Hâttonchatel Château – The Castle Hotel for hot air balloon teams.

This year – 2009 the Lorraine Mondial Air Ballons Festival / event transformed the skies of the Lorraine area of North Eastern France again – approximate 2 ½ hours drive from Paris or 1 ¼ hours drive from Luxembourg.  It was one of the biggest festivals ever, beginning with a World Record ‘mass’ launch of 329 hot air balloons from Chambley air base.

Hot air ballooning holiday

Participating as a balloon team in this event is great fun, and being able to stay at Hattonchatel Château made it even more special.  The Château is an architecturally beautiful building rebuilt in the early 1900s by the American lady Belle Skinner, who fell in love with the small village and the authentic Castle.  The Château stands on the edge of a hill, overlooking the beautiful countryside of Lorraine, and within only 10 minutes drive of the ballooning action at Chambley air base.

Hotel accommodation

On arrival we were welcomed by both  the manager and guardians of the Château who gave us a tour including the flourishing terraced gardens, exquisite banquet hall with awe-inspiring dimensions normally used for weddings, weekend breaks, golf Holidays, family celebrations, business meetings or a general vacation, original murals, spiral staircases and an endless list of wonderful features which typify the splendour of a true French Château!  The rooms are large with en-suite bathrooms, finished to a very high standard and with wonderful views.
If you are lucky enough to stay in a round turret suite, you have views in different directions and the privacy of having no one in a bedroom next to you.

A French Castle with a breathtaking ambiance

As well as being conveniently close to the airbase, staying at the Château is a wonderfully relaxing place to be.  Once you go through the door you are in the private gardens of the Château, and you can enjoy the beautiful architecture, gardens and views in peace and tranquillity.  This is much needed when participating in balloon flights every morning and evening!

Balloon training

We started off our balloon week with a balloon tether to train some of our new crew.  The large grassy area in front of the Château was ideal, and also enabled us to give some local people a tethered flight and get some amazing photos and video of the Château lit by the balloon up at night.
The weather was superb, being sunny and calm most of the week and we were able to fly nearly every day.  Every flight was an exciting adventure as we launched from the air base with hundreds of other balloons, not knowing where we would end up.  On many occasions the balloons flew to the north, but two flights enabled us to get a small glimpse of the Château from the air.

Balloon flights over the Chateau

To gain a better view of the Château and to acquire some stunning photographs, we were able  to inflate the balloon inside the Château courtyard.  Although there were some obstacles such as roses and statues, the inflation was carefully planned and the crew and staff worked excellently together to make sure everything was protected.
The inflation was such as success it drew other balloonists to the Château to have a look, and the weather was so good we decided to launch and perform a short flight.  People from all over the area could see the balloon over the Château.

We were very sad to leave the Château and would have loved to extend our stay longer.  We had come to feel very at home as everyone had made us feel so welcome.  We also managed to explore the area a little, visiting Verdun, the American war monument and the beautiful Lac de Madine.  With all these attractions surrounding it, and the glory of the Château itself, it is a truly fantastic place to stay.

Mondial  Air Ballons Festival in Lorraine

This year the Lorraine Mondial  Air Ballons Festival transformed the skies of the Lorraine area of North Eastern France again.  It was one of the biggest festivals ever, beginning with a World Record ‘mass’ launch of 329 balloons from Chambley air base.

Hot air ballooning  weddings

The French Castle is the perfect wedding location for a unusual hot air balloon wedding, which is getting more and more in demand. While we were attending the exiting balloon festival, several English balloon enthusiasts approached us regarding a balloon weekend break at the Castle. By return to the Chateau every evening we learned that several couples and teams had made reservations or bookings for a hot air balloon weekend trip to the stunning Castle Hotel for later in the Autumn or for spring 2010.

Best Regards
Jordan, Jo, Seb, Angela, Tom, Linda, Steve and Sarah.

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