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Twenty players, one chateau in the Loire Valley, and seven nights of American mahjong played to National Mah Jongg League rules, with Linda Hartley and Julien Marchand.
American mahjong teacher
Linda grew up in Westchester, New York, keeping score at her mother's Tuesday-night game. She has taught American mahjong for more than twenty years, first at her local library and now at clubs from Palm Beach to Paris, and she has played in NMJL tournaments since the 1990s.
During the week she leads the group reviews after each session of the Chateau Cup, going back over the hands that decided it, and gives an evening talk on strategy.
Retreat host
Julien was born in Saumur, twenty minutes from the chateau, and spent ten years as a sommelier before he started running house parties in the Loire. He picked up American mahjong at one of Linda's workshops in Paris and hasn't stopped since.
During the week he runs the tournaments, the timetable and the wine cellar, and he leads the visits to Saumur.
Day 0 · Sunday 11 April
You arrive at a Loire Valley chateau that looks like it was built for exactly this: turrets against the sky, gravel underfoot, vineyard rows running out toward the horizon. Registration comes first, with your 2027 NMJL card waiting in your welcome pack, then a settling-in afternoon. Welcome drinks follow, then your first dinner together, with Linda Hartley and Julien Marchand at the table alongside you.
The week announces itself properly after dark with the Welcome Social: short, fast games at tables drawn at random, to shake off the travel, get to know the new card and meet the group.
Day 1 · Monday 12 April
The morning is yours to lose in the grounds of the chateau: a slow walk through formal gardens, past a fountain and clipped topiary, out along rows of vines that stretch toward the tree line, the kind of view you stop mid-sentence to photograph.
Then comes Session 1 of the Chateau Cup, the individual tournament that anchors the whole week. It is played to NMJL rules and scored the way NMJL tournaments are, with table assignments drawn and posted before you sit down. Dinner is a shared occasion with the whole group, with a cheese and cognac tasting woven through it.
Day 2 · Tuesday 13 April
A group talk opens the day, with Linda walking everyone through the best hands of Session 1: the Charleston passes that set them up, the moment to switch hands, and the jokers that made the difference.
Then the afternoon turns collaborative with the Partners Tournament. Two players share one rack and decide every pass, call and discard together in hushed conversation over the tiles. Across the afternoon, every pair gets a turn with Linda at their shoulder and a turn with Julien. Dinner is followed by an educational talk from Linda on defence: reading the exposures, knowing when to hold a tile, and playing to keep someone else from going mahjong.
Day 3 · Wednesday 14 April
A morning that belongs more to a fairytale than a schedule: a walking tour of Saumur, its own turreted chateau rising over the Loire, then a viewing at the Cadre Noir. It is one of the institutions behind an equestrian tradition recognized by UNESCO as a piece of world heritage, still ridden exactly as it has been for centuries.
Then it's back to the chateau for Session 2 of the Chateau Cup. Dinner is followed by a wine tasting in the chateau's own cellar.
Day 4 · Thursday 15 April
Linda leads a group talk on the best hands of Session 2. Then the format flips entirely with a Siamese Mahjong tournament, the official two-player variant of the American game. Each player builds two hands at once from a shared wall. There is no Charleston to lean on and no table of four to read, just you, one opponent and twice as many tiles to think about.
The evening brings a talk from Julien on how mahjong crossed the Pacific in the 1920s and became an American game, from the first boxed sets to the founding of the National Mah Jongg League in New York in 1937. It's history that belongs in a room this old.
Day 5 · Friday 16 April
Fontevraud Abbey opens the morning. It's the largest monastic complex in Europe, founded in 1101 and the resting place of Plantagenet royalty: Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Richard the Lionheart all lie entombed within its walls.
Back at the chateau, Session 3, the third and final session of the Chateau Cup, decides the individual tournament. Then the week reaches its highest point: a dinner set apart entirely for the twenty players, while partners have an evening of their own off-site.
Day 6 · Saturday 17 April
Linda's last group talk covers the best of Session 3. Then comes the week's defining afternoon: the Team Tournament. Players form teams of four, and every team faces every other once, with the whole week's mahjong distilled into one afternoon.
From there it's straight into the closing night: drinks, dinner for the whole group, the prize-giving for the Chateau Cup and the Team Tournament, and a closing ritual that ends the week the way twenty new friends deserve.
Day 7 · Sunday 18 April
One last breakfast together, unhurried, with everyone leaving at their own pace. Before the first goodbyes, the whole group gathers on the grounds for a photograph. Then come farewells, transfers and departures spread across the morning. Twenty strangers arrived; twenty friends leave.
Companions share your room, your meals and the group's days out. While the players are at the tables, they have a programme of their own.
