Melleray Abbey
La Meilleraye-de-Bretagne Loire-Atlantique Founded in 1142
Notre-Dame de Melleray Abbey, in Loire-Atlantique, is an iconic religious landmark of the Nantes region, bearing witness to over 900 years of history. After nine centuries of Cistercian presence, the Communauté du Chemin Neuf has carried on its vocation of prayer, fraternal life, and hospitality since 2015. A Catholic community with an ecumenical calling, rooted in the Ignatian tradition and the Charismatic Renewal, it brings together around thirty people here, including couples, single people, priests, brothers, and sisters from some fifteen countries.
Located in La Meilleraye-de-Bretagne, 50 kilometers north of Nantes, the abbey offers a refreshing and restful setting among fields, moorlands, and forests. Committed to the path of integral ecology, the community welcomes guests, retreatants, and volunteers, and offers individual or couples retreats in a spirit of fraternity open to the world.
What awaits you
Practical information
Accommodation
The guest house has 17 single rooms and 16 double rooms, all quiet and comfortable, overlooking the park and equipped with bathrooms and large desks. Some have private restrooms.
Meeting rooms
4 meeting rooms of varying sizes accommodate groups of up to 80 people. A video projection room with around fifty seats is also available. The layout can be adapted to your needs.
Meals
The abbey offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner, prepared on-site using produce from the kitchen garden and orchard according to the seasons. Two dining rooms accommodate up to 80 people. A kitchen can be made available to groups wishing to prepare their own meals.
Manual work
Your help in the orchard and kitchen garden is welcome, in the spirit of integral ecology.
Community
Around thirty people live at the abbey: couples, priests, consecrated brothers and sisters, from about fifteen countries. The Communauté du Chemin Neuf is a Catholic community with an ecumenical vocation, rooted in the Ignatian tradition and the Charismatic Renewal.
Getting there
Abbaretz train station
50km north of Nantes. Take exit 20 on the A11
Through moors and forests!