A jewel of 19th-century architecture, Château de Bouffémont perpetuates the traditions of France’s rich history through the prestigious private events organized on-site (weddings, private stays, VIP seminars, and more).
This magnificent French château is open for private-hire following a superb renovation which included the conversion of its suites and the restoration of its state rooms. The former residence of Baron Empain has been brought back to life for and by its guests.
A truly French experience
This hidden gem is located close to Paris, just a few kilometers from the Charles de Gaulle airport, and regularly welcomes foreign visitors and families keen to have a truly French experience. The château is ideal for family reunions, corporate events and intimate weddings thanks to its magnificent gardens, sublime terrace with truly breathtaking views, and a series of luxury reception rooms. The chateau can also provide high-end support services, either in-house or from our selected service providers, to organize a turnkey wedding ceremony or event.
Five-star service
The level of service you can expect from the chateau is second to none, offering all the luxuries of a five-star hotel with the added benefits of a private residence. The services offered include a resident chef, hotel staff, concierge service, organization of excursions, workshops, tastings, as well as a full range of selected vendors for all your wedding planning and events planning needs. The venue has everything you need to enjoy the French art de vivre in a stunning setting on the edge of the famous Montmorency forest. Other local attractions include the Château de Chantilly, a must-see for lovers of Impressionist painters, and the legendary 18-hole Paris International Golf Club.
The historic Château Bouffémont, situated just 30 kilometers from Paris, offers an elegant and refined setting for private parties, events and weddings.
Choosing a wedding venue is a particularly tricky task and making the right choice is about far more than just aesthetics. The venue is the place where all the main events of the day will take place, from the welcome drinks through to the evening dinner and dancing.
It is vital that you find a venue that is not only aesthetically pleasing but that is also designed to facilitate the logistics and flows as your guests move around the venue at different times of the day and night. It’s also important to select a wedding venue which offers a broad range of services and works with a selection of top vendors to provide all the additional services you require: DJ, caterer, wedding photographer and videographer, florist… and the list goes on.
These considerations are even more important when planning multi-day weddings as your guests will be present at the wedding venue for a number of days, so you will need a space that offers a pleasant, relaxing setting, flexible and versatile spaces and the capacity to accommodate your guests in style.
At Château Bouffémont we specialize in quiet luxury and refined elegance, the perfect choice when organizing a multi-day wedding. Our reception rooms offer a variety of spaces for hosting all kinds of activities, a welcome dinner the day before the wedding, a brunch the day after and even excursions into the French capital given its position close to Paris.
The chateau’s setting, close to the Montmorency forest, along with its beautiful gardens and stunning architecture make it not only a great aesthetic choice, but also a smart choice with its easy access to Paris and its international transport connections, the extensive list of wedding services offered and its well-designed interiors that make organizing your multi-day wedding a walk in the park.
Interested in getting some inspiration for your multi-day wedding from our expert team? Book a call today and start planning your perfect French chateau wedding.
In the heart of the Montmorency forest lies the Paris region’s best-kept secret: Château Bouffémont, a rare luxury private hire venue.
A jewel of 19th-century architecture, Château Bouffémont stands proudly in the heart of the Val-d’Oise, just 30 minutes from Paris and close to the capital’s major transport hubs. Built under Napoleon II, the château was previously home to the illustrious Empain family. Today it is a luxury venue dedicated to hosting exceptional corporate or family events including weddings.
Hospitality is an art form at Château Bouffémont, practiced by our live-in butler and housekeeper, the maîtres d’hôtels, the cleaning and maintenance staff and our team of outstanding vendors. The whole team works hand-in-hand to ensure guests enjoy a unique and timeless experience.
Experience French château life in a timeless setting
Château Bouffémont can be entirely privatized for an unforgettable experience for family and friends alike. Its nine sumptuous suites and rooms, decorated with gilded moudings, crystal chandeliers and luxury fabrics also offer optimum modern amenities and comfort.
Events, family reunions, seminars, luxury weddings
When the weather turns warmer, guests can enjoy cocktail parties, gala dinners and all kinds of tailor-made events on the main terrace, an architectural masterpiece. All the spaces in Château Bouffémont can be adapted to the needs of our guests. Our specialist teams of events organizers and wedding planners work hand-in-hand with our clients to produce made-to-measure events that far exceed their expectations.
