Oh how wrong one can be when choosing a chateau for a luxury stay. We chose this one from the Michelin Guide, and on arriving thought it looked wonderful. There however the wonder ended. We had been promised an elegant poolside room. What we got offerred was a grotty dirty room above the changing room. Reception was unfriendly and unhelpful. When I returned to say I wasn't happy, I had to wait for the receptionist to finish her food before she deemed to speak with me. We had been conned into a deal including a very expensive compulsory dinner. On the phone I overheard the receptionist giving another possible client the option of room only. I asked for another room, and was shown a suite (actually a room with a stair to a mezanine bed shelf) which we could have for twice our quoted price. I had had enough. We checked out and left (with no help from the staff). If travelling through Auverne, this is one place you must miss.

I booked this hotel as it is not far off the main motorway down to the south of France. I was driving down on my own with my 3 year old daughter and we wanted somewhere wonderful to break our journey and luxuriate. Having just driven six solid hours we were both impressed by the beautiful chateau and were anticipating a warm welcome. We got nothing of the sort. We stood at the reception with two members of staff on the other side of the desk ignoring our arrival. It is such a tiny space that to do this takes some skill. When we were finally acknowedged I was told that our room was not ready (it was 14.30) and that we should have a walk around. My arms were laden with luggage but no suggestion was made as to what I should do with it. There was no apology for the room not being ready and no offer of a drink while we wait. I was made to feel as if we were a nuisance. Our room was TINY with the bed placed at an angle across the centre of the room (the only way they could fit one in). The loo was behind a sliding wooden, ill-fitting door so offered no real privacy . The room was in the attic but the sense of being in a chateau was totally lost by the 'chalet' decor of cheap wood panelling. The bathroom was part of the bedroom with a large jacuzzi bath (with filthy air nozzles - though the rest of the room was spotlessly clean). There was a coffee machine with pods to use (at 3€ a pop). Later that afternoon I spoke with my husband who was anxious to know that we had arrived safely and were having a glorious time. I told him of our underwhelming welcome and he gave the hotel a call and asked to speak to the manager to express his disappointment. The outcome of this was that I was shouted at, by the general manager, in the middle of the full restaurant on the beautiful terrace, about 'my problem'. I was even told that I should not have told my husband about it!! The food was exquisite but my dinner was obviously ruined by this and the subsequent stares that it drew from my fellow diners. Put out by my husband's comments this gentelman clearly wanted to make a spectacle of me and make me feel as uncomfortable as possible. Why else would he not have waited until I was away from the middle of the restaurant? Just awful. The pool was lovely, some of the waiting staff were utterly charming, the chateu was beautiful but it was so utterly spoiled for us. We paid over 400€ which included a meal for me, a childs meal for my daughter, half a bottle of wine with dinner and some mint tea. I have routinely paid this sort of price and quite a bit more and am happy to do so but to say that I felt fleeced on this occasion is an understatement. Oh and the mark-ups on the wine and bar prices have to be seen to be believed. I have NEVER seen anything like it before.

We had a most unfortunate time at this establishment. We stayed one night, and after dinner we had four Creme De Menthe frappes, which is a common and inexpensive liquer.On inspecting the bill at checkout, we found that these four drinks had cost €100, €25 each.This must be prefaced by saying that the retail price of a bottle of Creme De Menthe(14 or 15 measures) is around 13 euros. The only excuse the hotel could muster was that they were a four star hotel. At the subsequent establishments we stayed at on our trip, we made a point of getting the price of the aforementioned drink.The most expensive we encountered was £7 stg in the Dorchester in London, one of the foremost luxury hotels in the world, the equivalent of eleven euros, making Codignat's four star excuse all the more laughable considering the Dorchester is obviously five star and the reality is that the gulf between the two is much greater than that would suggest. Another example is L'Auberge Bretonne in Brittany, a two michelin star restaurant with rooms, which charged €4, a full €21 less. You would probably now not be suprised, after reading the above, that for three unprepossesing fruit plates shortly after arrival, Codignat charged €64.Quite shocking really. On the hotel front, the rooms are jaded and in need of renovation, and none have showers, only a bathtub with an attachable shower cord, which was it must be said mostly useless.The restaurant, it must be said, is of fine quality however it is a shame that it is not located in another hotel. The manager, on hearing our complaints, reacted in quite a bizarre fashion.He ventured that we could pay or he could call the police.For a family that has spent countless summers in France, travelling the country and staying in Relais & Chateaux properties, this came as quite a shock. We left, and will obviously never return.Any potential guests might do well to do the same.