Château de Berne, a Relais & Châteaux hotel

It seems as if the Château de Berne and its hamlet have existed since time immemorial.

For Lafourcade Architecture, the brief was to complete the following tasks in record time:
- Build an 800 m2 spa
- Dig a tunnel connecting the hotel and the spa and create a cellar
- Restore the hotel buildings and create a cookery school
- Build a large professional kitchen
- Restore the bistro and gourmet restaurant
- Implement a radical transformation of the château

The challenge of this ambitious project was to create a link between ancient and more recent buildings by coordinating roofs and façades, and to devise a unifying theme between the built environment and the gardens

The first stage involved taking a fresh look at access to the Château de Berne. French architect Alexandre Lafourcade chose the new entrance - a single access road north of the estate with an area reserved for parking. With this new entrance, each visitor can make their way to the reception and be directed to wherever they need to go. Particular attention was paid to perspective. The Château de Berne project also aimed to create independent living spaces both outside and inside. In architecture, each building has its own identity and engenders specific technical constraints, but the finished projet must work as a unit. Indoor and outdoor circulation in the Château de Berne was completely reassessed. Alexandre Lafourcade created an underground passage linking the reception area, the hotel and the spa. In this conversion project, Lafourcade Architecture has striven to achieve a certain harmony between the architecture and the exceptional site; this has been achieved by creating artfully designed gardens that link one building to another and blend seamlessly into the Varois landscape. The hamlet nestling in its green bower has been revitalised by the Lafourcade family.