Our team can put together all kinds of activities and highlights to make your stay a once-in-a-lifetime experience: a private concert with an internationally-renowned artist, a perfume creation workshop with a master perfumer, a tasting session with a top chef… and so much more.
Planning a wedding is a huge task and can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re getting married abroad. So how can you take the stress out of planning a wedding ceremony abroad? This was precisely the question Château Bouffémont asked themselves when looking for a solution to help couples planning a destination wedding in France.
Our answer was to produce an exclusive collection of curated all-inclusive wedding packages. We did this by teaming up with the experienced wedding event planner Marie Di Lauro to develop a selection of all-inclusive wedding deals that offer hassle-free all-in weddings at our luxury wedding venue here in France, located just 30 kilometers from Paris.
Our curated wedding packages, created by our luxury wedding planner, take all the heavy lifting out of wedding planning, but are flexible enough to create a unique and truly memorable wedding experience.
How does the all-inclusive wedding package work ?
The process for putting together your destination wedding package is extremely simple and is composed of five steps :
1. Choose a wedding date depending on when you want to get married and your budget for the exclusive private hire of the château.
2. Choose from one of our three curated wedding packages – Elegance, Prestige or Excellence – depending on the services you require and your wedding budget. At this stage you can also choose your preferred color palette.
3. Personalize your French château wedding package (wedding ceremony, additional catering options, music and entertainment).
4. Add in additional services from our hand-picked partner wedding vendors (photographer, videographer, hair and make-up, babysitting, cake, stationary etc.).
5. Finally, if you want to continue the festivities the day after your wedding why not add in a next-day brunch and accommodation to complete the package?
What does a curated wedding package include ?
The exclusive hire of the whole château and estate includes access to five function rooms, gardens and the natural park, the bridal suite for preparations and photos, security, post-wedding housekeeping and parking for 80 vehicles. Our Elegance, Prestige and Excellence wedding packages come with different options but all include all the wedding organization and the services of a wedding event planner, the wedding dinner service from pre-dinner drinks and hors-d’oeuvres to the wedding cake, the provision of staff, furniture, floral decoration and tableware, and on-the-day wedding management.
Want to know more about our wedding packages ?
If you’re enchanted by the idea of an elegant, refined all-inclusive wedding in a stunning French château with absolutely none of the wedding planning stress and hassle then a curated wedding at Château Bouffémont is the perfect solution for you. For full details you can request a brochure from our website and of course the entire Château Bouffémont team is on standby to answer any questions or queries.
Drawing inspiration from the stunning setting and picture-perfect architecture of the nineteenth-century Château Bouffémont, this wedding designed by L’amie des Mariés perfectly captures the beauty of this moment where two people who love each other heart and soul, come together to make a life-long commitment.
The wedding design paints the prettiest of pictures, harmonizing to perfection with this prestige wedding venue located just 30 minutes from Paris, in the heart of the Montmorency Forest. Indeed, the château’s natural surroundings were the main source of inspiration for this soft, elegant, historically-inspired intimate wedding as photographer Priscilla Puzenatexplains, “We chose a color palette of blue, white and gray. With a touch of green. These are the colors of the sky that touch our horizon. Colors that overwhelm us when we lie in the grass. The light blue of summer mornings. The cloudy white that tends to gray of clear clouds. And the greenery that reminds us of flower stems misted with morning dew.”
This sophisticated yet natural color palette is used throughout the wedding design, in particular the floral design by Les Herbes Folles, inspired by current trends and the seasonality of the flowers, which uses touches of blue as subtle highlights – in the bride’s bouquet, as part of the tablescaping, on the beautiful cake by Amandine Mais Pas Tarte – to gently attract our attention. This delicate sophistication is echoed in the stationary from Rue Vendôme, right down to the wax-sealed envelope, and in the beautiful romantic styling of the bride and groom, including the enchanting handmade gown by Mademoiselle Rêve and beautiful hair crown by Lizeron Paris.
