Versailles plans to scoop hotel revenue

Once home to kings and now one of France’s most visited sites, the Château de Versailles is planning a new venture with a luxury hotel to prop up its finances, according to local media reports.

The palace’s management has called for a tender to create a hotel in three 1680s buildings situated just outside the Versailles park’s gates, with views of some of its most famous buildings, the Journal du Dimanche said.

It would cost between €4m and €7m to renovate the run-down buildings and as much to build a hotel within their walls, the bid for tender said, according to the newspaper.

A previous plan to build a hotel, by a Belgian company looking to operate it for 30 years, was abandoned a few years ago.

The Château de Versailles was transformed by King Louis XIV in the 17th century from a hunting lodge into the dazzling heart of an absolutist state, with a grand palace and gardens.

The call for tender for a 60-year concession on the Grand Controle, Petit Controle, and Pavillon buildings meant to become a hotel will close on September 14, the Journal du Dimanche wrote.

AFP said a source close to the managing body for Versailles said the plan was part of a culture ministry policy “to renovate and add value to historic monuments’ spaces and installing economic activities”.

It also said the leading French hotel group AccorHotels was reportedly competing in the tender and had told it that it was a “logical” choice given its strength in the sector.

The Versailles administration could not be reached for comment.