Provence & the French Riviera 2010

Best and worst accommodations:

Best: Hote du Musee in Arles
Why: Good breakfast, lovely courtyard, large rooms (small bathroom although), good beds, very helpful owners.

Worst: Hotel Lawrence in Cassis
Why: Good location, small room, extremely small bathroom whose shower curtain collapsed each morning, good beds.

Art / Karyn Lougheed in Markham, ON Candada 11/01/2009

Best: le Mazet des Alpilles , Paradou
Why: Location was quiet but central for many day trips. Hostess was caring and helpful. The home (B&B) was a pleasure to look at with its blue shutters and lovely garden.

Jacquie Moffett in Laguna Beach, CA USA 10/17/2009

Best: Mercure Pont D'Avignon, Avignon
Why: Excellent accomdation, extremely helpful front desk staff, who went out of their way and helped us to arrange delivery of our bags lost by the airline, even after we had checked out. They arranged delivery and held these for us, until we were able to return to Avignon to collect them.

Dr. Naseer Ahmad in Los Angeles,, CA USA 10/14/2009

Best: Nice Mercure "marche aux fleurs"/Hotel Burrhus Vaison la Romaine
Why: THEEE best service with all the staff in both places! I have medication that needs to be kept cold. They were very accomadating and helpful. Vaison let me use their spare fridge and Mercure supplied fresh ice whenever I needed it.

Worst: Hotel Mer, Nice France
Why: Should be called "Hotel Merde"!!Unfortunatly, we cancelled our travel plans SEVERAL MONTHS BEFORE the reserved date in 2005 as a result of a family tragedy. They still charged us a night's stay of $125.oo for canceling. I could see if it was a few days before, but a few months??? Having heard terrible reviews about this place about it's cleanliness and hygiene, we are thankful we didn't end up staying here! this should be removed from Rick's book all together!!

Jeff & Di Lindquist in Reseda, Ca USA 10/09/2009

Best: le beffroi! le calendal.
Why: le beffroi is an amazing place. i felt like i was a princess in a castle. the staff is unbelievable accommodating. i would advise that you recommend that people bring back wine from one of their tastings during the day with some cheese and enjoy on the wonderful outdoor patio/terrace overlooking the village. le calendal in arles (like the rest of the town) could use a little update, but it was fine. we had a room with a balcony. the internet access and deli-ish counter in the lobby are nice.

Worst: arles
Why: just the town overall. i think it's seen much better days.

s. elizabeth in philadelphia, pa USA 10/05/2009

Best: L'Évêché in Vaison-la-romaine, Provence
Why: great hosts, very clean room, great breakfast, located in the cité médiévale.

Worst: Maison d'Hôtes en Provence, Arles
Why: No double beds, no locking doors on rooms, very sparse furnishings. Seems to have closed since we were there in Sept,2008

Louis in Lorraine, PQ Canada 09/27/2009

Best: Hotel Regence, Arles
Why: Extremely clean, comfortable, air-conditioning worked very well. Great value for the money.

Sharron Stevens in Oberstaufenbach, Germany 07/25/2009

Best: L'Ermitage, LeCrestet near Vaison La Romain
Why: Although this has been removed from recent editions of the Provence guidebook because the owners have it for sale, Nick Jones still does a great job as host. Our party of four had a suite with a kitchen and Nick's dry humor and geniality made the stay perfect.

Scott Hudson in Cincinnati, OH USA 07/10/2009

Best: Mas du Petit Grava, B&B near Arles
Why: We spent three wonderful nights here. The grounds are beautiful and our room was very quiet and comfortable. Both Jim and Ike knew the area very well and were able to give us great suggestions (complete with driving instructions) of things to see and do. Jim is a Van Gogh expert. He gave us a fascinating tour of the Van Gogh sites and the Roman antiquities in Arles. Ike is an excellent cook and provided a great breakfast every morning.

Don & Conni Smith in Albuquerque, NM USA 06/05/2009

Best: Le Clos du Rempart
Why: We stayed for a week and loved it. Madame Assad was very welcoming, helpful and a wonderful hostess. The price was very reasonable - 650e for 7 nights in the 2 bedroom apartment plus a 50e cleaning fee. This included the use of the garage and the terrace plus the apartment. The apartment was immaculate, bright and airy, spacious and had a good size bathroom and great refrigerator, plus there was free wi-fi. The apt. was a great base for discovering Provence. The location of the apt in Avignon was great for getting in and out of the walled city. We loved it too!