The wedding design as a whole eloquently conveys the poetry of the unique experience that is a wedding – the uniting of two soulmates. A wedding is more than just a celebration, it is part of the story of the couple’s life together, more than just a contract, it is a promise of eternal love. As wedding planner Marion puts it “I have organized dozens of events with thousands of guests and worked with hundreds of suppliers. But there is nothing more beautiful than the happiness of two soulmates.”
Feeling inspired for your own destination wedding in France ? Get your preparations underway by contacting our expert team on hand at Château Bouffémont to guide you through the whole process step-by-step right up until your special day. We can’t wait to bring your dream wedding to life!
Longing for a destination wedding with all the charm of a French chateau surrounded by countryside but close to Paris and its international airports, rail and road connections?
That is precisely what the luxury wedding venue Château Bouffémont has to offer: a full immersion in the serene and refined atmosphere of the French countryside, just 30 minutes from the French capital.
Rustic charm and refined elegance
This wedding inspiration, shot by Mitchell Bennett Photography and imagined by Rachel Rose Wedding & Events proposes a harmonious blend of rustic charm and refined elegance. The chateau provides the perfect backdrop, a masterpiece of 19th-century architecture set in its beautiful landscaped grounds, themselves surrounded by the luscious greenery of the surrounding Montmorcey forest. On warm days the scent of freshly-picked flowers wafts through the air and the balmy breeze brings a fabulous sense of well-being.
Simplicity and savoir-faire
The star of the show here is the chateau, a showcase in itself, framed by two simple floral swags.
The table takes center stage in front of the beautiful patio, the tablescaping is warm and romantic, simple but elegant. The wicker and wood chairs enhance the rustic elegance, creating a welcoming atmosphere. The floral design by Moon Flora Studio echoes the natural beauty of the countryside with loosely strewn flowers and wheat sheaves woven into the bride’s bouquet.
Farm-to-table dining is key to the wedding reception design, celebrating the abundance of fresh, seasonal ingredients from local farms. France is the food capital of the world and no French chateau wedding would be complete without an array of dishes crafted to spotlight the culinary flair and savoir-faire France is so rightly renowned for.
As the day goes by, the sun sets and the candles are lit, the euphoria of the day gives way to the enchantment of the night, a time for celebrating and cherishing loved ones, the perfect end to the perfect day.
Château Bouffémont is a French chateau wedding venue located close to Paris for easy access for all your guests. The chateau offers a range of options from the smallest intimate wedding to the largest extravaganza of a destination wedding, there really is something for everyone.
Our teams are on hand to help you plan every last detail of your French chateau wedding whatever your inspiration so feel free to get in touch to talk about your wedding plans or request a weddings brochure.
Château Bouffémont itself was the main source of inspiration for this unapologetically romantic fairy-tale wedding shoot. The bucolic setting of the surrounding countryside and the majestic Montmorency forest inspired the design for this bridal editorial by J Bennett Design, shot by Sophie Kaye Photography and filmed by Yana Kishko.
Even the stationary by Isidore and Augustine was inspired by the muted stone colours of the château’s iconic terrace completed with a gold floral seal and vellum jacket covered in delicate white-ink floral motifs. The stonework was also an inspiration for the engraver Focus and Light who inlayed a marbled acrylic illustration of the château into white acrylic on a brass tray.
A look fit for a princess
This fabulous natural setting and the historic château call for a bridal look fit for a princess. First in the boudoir where her soft ivory bustier is enhanced with French silk tulle veiling by Blossom and Bluebird and Bella Belle ‘Esther’ kitten heels with delicate tulle bows. Then, for the main event the satin wedding dress by Monique Lhuillier is both a throwback to the past and resolutely modern with its long-line cape and voluminous sleeves, beautifully accessorized with champagne ‘Frances’ Bella Belle Shoes, a custom Victor Barbone ring, and openwork gold floral statement earrings by A. B. Ellie.
The wedding hair and make-up by Jenyaemphasised the romantic theme with a soft bun and trailing curls.
A voyage in time
The design as a whole takes us right back to the 19th-century when the château was built and hosted prestigious events for its previous owners, the Marquise of Preignes and Baron Empain. A number of features in the reception design evoke times gone by: the traditional chairs from La Maison Option, the tableware and glassware, and the French blue palette offset with La Tavola‘s ‘Topaz’ linens. These are complemented by Jessica Bennett’s floral compositions of soft ivory roses, white lilies, purple freesia, and statice, with peach, purple, and blush orchids adding a touch of modernity.
