The Château du Montalieu, which is located at Saint-Vincent-de-Mercuze, opened for business again at the beginning of January, following its near destruction in a fire in 2004. The property is owned by François Savigny, founder of the Enter-Prises company, and is one of the best seminar venues to be found in the Grenoble/Chambéry area. It offers ten rooms, with more planned between now and 2012. A new function room that will be used for shows and conferences is also in the pipeline.
In 1985, François Savigny made his name when he set up Entre-Prises, a company based at Saint-Vincent-de-Mercuze in the Isère, which quickly became the world’s leading manufacturer of climbing walls. He gave up the business in 1999 to concentrate on business consultancy work but, above all, to renovate the nearby Château du Montalieu which he bought in 1988.
“It was completely ruined and I spent 17 years rebuilding it, stone by stone,” he remembers. “In 2002, I opened it for seminar business. But tragically, two years later, it was almost completely destroyed by a fire that was started by a lightning strike. Which meant that I had to begin all over again and I’ve just finished the reconstruction. In early January, we re-opened the Château du Montalieu, former home to an important Dauphinoise family, the Pruniers de Saint-André”. François Savigny has, through sheer determination and strength of character, finally achieved his goal of opening up this beautiful property to the seminar industry and making it the venue to book in the Isère and Savoie areas.
Nestled at the foot of the Chartreuse mountain range, in the Grésivaudan valley, opposite the Belledonne, this 1700 m2 château is built over four storeys and offers six meeting rooms with capacity for up to 60 people. There is another room, which can take 120 people, in a gallery situated next to the main building. The château itself, which looks out over a massive terraced area, offers ten bedrooms and a further two will be created shortly. Between now and 2012 there are also plans to add a small number of eco-chalets offering accommodation for another ten people. François Savigny is in the throes of renovating the library which, once finished, will offer capacity for groups of between ten and 15 people, and is also working on a project to add a new 100-seat function room suitable for shows or conferences, aimed at making Montalieu an even more attractive venue.
“We want to become a “haven” for seminar business,” says the property’s owner, who runs the site alongside his son Serge. “We prefer to concentrate on offering an excellent service to smaller groups rather than chasing bigger profits by filling the property at any price. We also welcome our clients personally, and like to ensure a human touch”.
Situated just 3 km away from the Le Touvet exit on the A41, the Château du Montalieu is ideal for board meetings and primarily targets companies located in the Chambéry/Grenoble corridor.
François Savigny looks after the catering himself, which he considers “upmarket family cuisine”, bakes his bread in the château’s oven, brews his own beer and offers a whole range of recreational and sporting activities (horse riding, hiking, climbing and paragliding) within the immediate area around Montalieu.
Already a hit with local politicians, bosses of technology companies and representatives of Jeunesse et Sport, the property is worth checking out. It offers a day’s seminar package for 40 € per person inclusive of room hire, two refreshment breaks and lunch. For a residential seminar the cost is 145 € per person and includes the addition of dinner, bed and breakfast.
Le château du Montalieu, in Saint-Vincent-de-Mercuze (Isère)
Tel.: 00 33 (0)4 76 08 49 12 or 00 33 (0)6 87 51 16 40