Kathy Casey in Barrington, IL USA 03/15/2009

Best: Hotel Pont d' Avignon
Why: This hotel has a great location. Everything is within easy walking distane and it is away from the crowds. It was very clean and the staff was accomodating.It is now under renovation which could be noisey so check with them about thay. Breakfst was too expensive, but easy to eat elsewhere.

mary lane in irvine, ca USA 11/16/2008

Best: Hotel les Nevons
Why: This is a great, inexpensive little hotel in Isle sur le Sorgue.The rooms in the anex are huge, the breakfast is a large buffet ( great coffee machine), they have wifi,and you cannot beat the location, price , or the parking.The Sunday brocante and food market , along with all the wonderful antique shops bring in thousands of people and there are no parking spots anywhere--unless you are staying at the Nevons.The is very centrally located if you are going to the Luberon villages or the Cotes de Rhone villages. They even have a little machine in the lobby with cold pop, beer, juice, water. Very reasonable for 67 euros.

Jane in Lebanon , OH USA 11/15/2008

Best: Hotel Gounod, Nice, France
Why: Perfect location between Promenade and Train Station. Wonderful room, great staff, wonderful breakfast. Really enjoyed our stay here.

Worst: Grand Hotel Leveque, Paris, France
Why: Room rather seedy. Bathroom had a strong urine smell which was pointed out to management.

Janet Hellmann in Staten Island, NY USA 11/04/2008

Worst: Hotel de Blauvac, Avignon
Why: The friendliness of the hotel staff did not make up for the highly questionable plumbing (both the shower and sink drains backed up) and dreadful bed. Also, as female travelers, we were a little uncomfortable with the hotel's location down a dark and mostly deserted back street. We couldn't stand it more than one night, and checked out early.

Vanessa in Atlanta, GA USA 10/02/2008

Best: Wonderful, inexpensive apartment in Old Nice
Why: After being unable to find anything available in the RS recommended accommodations, we recently stayed at a wonderful 1-bedroom apartment just off of the flower market in Old Nice. The owner is very friendly, helpful, and accommodating. The apartment is large, clean, fully furnished, exactly as shown in the advertisement (+ wireless internet access), and very reasonably priced (50 euro/night when we were there). It's a 2 minute-walk from the beach. The only downside is that it is a bit noisy, being near the market, but we slept with earplugs and it was fine.

You can find it listed at www.homelidays.com and the reference number for it is 181055.

We were extremely happy with it, and so glad to have found something so nice at such a reasonable price.

x3ui@yahoo.com in Ottawa, Canada 09/24/2008

Worst: Hotel Splendid, Nice
Why: The toilets in both rooms we had (they moved us after we complained) wouldn't flush properly. There was a foul odor coming from the shower drain, no hot water, and I'm sure the room had not been updated since 1970!

Jane Sauther in Spokane Valley, WA USA 08/26/2008

Worst: Hotel Miramar in Vence
Why: Not a three star. Barely a two. Unfriendly front desk person, tried to overprice. Reference to your book reduced the pricey about 15 euros.

Martin Jansen in Agoura Hills, Ca USA 07/13/2008

Best: Hotel Durante - Nice
Why: still a great value, very nice , clean, comfotable, helpful and friendly staff, will have free wi-fi by the time you read this.

Sanford Lavine in Alameda, CA USA 07/11/2008

Best: Hotel La Muette in Arles
Why: The hotel is more like a very friendly 700 year old bed and breakfast, which was really great. But they go beyond hospitality and quality, Brigitte and Alain are simply the best hosts I have ever had. For example: I lost my shipment of tablecloths and napkins I bought from a boutique in Arles. I called Brigitte when I got home, and she figured out which store it was, and went back to the them and made sure my order was shiped. You simply cannot rate La Muette as highly as they deserve.

Worst: None
Why: Just being average does not mean it was the worst. So I will avoid naming the other hotel we stayed at near the Gorges du Verdon.

Jon Broshious in Berkeley, Ca USA 07/09/2008

Best: Hotel Cezanne in Aix
Why: Everything is modern, great location...just as your guidebook says.

