Amid the winelands of Anjou and Saumur in France is the 12th-century monastery L'Abbaye de Fontevraud. Once part of the French penal system, this was one of the less glamorous draws on the Loire Valley châteaux tour, but Parisian design duo Jouin Manku has turned that upside down by working its magic on the interiors. Guestrooms in the new 54-room hotel see a reduced colour palette of beige with mustard-yellow accents and similarly rigorous materials: blackened steel, wood, wool and linen. There is an ascetic scholarliness behind the design with single items doing double duty: when stacked along the wainscoting, bespoke folding dining-room chairs become decorative elements and perforated-steel screens slide across the TVs, so they can serve as art installations. The raw modernity echoes the building's monastic heritage.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
Fontevraud l'Abbaye
Anjou
France
-
The great American museum boomNine of the world’s top ten most expensive, recently announced cultural projects are in the US. What is driving this investment, and is this statistic sustainable?
-
Here’s how Heathrow is reimagining airport chaos as ambient musicGrammy-nominated Jordan Rakei turns travel noise into a meditative soundtrack by sampling everything from baggage belts to jet engines
-
Wallpaper* checks into Gansevoort Meatpacking, an art-filled hotel that mirrors the district’s glow-upThis sharp, stylish New York hotel is a fixture in its neighbourhood, where boutiques, restaurants and clubs have long since taken over spaces once occupied by slaughterhouses
-
The most stylish hotel takeovers to pop up at this summerFrom Capri to Ibiza, luxury fashion brands are taking over seaside resorts with exclusive boutique pop-ups and bespoke poolside accessories
-
Tour Eurostar’s sleek new lounges in Paris and BrusselsLondon-based Chris Bagot Architects has designed a stylish environment in which to work or unwind prior to high-speed rail travel
-
Taste a Louis Vuitton summer in sun-drenched Saint-TropezThe Arnaud Donckele & Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton restaurant returns to the White 1921 Saint-Tropez hotel for its third edition, now with a Michelin star
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Experimental Marais: a lush homecoming for the hospitality forceExperimental Group returns to its Parisian roots, where it opened its founding bar, to launch its first-ever flagship hotel, designed by Tristan Auer
-
Bon appétit! These are the best restaurants in ParisExperience haute cuisine at the best restaurants Paris has to offer, from a vegetable-centric menu at Arpège to alchemical cuisine at Plénitude
-
Sun-soaked European destinations to visit in springDreaming of Florentine palazzos and Greek islands now that the weather is starting to turn? Check into one of these beautiful European hotels and holiday homes
-
The warmth and comfort of Paris restaurant Margaux: ‘It’s like feasting at grandma’s’Located on the 16th arrondissement, Margaux dishes up timeless French classics in a setting that feels like home
-
Saint Laurent unveils Sushi Park Paris: the Los Angeles omakase’s new outpostA beloved Californian restaurant finds a second home at the Saint Laurent Rive Droite flagship, merging the worlds of haute couture and high-end gastronomy
