Oceania l’Hôtel de France in Nantes is a stately, 4-star true Nantes institution in an 18 th century mansion perfectly situated right in the city center in the pedestrian area next to the Opera House of Nantes. The hotel has recently been completely renovated and very tastefully combines old world charm with contemporary off-beat twist.
Guided Tour of Old Town Nantes
Today Nantes is France’s sixth largest city with a population of about 320.000 in Nantes proper and roughly 1 million in the metropolitan area. The ancient gallo-roman city of Namnetus, founded at a narrowing of the Loire and the confluence of the Erdre and Sèvre Nantaise, owes its rise to its extremely favorable geographical location.
Located at the mouth of the river, Nantes was not vulnerable to attacks from the sea and was considered one of the safest seaports when overseas trade began. Nantes took on the status of an industrial and commercial metropolis.
Nantes was conquered by the Bretons in 851 and was the capital of an independent Brittany for hundreds of years. In 1207 a fortress and château - the Château des Ducs de Bretagne - was built which served as the residence of the kings of Brittany and the center of the historical province of Brittany. In 1446 the last Duke of an independent Brittany François II rebuilt the castle and this is the architecture as we see it today.
After Brittany was annexed to France in 1532 - Anne of Brittany married the king of France - the Château des Ducs de Bretagne was used by the kings of France when they visited the region. After centuries of being the home to dukes and hosting kings and their courts, the castle, gradually abandoned, was put to use as both a barracks and a prison.
In 1915, the City of Nantes acquired the building and had a museum added in 1924. In Nantes a mile-stone of French history was written: in 1598 the “Edict of Nantes” was issued which legalized Protestantism to put an end to the religious wars and to unify France.
Dinner at L'Océanide (Bib Gourmand Michelin) in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at L'Instinct Gourmand in Nantes, with Owner/ Chef Sylvain le Bras - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Tour of Old Town Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Brasserie La Cigale in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour,
Tasting and Light Lunch at Vignobles Günther Chéreau, Château du Coing,
in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, with Owner Véronique Günther-Chéreau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit at Domaine Gadais Père et Fils, in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, Muscadet Sévre et Maine, Pays Nantais, with Owner/ Winemaker Christoph Gadais - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant Les Petits Près in Angers - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Tour and Tasting at Château d’Épiré, AOP Savennières, Anjou, with
Owner/ Winemaker Paul Bizard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour, Barrel Tasting and Salon Tasting at Château des Vaults, Domaine du Closel in Savennière, Anjou, with Owner/ winemaker Evelyne de Pontbriand - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Wine-pairing Lunch at Château des Vaults, Domaine du Closel in Savennière, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Evelyne de Pontbriand and Owner/ Chef Arthur Favé of Restaurant Le Chenin in Savennière - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of Château Angers and the Apocalypse Tapestry (UNESCO) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Brasserie du Ralliement in Angers - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Liv Vincendeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Tasting with a Light Lunch at Domaine de la Soucherie in Beaulieu-sur-Layon, Anjou - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting and Cellar Tour at Clotilde Legrand, Domaine
Legrand, in Varrains, Anjou, with Clotilde Legrand - Loire Valley 2024
by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant L’Essentiel in Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of L’ Abbey Royale de Fontevraud in Fontevraud - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at L’Orangerie Saumur in the Courtyard of the Château de Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting,
Cellar Tour and Vineyard Tour at Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains,
Anjou, with Next Generation Owner/ Winemaker Louis Germain and Agathe
Germain - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour and Tasting at Maison Bouvet-Ladubay in Saumur, with Owner Juliette Monmousseau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Cave M. Plouzeau in Chinon, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Marc Plouzeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Domaine de la Haut Olive in Chinon, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Le Bistrot du Marchéin Chinon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine François Gazin, Le Petit
Chambord, in Cheverney, Touraine, with François Gazin - Loire Valley
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant Brut Maison de
Cuisine in Blois, with Owner/ Chef Adrien Delafoy and Owner/ Chef Thomas
Gaudard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour by Car and Tasting at Domaine Brazilier in Thoré-la-Rochette, CôteauxVendômois, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Benoît Braziliery - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Le Moulin du Loir in Vendôme - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit of Château Chambord - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Tour of Château Royal de Blois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Sunday Lunch at Restaurant La Croix Blanche (Bib Gourmand Michelin), with Owner/ Chef Jean-François Beauduin - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of Château du Clos Lucé and the Leonardo-da-Vinci Park in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner, Overnight-stay and Breakfast at Château de Pray in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours.
Visit at Denis Meunier in Vernou-sur-Brenne, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit at Domaine des Aubuisières, Bernard Fouquet, in Vouvray, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of Château Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner and Overnight-stay at Auberge du Bon Laboureur in Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Walk, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Pellé in Morogues,
Menetou-Salon, with the Export Manager Pauline Guillot - Loire Valley
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Restaurant Fluteau in Morogues - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Extensive Tasting at at Domaine Alphons Mellot in Sancerre,
with Alphons Mellot - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Domaine de Vrillères, SCEA in Sury-en-Vaux,
Sancerre, with Kevin Lauverjat - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Domaine Tinel-Blondelet in Pouilly-sur-Loire, with
Marlène and Annick Tinel - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Restaurant/ Affineur Romain Dubois in Chavignol, with Gilles Dubois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domaine Henri Bourgeois in Chavignol - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Wine-pairing Dinner at Le Clos du Maréchal with the Wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Last Meal of the Tour: At La Coupole in Paris - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours