We wanted to stay in a wine village in the Burgundy region and based on our experience and the other hotels that we saw in the area, think that the hotel Les Grands Crus is the best option.

The hotel is easy to find, just follow the signs from the very busy D974 road that runs from Dijon to Nuits-St-Georges. Our first impressions were very favourable - a simple, modern building, adequate and very clean parking area. We were shown without formality to our first floor room, the most expensive of two types available. It was basically furnished but bright, with a tiny bathroom (one of those angled baths that you can just about sit up in). However the main feature was a large window that opened over a small vineyard - we could almost pick the grapes.

The hotel does not have a restaurant but does offer a buffet breakfast in a pleasant room. There is a large unsheltered terrace but this was not in use during our stay, apart from as a meeting area for a large tour group. The hotel's website shows a pleasant looking lounge area, but this is in fact part of the ground floor reception area and is watched over by whoever is on duty at reception (they always looked rather bored) and so not very relaxing.

Gevrey-Chambertin is a pleasant little village and of great interest to anyone who likes wine - during our stay the main harvest had started and we were fascinated by the constant procession of tractors and being able to peek into courtyards where the grapes were being processed.

Although the village has 5 or 6 restaurants, beware that if you are there on Sundays or Mondays only 1 or 2 are open - as we found out! It is essential to book any night of the week. We enjoyed Chez Guy on the main square. Surprisingly we only found one bar in Gevrey despite its wine credentials, so struggled to find somewhere just to sit for a drink or a coffee as the one bar was constantly full.

On our travels around Gevrey we noticed several other hotels that we had considered - Le Richebourg at Vougeot; Paulands at Corton - and these were sited along the very busy and noisy main road. All in all Les Grands Crus at Gevrey is a good choice for a short stay but would benefit from a bit more luxury. It's reasonable value though.