Located at Saint-Quentin-sur-Isère, right at the foot of the Vercors and just 15 minutes from the capital of the Dauphiné, the Grenoble Charmeil golf course is very popular with golfers who consider it one of the most beautiful courses in the Rhône-Alpes region.

Overlooked by the foothills of the Vercors mountain range, the course is set in a valley with woods and ponds that are fed by a natural lake. It has 430 members and also specialises in organising seminars. It makes good use of its 3* hotel, offering 50 air-conditioned rooms, a restaurant serving traditional dishes which can serve up to 180 meals, an outdoor swimming pool that is perfect for breaks during the working day and four meeting rooms (60-150 m² ) which can hold groups of between 10 and 150 people.

Sales director Chantal Decaillet is the point of contact for companies looking to use the golf course for their next meeting: We’re lucky because we’re just a short distance from Grenoble and only 45 minutes from Lyon – a definite bonus when it comes to seminar business. Regional companies make up a little over half of our seminar clients, whilst other French national businesses make up 30%. The remainder comes from international firms who like to use us for board meetings, training seminars or product launches, either for their sales outlets or sales force .

Two of the meeting rooms are on the ground floor, whilst the others are upstairs and, like the bedrooms, they all have views over the golf course. In fact the hotel is really an extension of the club house. 60% of the business activity is made up of day-long meetings whilst residential seminars last on average a little over two days. As part of the seminar package, we make a member of our team available for the client throughout the whole of their stay, adds Chantal Decaillet. They are there to welcome the group and to respond to any specific requests .

Grenoble Charmeil also offers a range of recreational activities for the daily relaxation breaks, suggesting golf challenges that involve a fun introduction to playing golf for between one and three hours and costing 16 € (all inclusive) per hour, treasure hunts, paintball sessions or quadbike races in the neighbouring forest, all of which is under the supervision of Nature Quad based at Saint-Quentin-sur-Isère. For those who want to, and who perhaps have a bit more time to spare, there are also white water sports in the Vercors or in the Isère with the Grenoble-based agency Sport Aventure or Latitude Organisation from Valence. After-dinner activities include poker evenings, cabaret or casino organised by Tam Production. And fans of good wines can choose a wine evening in the company of Nicolas Santini or the Lyon firm, Vinextenso.

A day’s meeting at the Golf de Grenoble Charmeil works out at 44 € per participant, inclusive of room hire, refreshment breaks and lunch. A residential seminar, with the addition of accommodation, dinner and breakfast, is invoiced at 132 € (inc VAT).

Access to the golf course is by TGV (25 minutes from Valence’s TGV station) or by autoroute (A49, Tullins exit). It is also worth noting that Grenoble Charmeil offers promotional rates at certain times of the year and that hotel clients who choose a golf package plus hotel accommodation on site can also play on five other courses in the area: the two 18-hole courses at Villette d’Anthon, near Lyon, Bresson, Corrençon-en-Vercors and Valence.