Chateau du Sureau

Heavy iron gates swing open magically, allowing you to enter a world far removed from the everyday activity of Oakhurst, a town just to the south of Yosemite National Park. You enter through the château’s heavy doors, cross a cool, limestone flagged foyer, and step down into a stunning living room opening onto a circular tower room. A grand piano sits beneath a whimsically frescoed ceiling. Doors open to reveal a sunny breakfast room and a tiny chapel. A spiraling stone staircase leads up to the individually decorated bedrooms named for herbs and flowers: Saffron has an enormous ebony bed and black-marble fireplace; Lavender is sunny in colors of periwinkle blue and lavender; and Elderberry is cool in blue and white. Each of the splendid bedrooms has a wood-burning fireplace, goose-down duvet, hidden CD player, luxurious bathroom with a deep soaking tub (many large enough for two), the finest toiletries, thick towels, and the softest of robes. A beautiful villa offers two luxurious suites. Spend your days by the pool and indulging in treatments at the spa. In an evening walk across the garden to the restaurant which presents a spectacular fixed-price six-course dinner.