Day 0 · Sunday 11 April
Arrival at the chateau, registration, and time to settle in before the group comes together properly. Welcome drinks bring everyone into one room, players and companions alike, followed by the first dinner together with Linda Hartley and Julien Marchand at the table. While the players open their week with the Welcome Social after dark, the evening is yours to spend as you like.
Day 1 · Monday 12 April
The morning is yours to lose in the grounds of the chateau: a slow walk through formal gardens, past a fountain and clipped topiary, out along rows of vines stretching toward the tree line, the kind of view you stop mid-sentence to photograph. In the afternoon, while the players sit down for the first session of the Chateau Cup, you settle into a painting session. Dinner is a shared occasion again, with a cheese and cognac tasting woven through it.
Day 2 · Tuesday 13 April
Breakfast together, then a full day in Amboise. First comes Clos Lucé, the house where Leonardo da Vinci spent his final years under the patronage of King Francis I until his death in 1519. Then the royal chateau next door, once connected to Clos Lucé by an underground passage that Francis I used to visit him. You're on the road before the players even sit down for Linda's review of Session 1. Lunch is out, and you're back in time for dinner with the whole group.
Day 3 · Wednesday 14 April
A morning that belongs more to a fairytale than a schedule, shared with the whole group: a walking tour of Saumur, its own turreted chateau rising over the Loire, then the Cadre Noir Matinale, a viewing of an equestrian tradition recognized by UNESCO as a piece of world heritage, still ridden exactly as it has been for centuries. Back at the chateau, the players settle in for Session 2 while you join a crafts session of your own. Dinner and a wine tasting in the chateau's own cellar close the day, with everyone together again.
Day 4 · Thursday 15 April
Breakfast together, then on to Chinon, the fortress where Joan of Arc first recognized the disguised Dauphin among his own court in 1429. It's a piece of history you feel just walking its walls. A boat tour follows, out on the water with the fortress at your back. You're back in time for dinner with the whole group.
Day 5 · Friday 16 April
Fontevraud Abbey opens the morning for everyone. It's the largest monastic complex in Europe, founded in 1101 and the resting place of Plantagenet royalty: Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Richard the Lionheart all lie entombed within its walls. The afternoon is entirely free, yours to spend however you like. While the players have their own dinner back at the chateau, you're out for a night that's just the companions, before everyone comes back together at the bar to trade stories from two very different evenings.
Day 6 · Saturday 17 April
A free morning, then an afternoon of your own choosing: archery, table tennis or pétanque. Everyone comes back together for the closing night: drinks, dinner for the whole group, prize-giving, and a closing ritual built to match everything that came before it.
Day 7 · Sunday 18 April
One last breakfast together, no one in a rush, everyone lingering a little longer than usual. Before the first goodbyes, the whole group gathers on the grounds for one final photograph. Then come hugs, promises to stay in touch, and departures spread across the morning. A week ago you didn't know each other; now you're leaving with friends.
American mahjong, played to National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) rules: the Charleston, jokers, and hands from the official card. Every game during the week is played on the 2027 card.
No. The NMJL releases each year's card in early April, and a 2027 card is waiting for every player in their welcome pack. The first evening's Welcome Social is a gentle way to get to know it.
You should be comfortable playing an American mahjong hand from start to finish, including the Charleston and reading the card. Beyond that, every level is welcome, from players who learned last year to those who have played weekly for decades.
Tables for the first session are matched by level, so you'll play with people at your pace. The tables mix as the week goes on and everyone finds their feet.
No. Every table has an American mahjong set with jokers, racks and pushers. You're welcome to bring a favourite set for the evenings.
Not at all. Tables are drawn for every session, and the Partners and Team tournaments pair you up on the day, so you'll play with everyone over the week.
No. Every room is a single by default, at no extra charge. Most of our guests come on their own.
Yes. Companions share your room and have their own programme of days out while the players are at the tables. See the Companions tab in the itinerary.
Guests need to be 18 or over. There is no upper limit.
Mid-April in the Loire usually brings days of 14–18°C (57–64°F) and cool evenings. Bring a layer for the cellar and the gardens.
France is in the Schengen area. US, Canadian, UK and Australian passport holders can currently visit for up to 90 days without a visa, but check the latest rules for your passport before you travel.
The euro. All our prices are in euros too.
Nantes is the closest airport, about an hour and three-quarters by car. Paris airports connect by train to Saumur or Angers. Transfers aren't included, but we can help arrange a shared transfer on the Sunday afternoon.
No. We're not a travel agent, so flights and trains are up to you.
A deposit secures your place. The balance is due at least 120 days before departure, by credit card or bank transfer. All prices are in euros.
Still got questions? Ask us anything
Twenty places for the American mahjong week, 11–18 April 2027. A deposit secures yours, and with our Lifetime Deposit Guarantee you never lose it: cancel any time before the retreat starts and keep it as credit.
€3,987 per player