I Prefer Paris: Domaine de Primard

I’ve hardly taken a day off this summer but two weeks ago I took a mini break overnight and traveled to Normandy. I was invited to experience the newly opened Domaine de Primard, a five-star hotel and spa just an hour from Paris by train.

Domaine de Primard is part of a small chain of luxury hotels under the banner of Les Domaines de Fontenille. I had the fortunate experience of visiting Domaine de Fontenille, a vineyard and hotel in the Luberon in Provence last June and enjoyed a fabulous dinner on their terrace.

I arrived at Domaine de Primard at about 1:30pm at the Bueill train station and waiting on the platform was Diego, a hotel employee who had a sign with my name on it. He escorted me into a van and whisked me to the hotel, which was a short, five-minute ride. As we approached the grounds he shared about the history of the property. The house and the grounds were originally owned by Catherine Deneuve and sits on a 100 acre parcel of bucolic land. After Diego dropped me off just at the entrance, I was once again personally escorted to a golf cart and given a tour of the grounds. We passed a potager (vegetable garden), green meadows, a horse grazing field, a brook, and other picturesque sites before we arrived at the hotel. A former 18^th century chateau, the handsome limestone building has tall windows framed in periwinkle and vines clinging to the entranceway. A round, stone pond with just a hint of water lilies floating in it is encased in a meticulous box hedge.

My room was on the second floor with a calming view of the moat and the gardens. It had high ceilings and the ceiling fixtures are a set of three, mismatched quirky lanterns with colored paper mâché lampshades. The room was painted in a soothing shade of pale celadon and had a king size bed covered in crisp, white sheets and duvet cover. A spacious bathroom has a free-standing bathtub and separate shower room with a rain shower nozzle.

I was famished, as it was way past my regular feeding time, so I headed straight to the restaurant after checking in. The restaurant is located in a separate building from the main hotel, and I walked through a lovely, pebbled garden path with topiaries, and a greenhouse converted into a tearoom. It was a warm sunny day, and the lunch service was outdoors on the lawn with white canvas umbrellas hovering over mint green metal tables and rattan and green metal chairs, a country French setting straight out of a home design magazine.

The appetizer, a ginormous artichoke hollowed out and filled with a green bean salad with toasted hazelnuts dressed in vinaigrette, was the perfect, refreshing dish for the weather. Roasted chicken served in a cast iron, Staub pot was tender and juicy and served with the smoothest, most buttery mashed potatoes you can imagine. I was so stuffed by the generous portions, I didn’t have room for dessert. For those of you who know me well, I know that is quite a shock. However, I did make up for it at dinner, and had a delicious dessert of warm, roasted Mirabelle plums served with vanilla ice cream.

I had been dreaming all summer of swimming in a pool and relaxing on a chaise lounge reading a book. I fulfilled that dream in spades at the pool of Domaine de Primard and it was heaven. I was so relaxed on the cushy chaise, I fell asleep and had a good, much needed nap.

After my nap I went back to my room and stood under the rain showerhead for an invigorating shower. The toiletries by Susanne Kaufmann, a luxury brand spa brand from Austria, included glycerin soap and shampoo scented with flowers and alpine herbs.

I now smelled like a bouquet of flowers (a Good Thing, as Martha Stewart would say) and I took a stroll around the hotel and gardens. At 4pm, the hotel puts out a buffet of tea cakes and pastries such as madeleines and loaf cakes along with tea and coffee service. I had a slice of lemon cake and a chocolate madeleine with espresso and enjoyed them on a table on the back lawn that faced a stream with a view of canoes and kayaks floating on the deep green water. I discovered a noisy gaggle of geese and ducks on a patch of lawn, making their way to the water in the stone moats surrounding the hotel and then I walked through the potager, smelling the fresh herbs.

I slept well that night and the next morning I had an appointment for a massage. My masseur, Gilles Szafirko, was voted the best hands of 2017 from the Label Spas of France during the French Massage Championship, and hands down (oops! sorry for the pun) they should extend that title to 2021 because his magic hands did wonders to my body. Feeling like a limp noodle after my massage I headed back to the pool to take a last swim and a little lounge time before I had to board my early afternoon train back to Paris. I could have stayed all week if they let me but alas, I had to return home so I could write this blog.

One of the good things about Domaine de Primard is that you can visit for the day. You can come for lunch, stroll the grounds, and book a spa treatment. The hotel will pick you up and return you to the train station without charge even if you are coming for the day.

https://www.lesdomainesdefontenille.com/en/domainedeprimard.html