The location of this accommodation is really good, being in the centre of the key things you will want to visit, and right across the road from the Bastione de Saint Remy. The rooms are very clean and the fittings and bed of an acceptable standard.
However, if you are looking for a room of decent size or with a balcony, beware, the description of the rooms as shown on the hotel booking sites are simply incorrect. Ask about Gluten-free food for breakfast and quite simply you will get a complete lie.
We booked a double room with balcony and which was described as being of a good size. On arrival we were firstly asked to pay and then shown the room, it was very smoothly done. The room did not have a balcony and had a bathroom which was a long corridor with the required fittings in a row next to each other. The room size was very large only if you took in the square footage of the room up to the ceiling which was very high. Effectively, when considering useable space, the would have been considered a box room in most countries. there is no disputing that the room did not have a balcony, although we had been charged for a room with a balcony. The owner stated that he was 'mortified' that we had expected a balcony and that he had no rooms with a balcony, but that you could say anything on a booking site. He continually repeated that he was mortified.
Possibly far worse deception was our request for gluten free items at breakfast, which was included in the price. we requested this at the time of booking and he confirmed in writing, through the booking company, that gluten free breads, cakes and other items were all available at the cafe where breakfast was provided. we asked this again on arrival and again he confirmed the full availability of gluten free food. when going to the cafe for breakfast with the tokens he had given we discovered that not only did they not have any gluten free items, but they never had gluten free items. Had we known in advance, this would not have been a problem as we are used to taking along our own G/F foods, but he had previously confirmed that all would be fine. Simply he lied to us.
This is a beautiful building and the stay could have been a wonderful experience, but the owner clearly thought he could obtain a higher premium by stating the facilities were far in advance of what they truly were. He actually stated to us that with the booking company you can say what you want and claim the price you want, and that they do not care. Well, we'll see as a formal complaint has been made to the booking site. Clearly the owner felt he had been revealed as providing an untrue description as the second day a try of gluten free cakes and a bottle of local myrtle liqueur appeared in our room, but this did not compensate for the blatant untruth of the description.
Interestingly, when we saw the maid on the second morning we asked about balconies and discovered one room does have a balcony, the only room, and it was occupied.
If the owner had not been so sparing with the truth the rating would have been average, but telling such blatant lies and leaving us paying for breakfast in the room rate but enjoying only coffee, it deserves no more than terrible. Hopefully he will learn from a traveller who knows what has been booked and will stand up to him.