Paul Lightner in Novato, CA USA 07/03/2008

Best: Mas Perreal in St. Saturnin
Why: The rooms were just lovely and the breakfasts were worth getting up for. The hosts were also very nice and helpful.

Victoria Van Wie in Cypress, Tx USA 06/22/2008

Best: Hotel Musee, Arles and Hostellerie Le Beffroi, Vaison-La-Romaine
Why: Both of these hotels have beautiful courtyard, garden spaces which was one of the reasons we chose to stay here. Unfortunately it rained so hard every night during our vacation it was too wet to enjoy the outside spaces for breakfast! Highly recommend both hotels. Le Beffroi has incredible old world charm in a beautiful setting.Both hotels had good staff and were helpful.

Anne Schiedel in Basel, Switzerland 06/08/2008

Best: Hotel le Calendal
Why: The staff is very friendly, helpful and fluent in English.

Karen in San Diego, CA USA 06/03/2008

Best: Hotel de Musee - Arles
Why: We had a wonderful stay. Claude and Laurence were very helpful and extremely friendly. The courtyards are delightful and a great place to unwind and sip a glass of wine. We would definately stay again.

Lisa Valle in Sycamore, IL USA 05/26/2008

Best: Grand Hotel Negre Coste in Aix en Provence
Why: We slept soundly in good beds amid quaint provencal decor. Looking out the windows onto the avenue's gorgeous plane trees was a relaxing treat.

Worst: Hotel de Blauvac in Avignon
Why: Bedbugs. Yep, they left us with multiple, itchy welts. The mattress must also be 13th century from the time of the popes. When the staff had a screaming match, we wrote this one off.

Lane Dolly in Falls Church, VA USA 05/25/2008

Best: Hotel de Cloisters
Why: Friendly staff, beautiful room, but the breakfast was really plain. We ate somewhere else the next morning.

Kate Buechler in Winnipeg, MB Canada 05/22/2008

Best: Chambres Clerissy in Moustiers Sainte Marie
Why: The rooms were large and stylish while the price was exceptionally reasonable. Sophie was very helpful and lent us a hiking book for this beautiful area.

Kitty in Centennial, CO USA 05/19/2008

Best: Mas du Petit Grava (B&B) outside Arles
Why: The hosts, Jim and Ike, make you feel like part of the family. The Mas (farmhouse) is full of character and charm and is very warm and welcoming. The bed was incredibly comfortable, Ike makes a great breakfast, Jim will share his van Gogh expertise without prompting (in a good way), and when the mistral winds hit they lit a fire in the fireplace. In over 30 European trips in the past 5 years, I can think of only 1 other place where we felt as welcome as at Mas du Petit Grava

Melanie Bernhardt in Amsterdam, Netherlands 03/19/2008

Best: Bastide de la Brague
Why: Amazing meals even at 4 times the twenty euro price;Franck and his charming three-generation family are the Best;we were sad to leave

Betsy Romano in Bloomfield Township, MI USA 03/10/2008

Best: Hotel Blauvac, Avignon
Why: Not fantastic but better than the Danieli where I also stayed. Friendly owner and very small room. Nice decorative touches in this historic building.

Worst: Danieli Avignon
Why: Not really bad but I preferred the Blauvac. This hotel has endless corridors with steps that I continually tripped over. Nice large room and bath but I'd hate to think how you would get out in case of fire. Nice breakfast though, and good location.

Maryanne NJ USA 03/06/2008

Best: Hotel d'Alibert- Caunes-Minervois
Why: We had made advance reservations for lodging here on Bastille Day, but when we got there, the owner, Frederic d'Alibert gave our room reservation away to another party that checked in earlier that us on Bastille Day. By the time we checked in, it was 8:30 p.m. He tried his best to accommodate us by providing a make-shift mattress like bed on the floor as there were no rooms available at all on Bastille Day. It was not our fault at all. Also, there was no soap given at all. Luckily we had our own. We could not ask for soap at 1:30 a.m. upon our return from Bastille Day celebrations. He was nice enough not to charge us the full-rate for 3 people and only charged for 2 people. He apologized for the confusion and said that it has been very difficult for him to run this family owned hotel this year as his father recently passed away and a client passed away in his restaurant last year.