Our series “Château Bouffémont Live” features interviews with guests from the world of events and weddings to provide you with expert advice and insider insight. Many of you will have recently booked your venue for your 2023 wedding and right now will be getting ready to tell your friends and family – so what better time to talk to someone who can walk you through everything you need to know about wedding stationary? General Manager, Sarp Gogebakan, spoke to just the person for the job – Mikyla Marie Manuirirangi of Ink and Press co.
SG: Hi Mikyla, thank you so much for joining us today, before we get into the practical details perhaps you could tell me how you got into wedding stationary?
MMM: Like a lot of wedding vendors, I got into it through my own experience as a bride. When I got married, I became absolutely fascinated with the wedding industry as a whole and the stationary process in particular, as it seemed like the perfect outlet for my creative and artistic talents. So, after my own wedding I looked into it and ending up setting up my own business.
SG: Ok great, on the practical side let’s start with the basics, can you talk us through exactly what wedding stationary couples might need for their wedding?
MMM: There are basically four categories of wedding stationary you will need:
Firstly, Save the Date Cards, these are particularly important if you are planning a destination wedding or inviting international guests as it will allow people time to plan ahead. As well as the date the card should include at least the general location and any practical details you might have available at this stage.
Next comes the Invitation Suite which includes the main invite card and additional insert cards for any extra events (welcome dinner, farewell brunch etc.) and information on logistics.
Then we can start thinking about Day-of Paper Goods which covers everything you might need on the day of your wedding such as menus, name cards, escort cards etc. This is where you can really have fun creating very personal items to reflect your own love story.
Finally, after the event it’s really important to thank your guests with a handwritten Thank You Card.
SG : What about timings, how long does the design process take and what deadlines do couples need to have in mind to get their invitations out on time?
MMM: First of all, if you want to work with a specific stationer you will need to contact them well ahead of the event, currently I’m taking bookings 12 – 18 months in advance. The actual duration of the design process will vary from one stationer to another, but personally I like to leave plenty of time so will ask couples ideally to allocate 4 – 6 months to the design process. We also have a specific problem at the moment with issues relating to paper supplies post-Covid, so if a couple wants any very specific materials they will need to order months ahead to be sure of getting what they want. This also leaves time to mail samples of materials etc. which can take some time. In terms of mail dates, I recommend you send Save the Date Cards 8 – 12 months before the wedding (especially for destination weddings) and send Invitation Suites around 10 – 12 weeks to avoid any postal delays or issues. I recommend that for a destination wedding add on an extra 4 weeks to that deadline.
SG: What recommendations do you give your clients in terms of finding design inspiration?
MMM: I always tell clients to look inwards when thinking about their wedding stationary design. Rather than seeing what everyone else is doing and copying that, I want them to focus on adding in personal touches that reflect who they are individually and as a couple so that it really is about them and their love story. I encourage my clients to make mood boards with photos of things they love, places they’ve been, things that are meaningful to them rather than just photos of stationary they like. Then I can draw inspiration from that for the design to make it really personal.
SG: What are the current wedding stationary trends you’re seeing for this wedding season?
MMM: The big trends we started to really see in 2022 and which are definitely going to continue through into 2023 are really interesting combinations of materials – mixing cotton card, handmade paper, velvet, faux leather to give lots of texture, personality and depth to the work. The other trend is for customized shapes for example a card in the shape of a country, a monument or a design motif.
SG: Any final tips for couples currently planning their weddings?
MMM: Yes, start collecting addresses as soon as possible, it really does save a lot of time and hassle when it comes to sending out the invitations!
The picturesque nineteenth-century, Château Bouffémont located just 30 kilometers from Paris provided the ideal setting for this Franco-Cameroonian wedding, whose central inspiration was bride Johanna’s love of fairytale pastel colors.
For this ultra-romantic wedding, the wedding planners Ceremonize orchestrated a floral extravaganza, with Kahina Events creating an incredible floral design working off the pastel color palette of sky blue, pink, lilac and creamy white with a show-stopping ceremony arch and an explosion of florals in the incredible reception spaces inside the château, the dreamy interiors providing perfect backdrop to their work.
