The Artisans of the Grand Noël
The Grand Noël is also a collective adventure, brought to life by French houses and partners whose savoir-faire shapes every setting. Chocolatiers, a biscuit maker, set designers, artisans of light and fragrance: meet the people taking Vaux-le-Vicomte on a journey around the world this year.
The 2026 edition in figures
- More than 30 volunteers and 70 dedicated staff
- 15,000 gifts for children and 15,000 sweet treats
- 100,000 marshmallows handed out
- More than 1,000 decorations on the 8-metre Niwaki tree in the Grand Salon
- A 2-metre-high chocolate Eiffel Tower
- 5 kilometres of fairy lights
- 1,000 m² of façade transformed by an architectural projection
Fine confectionery
Biscuits, chocolate and sugar art: from the Library to the château kitchen, these houses create some of the most spectacular pieces of the visit.
La Maison Bastien Blanc-Tailleur
Drawing on a rare pastry-making expertise rooted in a long-standing French tradition, Maison Bastien Blanc-Tailleur has been awarded the Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant (Living Heritage Company) label. The chef is dedicated to preserving and enriching this exceptional French savoir-faire, at the crossroads of architecture and haute couture. Some of his creations will be on display in the Cabinet des Jeux!
La Maison Fossier
Part of a long tradition of confectioners who have made Reims famous for its sweet specialities, Maison Fossier is a heritage biscuit maker with more than two and a half centuries of history. For this year’s Le Grand
Noël, Maison Fossier has created a unique piece especially for the Library.
Comptoir du Cacao
A family-run French artisan chocolate maker, Comptoir du Cacao has been crafting fine single-origin chocolates made with pure cocoa butter for the past 20 years, upholding the traditional expertise of master chocolatiers. Visitors can admire some of its spectacular chocolate creations in the château’s kitchens.
Jean-Luc Decluzeau
A creator and chocolate artist for over 35 years, Jean-Luc Decluzeau specialises in creating spectacular works of art and monumental sculptures in chocolate. His creation can be discovered in the château’s kitchens.
Canasuc
Drawing on rare and distinctive expertise, Maison Canasuc transforms cane sugar into exceptional creations, halfway between sculpture and confectionery. Carefully crafted by hand, these original sugar creations
can be discovered throughout the festive displays at Vaux-le-Vicomte.
For younger visitors
Cuddly plush toys and collectable figurines: French toymakers accompany children throughout the visit.
Histoire d’Ours et Doudou et Compagnie
Histoire d’Ours is a leading French soft-toy brand. Its collections, conceived with passion and meticulous attention to quality and detail, have always cultivated a world of softness and enchantment. During the Grand Noël, Histoire d’Ours and Doudou et Compagnie delight visitors to Vaux-le-Vicomte with their irresistibly soft plush toys.
Papo
A benchmark in the world of figurines, recognised for the originality of its products and the exceptional care devoted to manufacturing quality, this French company is committed to making beautiful toys designed to last. During the Grand Noël, Papo will reward children at the end of the treasure hunt.
Decor and set design
Fabrics, decorations and staging: these designers create the worlds visitors travel through, room by room, on this journey around the world.
Goodwill
A specialist in Christmas decorations, Goodwill works with Vaux-le-Vicomte each year to create a Grand Noël with a uniquely enchanting world of its own.
Maison Thevenon
Chic prints, sophisticated jacquards, reimagined Toile de Jouy, vibrant embroidery, delicate plains and technical fabrics: every textile created by Thevenon tells a story, born of French savoir-faire.
Libérateurs d’idées
A specialist in event decoration since 2009, Libérateurs d’idées transforms spaces through more than 100 themes and a bespoke creative workshop. From concept to installation throughout France, its teams provide a turnkey service. This year, the company is supporting heritage by taking part in the Grand Noël adventure at Vaux-le-Vicomte.
Mathieu Michaud
An interior architect and scenographer, Mathieu Michaud creates worlds that combine beauty, emotion and meaning. For more than ten years, he has imagined settings that tell a story: that of a place, an era or a dream.
Light, automata and fragrance
What moves, sparkles and fills the air: these experts give the visit its atmosphere, by day and on late-opening evenings.
Natarom
Natarom fragrances add a sensory, emotional and immersive dimension to the settings of the Grand Noël. Made entirely in France, these scents take visitors on an olfactory journey.
Leblanc illuminations
Creators of lasting emotions, Leblanc illuminations has been a pioneering manufacturer of festive illuminated decorations since 1958. As one of the most highly certified companies in its sector, Leblanc illuminations is committed to the environment and reduces its carbon footprint year after year by optimising the energy consumption of its displays and using eco-responsible materials.
Mageo Production
A specialist in video mapping, Mageo conceives and produces its own shows, designed to transport audiences into worlds where imagination reigns supreme.
Animate Factory
A French manufacturer of automata for more than 30 years, Animate Factory works with Vaux-le-Vicomte every year to bring its settings to life and heighten the magic of the Grand Noël.
A Christmas of sharing
The Grand Noël is also about sharing. Once again, ADPHILE and the French Red Cross are turning the Carriage Museum into an enchanted mail workshop, where every visitor can write a greeting card to someone spending the festive season alone. Thousands of cards will be sent this year.
The ADPHILE association
Committed to keeping stamps and the pleasure of writing alive, the ADPHILE association is once again joining the Grand Noël. It transforms the Carriage Museum into a genuine enchanted post office where visitors can send festive greeting cards to people who are most isolated.
The Croix-Rouge
For eight years, Vaux-le-Vicomte has worked with the Croix Rouge on charitable initiatives in the Seine-et-Marne département at Christmas. Melchior de Vogüé, Patrice de Vogüé’s great-grandfather, was a founding member of the Société de secours aux blessés militaires before establishing the Central Committee of the Croix Rouge, which he chaired until his death in 1916.
Come and see their creations
From artistic creation to fine confectionery, from set design to acts of solidarity, these collaborations make the Grand Noël a shared experience where savoir-faire comes together to create a little magic.