L'Aubinière Hôtel Restaurant & Spa

Book direct, on arrival we found that having booked through a major ‘booking’ company that we were being overcharged by about 40% and put in the old and dated part of the hotel. Having complained and been upgraded to a lovely room in the newer part of the hotel I think we had fair value. The staff were lovely, the food in the restaurant was superb and good value for the quality (although make sure you state when you order that you are using the ‘included menu’, we thought it was obvious but when we paid the following morning we had to pay for individual courses at an extra €14, unnecessarily annoying, no tip then added, bad feeling and they missed out!) All that said though, we liked the room we were moved to, loved the meal and the staff were lovely. Just some notes for others (including contacting them direct to book!).

We have been visiting L’Aubiniere for a few years as it’s a great hotel to stop en route to and from SW France. The hotel is in a quiet village about 10-15 mins from Amboise. It would be an excellent base for visiting the chateaux and Loire Valley region. The reason we return is, not only the delightful welcome we receive from Mme Arrayet but also the ambience and quality of food in this wonderful restaurant. M. and Mme Arrayet have created a beautiful hotel with a small spa and outdoor pool. The gardens are well kept with areas for sitting on the decked terrace overlooking the grounds. The hotel offered reflexology in the gardens which I treated myself to this year. The rooms are uniquely designed with comfort, superior or privilege rooms having all you could need with soft fluffy white towels and dressing gowns. The rooms also have air conditioning and a small fridge with complimentary drinks and other goodies. There are coffee making facilities within the room too. The rooms are excellent value for money and cater for different budgets. The restaurant is absolutely amazing with one of the largest wine fridges we have seen. M. Jacques Arrayet will take the order personally and then he and his very small team prepare and cook the most incredible food, beautifully presented and with flavours that get the taste buds going! We have always opted for the 3 course menu, but when we add in the lovely soft bread with salted and seaweed butter, an amuse bouche, pre starter and then little macarons and cakes at the end of the meal we walk away feeling much heavier than when we walked in. It is and always has been a delight eating and staying here. We feel that everything offered is excellent value for money. On the majority of our visits we have been the only English guests staying, however we have seen visitors from France, Belgium and the Netherlands - it is well frequented by the ‘local’ community who recognise a good restaurant when they find it. We would highly recommend the hotel and the restaurant. We have already booked for our return visits and look forward to returning again soon. Thank you to M Jacques and Mme Odile Arrayet who both work so hard to create and maintain this wonderful hotel.

This was a wonderful hotel! Everything about this hotel was amazing. Beautifully decorated and no expense spared. Fluffy white bath towels and lovely toiletries. Our favourite hotel in a long time. The food was first class and the wine cellar was very impressive!

We stayed one night in one of the suites. We should have stayed more nights. Gorgeous room, beautiful terrace with views of the garden, warm welcome, efficient service, nice setting and interior decoration, excellent cuisine. What can I say more? We wish the owners many more years of happiness with this succesful place ...