Worst:
Why: Caunes-Minervois is a very quaint and small town with very narrow streets. It is very quiet at night and big cars will not make it that easily. The garage that Hotel d'Alibert provides has only room for 7-8 cars, but all the cars are parked like a jigsaw puzzle- no order, so if you park in there, you may not be able to move out easily. The road to get in the garage is very narrow with no street name to identify it. It was a quite a task to look for it. It is located in the back of the hotel, but not obvious to you as the streets have no signs available.

k.m. in san francisco, ca USA 11/21/2007

Best: L'ecole buissonniere Buisson
Why: John and Monique make this feel like "home." We stayed here based on the guidebook and recommendations from this board and found everything they said was true. Almost everyone there was a Rick Steves' fan. John is wonderful about sharing maps and directions, and "John's Tour" to Nyons (where we enjoyed a wonderful Thursday market)and beyond was my favorite of the trip. They are great at recommending excellent local restaurants and making reservations for you - we ate somewhere different every night and never had a bad meal.

Martha in New Smyrna Beach, FL USA 10/20/2007

Best: Arles--Hotel Regence
Why: I think I would have to say this was the best hotel of our multi-country trip. It was a great value at only 50 euros for a double, and it was the prettiest room we stayed in as well. The staff (or owners?) were extremely helpful and spoke English well. The mattresses weren't the most comfortable, but when are hotel mattresses that great anyway?

Worst: Roussillon--Chez Madam Cherel's
Why: I don't know if I would say this was the worst, I just want to send up some red flags. First, RS notes that she "lets rooms that are just this side of a hostel." What that means is that the doors don't lock! The room we had had really low, slanting ceilings, which was a huge problem since we are tall (DH is 6'6" and I am 6'0"). "Chatty and sincere Cherel" also (I'm sure with good intentions) told us each morning our plans for the day were not good and suggested alternatives. It felt like we were reporting to our mother. She seemed to get along well with the other guests, however, so I'm not sure why we didn't mesh. Perhaps the biggest drawback, however, was the lack of hot water. For a house with room for 9 guests, there should have been more hot water. We were the 3rd and 4th guests to shower both mornings we stayed there, and we never had hot showers. It was the cheapest accomodation we could find, but I wouldn't say it was a good value.

Becca in Torrance, CA USA 10/16/2007

Best: L'ecole buissonniere, Villedieu
Why: Friendliest hosts ever encountered.

Don Harris in Bryn Mawr, PA USA 10/09/2007

Best: Le Calendal
Why: The charm, style and convenience of the hotel makes you forget about any drawbacks you might encounter. Staff is young, but very savvy. Loved the internet access in the lobby.

Aimee in Oakland, CA USA 08/26/2007

Best: Le Calendal in Arles
Why: It was exactly what we were looking for: plenty of Provencal charm in its exterior facade and interior decor.,lovely staff, central and picturesque location across from the Classic Theater and the Amphitheater, clean, clean rooms,super renovated bathroom,and to top it off little perks such as laundry services at low prices, an iron and ironing board just outside the room and free internet. These people know how to run a hotel!

Worst: La Negre Coste in Aix en Provence
Why: It was, without doubt, the grimiest, smelliest, must run-down three-star hotel we experienced in our 21-day, eleven -hotel vacation. Two hours after checking in , we checked out and were still charged a full-night stay. Our daughter was freaking out because on top of the I-don't-want to -touch -anything phobia the place inspired inspired, the smell of disinfectant or possibly insecticide was so pervasive, she actually felt she couldn't breathe . It seems to me this hotel had its heyday thirty-some years ago and has done very little since.

Luz Valdes in Roslyn, NY USA 08/25/2007

Best: Hostellerie de Commandeurs, Joucas
Why: Reasonable price, great food, clean rooms and wonderful location. Felt like we were part of Provence while visiting. Sophie was a fabulous hostess.

Worst: Hotel Villa Eden, Nice
Why: This was the biggest disappointment of our 16-day trip, and the book had been so good to us up until this point. The promised "faded and charming family-run ambience" in truth was nothing more than a flophouse staffed by a confused college student. I feel like we experienced the atmosphere of a rundown brothel. After spending comparable money the night before in Joucas and having a great experience, this was the utmost in disappointing. Stained and filthy carpets, stained bedspreads, dusty, dank drapes, and a shower that was about 18" wide. I have camped a lot in my life, and I wish we had done that instead. But it was 9pm when we arrived and we were too exhausted to start looking for a new hotel and pay three times more. I cannot stress enough that this place does not belong in the Rick Steves book and I implore him to send someone to revisit this hotel, or better yet, remove it from the book.

