Golfhotel de Saint-Saëns — Saint-Saëns, France

Deep in the beech woods of the Eawy Forest, Golfhotel de Saint-Saëns occupies an ivy-clad 19th-century château that serves as both clubhouse and boutique hotel for one of Normandy’s most varied parkland layouts. The 18-hole course twists through a river valley, climbs a coppiced plateau and finishes beneath the terrace, letting players swap spikes for local cider inside three minutes of holing out. Practise continues until dusk on a tree-sheltered range and a two-tier putting green that mirrors the château’s historical symmetry.

Indoors, a vaulted-brick breakfast hall converts to a stretch-mobility zone on rain delays, while a compact fitness corner—free weights, stationary bikes and mats—keeps core-activation routines alive ahead of tournament rounds. Mountain and gravel bike rentals unlock the quiet Pays de Bray lanes famed for butter-smooth asphalt and rolling dairy pastures; route cards map 40 km loops past WWI memorials for cyclists chasing calorie-count centuries. Hikers and Nordic walkers follow blue way-marks along the Varenne River, trading fairway stripes for fern-lined single-track where roe deer dart at dusk.

Recovery revolves around Norman gastronomy served light: the château brasserie grills lean turbot, plates quinoa-beet salads and offers a daily “Golfer’s Bowl” flagged with macro ratios. A south-facing terrace doubles as a post-ride yoga deck, and sports masseurs from Dieppe arrive on call for calf flushes using locally pressed flaxseed oil. Evenings remain low key—craft-beer tastings beside an open-log fire, putting-contests under festoon lights—before guests retire behind shuttered windows that mute forest owls and motorway hush alike.

With the A28/A29 junction five minutes away, Calais 125 km north and free on-site parking for van-packed foursomes, Saint-Saëns delivers a fuss-free base where parkland golf, cobble-country rides and nature-rich hikes converge under one château roof.