great, the food fantastic, the accommodations luxurious and the staff very friendly and helpful. The cooking classes were wonderful-informative and fun. We enjoyed the extra activities as well. The setting is so peaceful; we took many long walks. We will recommend Chateau de Berne to our friends. Thanks again to you and the rest of the staff for putting together such a memorable trip. Roxanne C., CA

The cooking classes at Chateau De Berne was wonderful. We loved the Chef and the menus he prepared were amazing. We have since featured several of the dishes at dinner parties to rave reviews. The second day of classes was a little crowded but the Chef and his assistant accommodated everyone. The one item on the itinerary that was a little disappointing was the trip to the market. We were under the impression that the Chef was going to accompany us. It ended up just being time to browse the markets with lunch provided at a local restaurant. ... The accommodations and Chateau de Berne were just wonderful. We were so pampered - it really was a terrific honeymoon retreat. Kristen B., LA

This experience was one of the most fun ones I have had... All the staff at the Chateau were wonderful and bent over backwards to make our stay special. The room we had was large, well decorated and very comfortable and the food in the restaurants was excellent. Chef Philippe Migot was absolutely fabulous! He is a wonderful chef and has a personality very well suited to teaching. The number of students varied each day from 6 to 10, which was a great size of class. Everyone got along extremely well (we had so much fun every day) and often in our free time chose to spend it with other people from the class. At the end of the week we hated to say goodbye to our new friends! To say what I liked most about the trip is difficult, but I think I would have to say the chef, and the choice of things he taught us to make. Everything was professionally done and the cooking facilities more exceptional. The only "slightly" negative comment I have is that the printed recipes we were given were sometimes a little hazy, but this was probably due to the translation. We were all able to take additional notes and are sharing them with others in the class, so that we can duplicate them at home. This was not a big problem and is hardly worth mentioning. All in all, I have highly recommended the Chateau de Berne to anyone who asks about my trip and would love to go again. I would like to go to another school but am afraid that I might be disappointed as I don't think anywhere else could live up to my experience in Lourges. Morag S., VA

Just the right amount of activity.Chef Phillipe was great as was his assistant Annie.The staff at the Chateau were extremely friendly and accomodating.Everyone had a "can do"attitude.THe facility was beautiful and the wine excellent. We will go back. Kevin K., Toronto

We were met by a charming driver, the transportation was new and clean, the grounds of the chateau were spectacular and clean. Our suite offered everything we requested, including the view of the vinyard! The cooking school was a blast! Phillip our teaching chef and Annie, his translator were adorable and very talented. We learned many new techniques about Provencial cooking...and wine appreciation. Bill, the owner of the chateau was "on property" and available to handle anything that his capable staff could not... The others in our cooking class were so much fun....I would HIGHTLY RECCOMMEND cheateau de Berne for a cooking adventure and I plan to return. All of your advice was right on target!...One thing I was request in the future....that the students be given a notebook or cookbook of ALL of the recipes that are taught in the school, or at least told to bring a tablet to take precise notes. We cooked each morning, sat together with the chef for lunch, wine from the vineyard and lots of conversation (usually until about 3:30 or so) then has a little time to ourselves before a fabulous dinner. It could not have been any better! Many thanks, Melanie B., TX

The hotel was beautiful, great service. The cooking school is well equipped and the chef was very knowledgeable. It was perfect. Edna & Javier, Costa Rica

Loved the Chateau and the people running the program. The Cooking instructor and Chef was just lovely and spoke great english and added that little bit of MAGIC to the whole trip. The Chateau upgraded us and made us feel very welcome...we would do it again in a heartbeat and recommend it to everyone! Tiffany G., CA

Our stay has exceeded all our expectations! As you promised, the Auberge is gorgeous. Everyone has been so gracious and friendly. Even the trepidations among us are up to their elbows a la cuisine, thanks to Chef Jean-Louis. We even had a warm afternoon by the pool. Thanks for another winner! Anne S.

The location was a place of beautiful perfection in a remote, wild countryside. The staff and chef treated uslike royalty and did all they could to make us comfortable and have a great time. The chef was fun, easy-going, easy to understand and taught us a lot. I loved the trip to the market to buy food to prepare. Making typical Provencal dishes was culturally interesting as well as learning the steps. The wine making tour and wine tasting were excellent and in great depth. The olive mill tour was disappointing - they didn't seem to expect us - but I'm glad we got to see it. The owner of the Chateau was so gracious and interested in setting high standards. We enjoyed meeting him and his warm kindness. Leta D. Alexandria, LA

I just wanted to let you know that Chris and I had a wonderful time at Chateau de Berne last week. Mayung took very good care of us as ourhostess, and Jean-Louis is great! And of course the location is absolutely beautiful, as you know. We were made to feel very welcome the whole time we were there. I'm a few months pregnant, and Mayung did a great job of juggling our schedule so that I got some rest when I needed it but we also managed to fit in a lot of activities (including a visit to the market, a winery tour and wine tasting and a visit to a local abbey as well as some shopping on our own).And the cooking lessons were very well done. Chris and I were the only students (and in truth, Chris was the only one really cooking with Jean-Louis -- my job was to take notes and pictures!), so it felt like a one-on-one tutorial. Jean-Louis is a patient teacher and he did a good job of explaining everything he was doing. As the week progressed, Chris took a more and more active role in the food preparation, and the hands-on approach was very educational too. Everyone at Chateau de Berne was warm and friendly, and they really did make us feel very welcome there. This program was Chris's birthday present (his 40th) and I'm very pleased with how well it worked out! Thank you and kind regards, Katie P., UK