Heidi Hutchinson in Seattle, WA USA 08/23/2007

Best: Hotel Suisse, in Nice
Why: As you suggested, we upgraded to a room with a balcony and a view. It was well worth the extra money!

Sharon & Leo Marty in Olympia, WA USA 08/21/2007

Worst: Hotel Vieux Chateau, Aiguines, France
Why: Upon arrival, Fred said he had never confirmed my reservation, even though I had e-mail correspondence from him. He said there was another room available though at a slightly higher price, instaed of 95 euros it would be 107 euros. Ok fine so we stayed. We ate dinner at the restaurant at the hotel and spent 95 euros and by the end of the meal I had trapped 6 live bees under the glassware to keep them from stinging our two children. Then we tried to sleep but there was no A/C and they did not provide a fan - in JULY! We had to sleep with the windoe open and heard the town bell ring at the 1/2 and on the hour the entire night! We dragged our suitcases down the next morning to check out when the lady asked "Aren't you having breakfast?" Sounding like it was included we sat down and each ate a piece of baguette and a drink. Then we find when reviewing the bill upon check out a few minutes later that our room rate had been written over and now said 120 euros, we were charged 28 euros for the horrible breakfast and tax to a grand total of 164 euros. When we complained the woman at the desk lowered it to 111 euros, we paid and then left. Upon reveiwing our credit card bill when we returned home, the hotel charged our card for an additional $38 after we had left just using the credit card number.

Stacie Husmann in Paris, France 08/15/2007

Best: Hostellerie des Commandeurs
Why: Without Steve we never would have found this gem in the tiny hilltop village of Joucas! The rooms were absolutely immaculate. Not air-conditioned but evenings were lovely and cool. We dined under olive trees, overlooking the Luberon valley. Meals were fabulous, our hosts gracious. All at a most reasonable Provencal price. It was a great spot to call home while hiking or touring the incredible surrounding countryside.

Cindy in Beavercreek, Oh USA 08/09/2007

Best: Hotel Le clos des Aromes
Why: Lovely atmosphere, nice rooms, basic. Didn't find staff too friendly, restaurant seems to be the mail business.

We also stayed 2 nights at Hotel Laurence.Marie was wildly helpful and friendly.

Worst: Le Belle Meunuire in Nice
Why: pros: cheap, next to train station, friendly staff

cons: really noisy doors/hallways (at least on ground floor); ugly rooms;

Cindy in Shurtleff, wa USA 07/13/2007

Best: L'Ecole Bouissonniere Chambres
Why: A friendly country home-like experience, with charming comfortable rooms and interesting antique details. John provided detailed insightful itineraries for Cote du Rhone outings, and south to Pont du Gard, Les Baux, etc. We enjoyed the humor, good English, playful dog, nice garden breakfasts, and useful patio guest kitchen.

Jay & Audrey in Mountain View, CA USA 06/07/2007

Best: Hotel du Musee, Arle and Hotel le Beffroi, Vaison la Romain
Why: Both hotels were charming, bright, clean, friendly and helpful. I would definitiely stay there again. I enjoyed having places to sit outdoors in the garden.

Terry in Lafayette, CA USA 06/05/2007

Best: Chambres de la Cordiere, Lourmarin
Why: Large, excellent room (we needed a triple) with modern bath, lovely decor, helpful and interesting hostess, nice breakfast in a lovely old home. Great value!

Tod Weber in Cupertino, ca USA 05/28/2007

Best: Hotel de Lutece
Why: great location. comfortable. nice bath. great ceiling! However our 1st room was so cramped our double bed was against a wall, w/ a Tiny bath. We switched rooms. It's hard to believe both these rooms go for the same price.

Worst: Hotel Windsor in Nice
Why: It did NOT have a/c as stated on the email confirmation. They claim no hotels have air until May 15th. This was May 10th. It was quite warm. We expected a quiet garden retreat with air but got a cold (all white), sterile, very noisy, uncomfortable (hard bed) room. All this for €170 for the "deluxe" room. The hair dryer wasn't available for two days and the pool was somewhat dirty. We were very disappointed and left the hotel and Nice two days early. Is it legal in Europe to sell a room falsely like that?

Marguerite Milland in Newport Bch, Ca USA 05/16/2007