France – Châteauvillain (En)

We went to Châteauvillain because I had read that it was a medieval village set within a national forest park. In reality, it is a tiny hamlet, yet it has charm. While strolling near the Church of Notre-Dame—a listed historical monument—we discovered an architect with a unique style who has left his mark on the local identity.

Where to stay

We stayed at the town’s camping-car area (18.030317, 4.911941 lat, long), a five-minute walk from the church square and right next to the town’s only supermarket. It costs 12.76 euros, all-inclusive. As I mentioned before, these sites offer electricity, potable water, trash bins, and facilities for emptying grey and black water. This particular site also features picnic tables and a ping-pong table, which we enjoyed using. Across from the area, there was a pizzeria with a pizza vending machine. We’ve seen these pizza vending machines in many places across France. We’ve never tried them ourselves, but if anyone has eaten pizza from one of these machines, I’d be curious to know if they’re any good!

What to see

You can walk through the entire village in 10 minutes. The park at the village entrance, where you can see deer sculptures, is worth highlighting.

The town begins right across from the park, and the first thing you come across is a square with a statue and a stream lined with medieval walls.

As you go up the street, you reach the town’s main square, home to the Church of Notre-Dame—a historic monument with a unique style and striking architectural details that we admire.

The town hall is also located in the square. Ben made a friend while sitting on a bench!

We left this town and headed to Châlons-en-Champagne—known for its champagne, UNESCO World Heritage sites, and the picturesque canals of the Marne River—which you’ll see in the next blog post.