Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay Reviews

Gorgeous place

An incredible place to relax for a weekend near Paris. The reception staff is very friendly and attentive. The only drawback we could mention is that the bar service is somewhat slow, but I recommend this place for couples, groups of friends, or families looking to escape the city.

Great place. Atmospheric. Great service, cuisine. Rooms are clean and nice.

It's quite far, but fortunately the hotel is big and has all the facilities to play. It's just that it's really cold in winter. The lake is definitely cold, and the outdoor swimming pool is definitely cold. But the food is pretty good, and the hot springs are also good.

Splendid and peaceful setting.

Very good 700 years of history and nice waiters

If you’re a bride dreaming of staying at a picturesque hotel in France and capturing some special moments in your wedding dress—think twice before booking this place. My fiancé and I fell in love with the look of this hotel and decided it would be the perfect location for our elopement photos. I reached out as early as December—both by phone and email—to ask a simple question: are elopement photos allowed on the property? When I called, no one had an answer. When I emailed, I was either ignored or given completely unrelated information, like being told I had to book the entire hotel (140+ rooms) to have a wedding—something I never asked for. With no clear answer and no information about photography restrictions on their website, we went ahead and booked our stay in February. In March, we confirmed and booked our photographer—assuming everything was fine, especially after seeing multiple Instagram posts of other brides taking photos there, even liked by the hotel’s own account. But just a week later, out of nowhere, we received an email from the hotel saying that photography was not allowed on the premises. I spent the following week in frustrating back-and-forth emails and phone calls with a manager, explaining that our nonrefundable flights and photographer were all arranged—and that our entire trip was planned around this location. I was told that I could only take photos if I wasn’t wearing a wedding gown. I repeatedly asked for the hotel’s photography policy in writing, but it was never provided. To this day, there is still no such policy listed anywhere on their website. It felt deeply unfair and discriminatory—especially since other people had clearly been allowed to take wedding photos there. In the end, we were refunded for our stay, but the emotional damage was done. We’re now scrambling to find a new location for our photos in France—and our elopement shoot is at the end of May. This hotel was supposed to be the backdrop for one of the most meaningful moments of my life—and instead, it became a source of stress, confusion, and disappointment. If you’re a bride hoping to take wedding photos at your hotel: this is not the place. I wish I had chosen a different location. I’ll never forget how this hotel took away my dream elopement photo experience due to a vague, inconsistent, and seemingly non-existent policy.

The worst service ever. There is no direct line to housekeeping The first night I required blankets from housekeeping but was informed my the reception that the housekeeping left already - it was 9 pm. The next day, i called the reception over 5 times to send me toothbrush and water. I didnt get it for a full hour. I went downstairs to the reception, they told me they will send it. I spoke to the manager he was very cold about it and did nothing. He was not even surprised I called that much! I havent experienced anything like this from a 5 stars hotel. Very bad.

The hotel is as beautiful as it looks, so much charm and history with extensive grounds and countryside to enjoy. The staff could definitely be a little more attentive but this doesn't take away from how beautiful the hotel is, I loved staying here!

An incredible experience from start to finish. We had the feeling of returning to old school excellent service with every person wanting to make our experience the best it could be. The breakfast was particularly delicious and in the most beautiful atmospheric candle lit room. Topped off by a swim in the heated outdoor pool where we had the feeling of swimming with nature. Utterly magical! We will return next time with our children.

We are delighted to soon be staying at the Abbaye in early December to celebrate an anniversary! In fact, we made the decision to sacrifice a few days of our short Paris visit to make the most of this beautiful property. We had a few outstanding questions regarding logistics and in calling the hotel, I was provided with immediate answers, helpful insight, and absolutely superb customer service from the front desk and the reservation team. If this is any indication of what’s in store, I am thrilled! I’d like to especially acknowledge Rafael and Adele for their kindness, professionalism, and patience. We are truly looking forward to enjoying all the offerings of the Abbaye, especially exploring the grounds by foot and boat, wellness services, petting some farm animals, as well as indulging in the on-site activities and restaurants. This will be my partner’s first time to France and I know he is in for a memorable experience! I will happily update this review upon completion of our stay.

The abbey was closed and it looks like it will be closed for quite some time. We rode there on bicycles, so the disappointment was serious, as we had to ride back up the steep hill without seeing a thing! Perhaps a sign in Cernay to say that the abbey is closed would help the tourists, who no doubt come especially to see this historical complex.

The Vaux de Cernay Abbey is a must-see place to visit for any resident of Île de France. Enchanting, with its old stones that speak of History, its pond where you can completely get away from it all and this immense park, magnificent. The only downside is the food! We tasted a very ordinary brunch, worthy of a 2-star restaurant, for the modest sum of €145/person. Too bad, because the service was absolutely perfect! Come on, kitchens, get to work! A little imagination, for heaven's sake! Egg mayonnaise and pasta salads are not worthy of a gourmet restaurant, or even a good restaurant!

A lovely weekend and attentive service despite a general water outage that was not announced during check-in and that interfered with our plans for the next day. A very unfortunate event when the place and the services are there!