--- title: "Château de Berzé-le-Châtel: Visit, Opening Times & History" description: "Recorded in 991, the fortress that shielded Cluny keeps three rings of walls, 13 towers and a 36-metre well. Open April to November, by private driver." url: https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-berze-le-chatel lang: en updated: 2026-10-01 generated: 2026-10-08 image: https://www.cote-privee.com/og/chateaux/chateau-de-berze-le-chatel.png --- # Château de Berzé-le-Châtel > Château de Berzé-le-Châtel: the largest medieval fortress of southern Burgundy, built to shield Cluny, with terraced gardens and its own wine. Château de Berzé-le-Châtel is in Berzé-le-Châtel (Saône-et-Loire), 1 h 11 by road (93 km) from Beaune. Opening hours: 4 April to 1 November, hours vary with the season · Admission: Adults €8, reduced €6.50 · 11th to 15th century · Private driver from Beaune: €250 one way for the whole car, up to 4 guests. Perched on a rocky spur between Cluny and the Rock of Solutré, Berzé guards the vineyards of the Petite Grosne valley. Three rings of walls, thirteen towers and two keeps make it the largest fortress of southern Burgundy. The same family has owned and restored it since 1817. ## Key facts - Type: Medieval fortress - Location: 70 km south of Beaune · Mâconnais - Coordinates: 46.3850, 4.6888 - 1 h 11 from Beaune - Open to visitors, 4 April to 1 November - 11th to 15th century - Commune: Berzé-le-Châtel · Saône-et-Loire - Style: Medieval fortress - Heritage: Listed historic monument - Official website: [berze.fr](https://www.berze.fr) - From Beaune: ≈ 1 h 11 · 93 km - €250 one way from Beaune with a [private driver](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver) - Or add it to our [full-day wine tour plus two hours, €700](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day). ## Getting there - [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver): 1 h 11 by road (93 km), €250 one way for the whole car. Coming by train or plane? [Transfers from stations and airports](https://www.cote-privee.com/transfers) Estimates per vehicle for up to 4 guests, tolls included. Your price is confirmed when you book. ## History A castrum at Berzé is recorded in 991 in a charter of Cluny, with a wooden keep and a Carolingian stone chapel. The lords of Berzé formed the oldest barony of the Mâconnais and were direct vassals of the king of France. Hugues de Berzé, a trouvère and crusader, is buried at Tournus. In 1229 a loan from Cluny allowed the lord of Berzé to turn the castle into a great fortress. Berzé became the main defensive castle of Cluny. Given to the Burgundians in 1417, it was taken by the Armagnacs in 1420 and recaptured by Philip the Good four years later. It resisted Louis XI in 1471, but in 1591 a Catholic League army of 1,100 men took it after a two-month siege. The fortress was then left abandoned for nearly two centuries. Declared national property at the Revolution, the ruined castle returned to private hands in 1817. Its new owners and their descendants, the Thy de Milly family, repaired the roofs and floors, enlarged the windows in a romantic spirit and turned the terraces into gardens. They opened the fortress to the public, and the family also runs a wine estate on the surrounding slopes. ## Architecture The fortress climbs in terraces behind three successive walls more than 300 metres long and up to three metres thick at the base. Thirteen towers survive, with two keeps and a powerful gatehouse with a portcullis. Inside are the lord's lodging, medieval rooms, early chapels and a well cut 36 metres into the rock. Gardens fill the spaces between the walls. ## Opening hours and tickets - Opening hours: - 4 April to 4 July: Tuesday to Sunday, 14:00 to 18:00 - 5 July to 31 August: Monday to Saturday, 10:00 to 19:00; Sunday, 11:00 to 19:00 - 1 September to 1 November: Tuesday to Sunday, 14:00 to 18:00 - Admission: Adults €8, reduced €6.50 Last entry is one hour before closing, and guided tours start at 17:00 in the low season and several times a day in July and August. Checked on 1 October 2026 on [the official site](https://berze.fr/horaires-tarifs/). ## Visiting Berzé is open from April to early November, with free and guided visits of about an hour. The full programme runs in July and August, and in the low season the fortress opens in the afternoons, except on Mondays. Tastings of the estate's wines can follow the visit. A medieval festival takes place over the Ascension weekend in May. ## Did you know? According to the owners, Philip the Good recaptured Berzé from the Armagnacs in 1424 thanks to an underground passage linking the castle to a watchtower on a nearby hill. ## Around Château de Berzé-le-Châtel What to combine with Château de Berzé-le-Châtel on the same day, nearest first. ### Villages - [Pouilly-Fuissé](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/pouilly-fuisse) (12 km away): Burgundy's great southern white, grown beneath the limestone cliffs of Solutré and Vergisson. - [Viré-Clessé](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/vire-clesse) (14 km away): Two neighbouring villages of the Haut-Mâconnais, joined in one appellation for generous Chardonnay. - [Saint-Véran](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/saint-veran) (15 km away): Fresh Chardonnay from villages that wrap around Pouilly-Fuissé, beneath the Roche de Solutré. ### Châteaux - [Maison de Lamartine](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/maison-de-lamartine-milly) (4 km away): The childhood home of Alphonse de Lamartine, a winegrowers' house that inspired some of his finest poems. - [Château de Pierreclos](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-pierreclos) (6 km away): A medieval castle turned wine estate on a rocky spur near Solutré, full of Lamartine memories. - [Château de Monceau](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-monceau) (7 km away): Lamartine's wine château near Mâcon, where he wrote in a small wooden pavilion among the vines. ### Things to do - [Monks’ Chapel, Berzé-la-Ville (Chapelle des Moines de Berzé-la-Ville)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/chapelle-des-moines-berze-la-ville), 3 km away: A small Romanesque chapel holding the only surviving monumental paintings of Cluny's great age. - [Château de la Greffière et Musée de la Vigne et du Vin](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/chateau-de-la-greffiere-musee-de-la-vigne-et-du-vin) (4 km away): A family estate between Mâcon and Cluny, with a museum of 2,000 old tools and an 18th-century tasting cellar. - [Domaine Fichet](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-fichet-ige) (5 km away): A family estate in the hamlet of Le Martoret at Igé, whose growers trace their roots back to 1408. ### Restaurants - [L’O des Vignes](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/l-o-des-vignes-fuisse) (12 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): A Meilleur Ouvrier de France cooking in the heart of Pouilly-Fuissé. - [La Table de Chaintré](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/la-table-de-chaintre) (15 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): One menu a week, one husband-and-wife team, in a former village grocery near Mâcon. ## Questions about Château de Berzé-le-Châtel ### How far is Château de Berzé-le-Châtel from Beaune? Château de Berzé-le-Châtel is about 1 h 11 from Beaune by road (93 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €250 for the whole car, up to 4 guests. ### Can you visit Château de Berzé-le-Châtel? Yes, Château de Berzé-le-Châtel welcomes visitors. Opening days and times change with the seasons, so check its official website before you go. ### Can a private driver take us to Château de Berzé-le-Châtel? Yes. Your driver collects you in Beaune or at your hotel in an electric Polestar 2 (up to 4 guests), waits while you visit and plans the rest of the day with you. The driver speaks English, French, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic. → [Full-day wine tour plus two hours, €700](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day) ## Book - [Book a driver here](https://www.cote-privee.com/book?service=driver&place=chateau:berze): €250 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests ## Sources - - - - - - --- Canonical page: