TVA: 0% on a private let, 10% on a managed let with services
This is the line that moves the most money. A château let directly by its owner is generally outside TVA in France. A let managed professionally with hotel-like services (daily housekeeping, a concierge desk, a chef included) can carry 10 percent TVA on the accommodation, and an agency booking fee carries 20 percent on the fee. On an $84,000 managed headline, a 10 percent TVA line is roughly $8,400. Ask in writing which regime applies before comparing two châteaux, because the structure can shift the total by a five-figure sum.
Taxe de séjour: per person per night, plus a 10 percent departmental addition
The local taxe de séjour, set by the Beaune Côte et Sud agglomeration and the other Côte d’Or communities, is a fixed per-person-per-night rate for classified properties and roughly 1 to 5 percent of the nightly rate per person for unclassified accommodation, with a 10 percent departmental addition on top. For a group of ten on a seven-night stay the line typically runs 100 to 300 euro, a small itemised charge collected by the host or platform and remitted to the community.
Service and concierge: 5 to 12 percent where billed separately
Some managed châteaux bundle the host, the concierge, and the housekeeping into the headline; others bill a management or concierge fee of 5 to 12 percent on top. The fee covers the meet-and-greet, the pre-stock, the domaine and restaurant bookings, and the in-stay support, which matters more here than in a beach market because the great cellars take introductions rather than walk-ins. Verify whether the host and the housekeeping are inclusive or a separate line.
Staff and heating: housekeeping standard, the pool a question
The large managed châteaux usually include daily housekeeping, a villa host or guardian, and grounds maintenance in the headline, with a chef, a wine guide, and a driver billed separately. Smaller villas include housekeeping a few times a week. The line to verify in Burgundy is the pool: many château pools are unheated or closed outside high summer, and heating one, where possible, adds a daily charge. Confirm the staffing, the hours, and the pool status in writing.
Evening chef: €400 to €800 per service plus food at cost
An independent evening chef runs 400 to 800 euro per service plus food at cost for ten, in line with rural France and below the Riviera. Food cost lands at 60 to 120 euro per person depending on protein (Charolais beef, Bresse chicken, escargots, the local cheeses) and the wine. Burgundy is the one market where the cellar can cost more than the dinner, so set a wine budget with the chef. The strongest chefs book four to eight weeks ahead for the harvest weeks.
Domaine visits and tastings: €50 to €1,200
A guided private tasting at a grower’s domaine runs 50 to 150 euro per person for village and premier-cru wines, more at the famous grand-cru houses, which often require an introduction rather than a booking. A full-day private wine guide with a driver and three or four domaine appointments runs 600 to 1,200 euro for the group plus the tasting fees. During the September picking many domaines close to visits, so the harvest weeks need the tastings arranged well ahead through a guide.
Transfers and car: TGV plus €60 to €400 per day
The fast arrival is the TGV from Paris Gare de Lyon to Dijon (about one hour 35) or to Le Creusot TGV for the southern Côte (about one hour 20), then a car. A self-drive estate car or SUV runs 60 to 120 euro per day and is close to essential, because the villages and the domaines are spread across country lanes. A chauffeured car for a tasting day runs 300 to 400 euro for a group that would rather not assign a designated driver across a cellar circuit.
Gratuities: €150 to €350 per staff member per week
Burgundy château staff are paid through the owner or manager. A cash gratuity on departure of 150 to 350 euro per staff member per week is the practice, more for a guardian or host who runs an exceptional week. For a fully staffed château with three or four team members the gratuity line runs 450 to 1,400 euro across a week. The chef and the wine guide are tipped separately at 10 to 15 percent.