The Moulin Villeray Condeau lies sweetly in the relatively untouched agricultural region of Le Perche in France’s L’Orne Department – roughly a hundred miles from Paris. The nearest city is Chartre, which we visited many years ago mainly to see the wonderful Gothic cathedral.
As the name implies the Moulin was once a (flour) mill, and a big one at that. What remains is delightfully picturesque comprising a sizeable rust coloured building complete with mighty water wheel and rushing weir, fed by a calm mill pond. Downstream from the stone road bridge, which spans the River Huisine, limpid willows taste the water with the tips of their delicate branches; the scene on the warm May afternoon, when we arrived, lacked only an Ophelia floating serenely by – or maybe not.
The village itself is very pretty, literally with roses around most doors and at the top of the hill is the chateau, part of the hotel, which is undergoing much needed and ambitious renovation. And there, I’m afraid, is the rub. Although The Moulin, provides undeniably ‘low end’ accommodation it really does need some work doing within it. Despite its venerability it appears structurally sound; however, some of its fitments are well past their use by date e.g.: the carpets, especially those on the stairs, should have been thrown out years ago. In some areas they’re downright dangerous – UK elf’n’safety would have a field day. The Moulin proudly possesses a multitude of objets d'intérêt pertaining to its history and the area, but knickknacks are notorious dust magnets and keeping them clean is a major job, especially in a hotel or auberge, the latter being the category into which the Moulin really falls. Regrettably it fails in this area of maintenance and the result is a persistent dusty pong. A similar whiff also pervades the bedrooms (travelling with friends we could make comparisons between rooms) where the walls are covered in a soft backed fabric. It’s an unusual yet not an unattractive feature; but fabric attracts and retains dust and a pat of the hand showed that they don’t vacuum clean the walls very often. The room’s floor covering comprised coir matting, or similar, and that also had a bit of odour to it. It’s a singular choice of hotel room floor covering at any rate. The bathroom, although as clean as it could be got, was, frankly, naff; black mould was evident around the bath faucet and plug fitments. Everything was worn out and needed replacing. The absence of a simple shower curtain meant that the entire bathroom would be doused with spray, if used – it wasn’t – and the bath with its persistently milky looking water wasn’t terribly inviting either. Thank goodness we stayed for only one night, otherwise we would have added to the odeur particulière ourselves. The upside was that the room was spacious and the large bed was very comfortable and we had a nice view of the village from our first floor window. There was a mini bar (top dollar, though, for a couple of bottles of Badoit) and small flat screen TV (untried) but little else in add-ons.
Continuing on the upside the grounds and gardens are lovely, with gentle walks along both sides of the mill pond. There are tables on the weir bridge where a drink can be enjoyed as well as tables under umbrellas in the gardens. There is also a well maintained heated outdoor swimming pool (untried).
The Moulin’s staff are very pleasant indeed and extremely helpful - some had passable English and a sense of humour too, which are added plus points. The restaurant is excellent, once you’d gotten over the sour aroma emanating from the huge, ancient fireplace by the entrance. Fortunately this dissipated during the evening as natural convection drew the air back up the chimney. The restaurant area used to be an active part of the mill floor (the water wheel and workings are exposed at one end) and the massive drive shaft is still in situ. In fact gawping about the room appeared to be the pastime for most diners, in between courses. It must be said, though, that the food and table service is absolutely terrific, with an excellent wine list (so my wine buff chum tells me). Each dish was creative and original – but pretty pricey too, which is the caveat for all of Europe now, I’m afraid. However, you can dine very well from a prix fixe menu (€38 if memory serves) but any deviation could leave you with a supplement per dish in excess of €20.
The Moulin was chosen by our friends and travelling companions who’d stayed once before and were aware of its quirks, of which they’d earlier apprised us. We’d deviated, and stayed over, from the main autoroute up to the Channel Tunnel, as a second break from our leisurely return journey after two weeks in Spain. The Moulin’s restaurant was the main (and recommended) attraction, which is more than can be kindly said about the rooms and other interior upkeep. This is a pity because the Moulin and its village tick many other boxes for a return visit.

Such a romantic, lovely spot in Perche. The owner Muriel was such a pleasure and so delightful. The rooms are creative and charming -- upholstered walls, carved wood sinks, mixture of modern & antique furnishings -- but the dining room is easily the most outstanding room in the building. Enormous stone fireplace and all the original fixtures from the working mill make for a breathtaking design. The food is PERFECT. You could stay for a week and it wouldn't be long enough.

From the internet site and photos on a brochure, I doubted my stay would meet my standards. But my boyfriend already booked the "chambre superieur" at Villeray because it was one of the few chateaus in the area that was open in February.

It was romantic. The home-made jams, upholstered walls in our room, the morning view of the manicured lawn, a fabulous cheese cart, and a great wine selection made this trip unforgettable.

We stayed at the Moulin, which I believe is better than the rooms in the chateau itself because it offers many more modern comforts. We also recommend that you have your breakfast brought to your room because it's not a buffet breakfast and for 2 euros more, it's worth being able to have breakfast in bed.

The bathtub was also a decent size. We were able to soak in a bubble bath after dinner and sip on a half bottle of champagne. When we woke up we were greeted by the owner's handsome son who seems to require no sleep because he was assisting restaurant guests past midnight and was taking calls from hotel guests at the reception desk before we were fully awake!

If romantic is what you want, I would suggest two nights at the Moulin! If I wasn't already very much in love with my boyfriend, I am sure I am now. Over lunch, I nearly proposed to him!!!! But I saved myself from completely embarrassing myself and simply fantasized outloud what our lives would look like together. He then added details of regular weekend getaways beginning next year.

Lovely location, good for peace, quiet, country rides or walks. Hotel OK, if a bit shabby in public areas, food good, though not cheap, staff pleasant - our complaint was that the wine list was ridiculously expensive - the mark up on UK prices was unjustifiable. It's a fair drive away from any other local restaurants, so they seem to have you cornered, and we felt that advantage was being taken.