As the photos captured by Daria Lorman Photography show, the bride’s vision was brought to life with great success, exceeding even her own expectations, as the couple and their guests smiled and laughed their way through the day, reveling in the creativity of the top-class vendors that turned this prestige wedding venue into their very own fairytale château for the day.
The château’s exquisite grounds provided an idyllic setting for an incredible sunset Cameroonian dance performance put on for guests before they enjoyed their gourmet French dinner. Even the croquembouche served was iced in pastel colors, the attention to detail making this a wedding to remember – not to mention the set played by DJ Randy that kept guests going on the dance floor into the early hours of the morning.
If you want the Château Bouffémont team to help you make your own French château wedding dream a reality contact us today or request our latest brochurewith full details of our services and more information on our wedding reception spaces, rooms and grounds.
Our series “Château Bouffémont Live” features interviews with guests from the world of events and weddings to provide you with expert advice and insider insight. This week Château Bouffémont’s General Manager, Sarp Gogebakan, spoke to one of the most renowned cake designers in Paris – Synie – to talk about what’s hot in the world of wedding cakes this season!
SG: Hi Synie, it’s great to have you here today, we love what you do at Synie’s Paris and are always impressed with your wedding cakes, but before we talk about that tell us how you got started in this field.
SP: I’ve always loved cake since I was a little girl. I actually started out creating recipes, but there is something really special about cake design and wedding cake design in which drew me in. I love the creative aspect, especially with my background in art history, and the fact that you have to draw together all the different aspects of the wedding into this one creation: the cake needs to fit with the wedding design, the couple themselves, the event, their style. It’s a challenge but great fun!
SG: What options do couples have when designing their wedding cake?
SP:The options are limitless! We really can work to incorporate anything the couple wants into their cake. For example one groom loves apple pie so we created a customized flavor with apple, cinnamon, crumble to mimic the pastry. The same goes for the decoration, we take inspiration from all aspects of the wedding, for that particular cake we used the clip in the bride’s hair to create a decoration of gold-edged flowers. The key is to ask couples lots of questions and to look at the wedding dress, the stationary, the venue, as well as asking them about their taste and style, you never know where you will find the inspiration so it’s good to cover all bases.
SG : What about flavors? Do you have any advice on choosing flavors for your wedding cake?
SP: I always tell couples to think about what they really like, but in actual fact most couples want to go with flavors they know the majority of their guests will enjoy, so in the summer it’s often vanilla and summer fruits – raspberries and strawberries – sometimes with champagne. In the winter it’s usually richer flavors like hazelnut, chocolate and caramel.
SG: There are a lot of different options for wedding cakes ranging from the most traditional to the most modern, what fun things have you been asked to do with a wedding cake and what are the key trends for this season?
SP: One thing I have been asked for which I think it going to become more popular is to incorporate a couple’s pets into their wedding cake design. So, this year I had a cake which had pawprints on it and next year I have an order which will incorporate three cats ! In terms of the trends we are seeing this season, florals are still very big and there are a lot of white-on-white designs which play with texture. Next season I think the textural aspect will stick but there will be more color and probably more painted cakes.
SG: Dessert buffets are still very popular, is this something you recommend for couples or is it a bad idea?
SP: It really depends on how important dessert is to the couple themselves. If they have a sweet tooth and like to eat lots of cake then it’s a great idea. When it’s well done a dessert buffet table can become a decorative feature in itself and this is where you can include a croquembouche or macaron pyramid or anything else you particularly enjoy.
SG: You’ve often worked on cakes for weddings held at Château Bouffémont in the past, if you were to make a Château Bouffémont cake what would it be like?
SP: I absolutely love Château Bouffémont – it’s a great wedding venue, the space is amazing, it has incredible views, it’s light and airy and the staff are all so helpful and friendly when I deliver my cakes. So, if I was to make you a customized cake I think I would start with a pistachio base as a nod to the green room which is absolutely beautiful. Then to balance it out I would add in a more acidic note like raspberry and a bit of crunch to finish it off. The decoration would need to be bright and airy like the spaces in the château so it would be very delicate.
