France may be home to thousands of castles but many French châteaux and other historic buildings are in such a poor state of repair they risk becoming ruins.
That’s where online vacation rental websites come in. Sites like Airbnb are throwing a lifeline to many owners in need of new sources of income to pay for their upkeep, like Alain-Etienne Marcel. The sprightly 72-year-old is the owner of the Petit-Bé Fort, an imposing dark granite structure that stands on an island in the Saint-Malo bay on the northern coast of Brittany. Louis XIV built it in the 1600s to keep the English out. Now you can rent it out on Airbnb for $700 a night.