orchard. Le Haut Chantier, 011-33/2 -47 -30 -16 -82, aubergedelaunay.com, closed Dec. 15 -- Jan. 15, rooms from $72, two-course dinner from $26. ONZAIN Château des Tertres This mansion in the heart of the Loire once belonged to the mother of novelist Marguerite Duras -LRB- who mentions the château in her famous work The Lover -RRB-. Later, in the 1960s, its marble hallways were filled with students from a nearby engineering school, which used the building as a dorm. In 1992, another curious owner took over management of the 14-room château: Bernard Valois, an artist who kept the mansion's 19th-century detailing -LRB- high ceilings, gilded mirrors -RRB- but added contemporary design flourishes, such as a photograph of a mysterious pair of eyes in the foyer. Last year, Valois and his wife, Christine, redecorated a former gatekeeper's house as a contemporary four-room cottage with knockoff Jackson Pollock paintings and sculptures that resemble enormous eggs. My husband likes to turn things that seem ordinary into the extraordinary, Christine says. He designed a Sputnikbidet that has Japanese robots stationed around the tank. Valois also tends a 12-acre garden of roses and clematises, where guests can find a shed stocked with complimentary bikes for exploring the area's 186 miles of riding paths. 11 rue de Meuves, 011-33/2 -54 -20 -83 -88, chateau-tertres. com, closed Oct.