La Palmyre - Les Mathes, in Charente Maritime, is a relatively quiet holiday town in the west of France. When searching for a hotel here, very few results come up as it is mainly dominated by holiday camps and mobile home parks. I found the website of the Palmyr Hotel (---) which helpfully can be viewed in English, and at 3*, it seemed suitable enough to spend a few nights. The prices were fairly good, at 85 euros per night at high season, with just three more euros a night for a room with a balcony or terrace. It was this feature which appealed most to me, so I booked up with not too much difficulty.
The Palmyr Hotel is easy to find and is in a very good location. The La Palmyre Zoo (Europe’s biggest zoo) is literally just down the road, easily within walking distance. It is also close to the beach. Check in was fast and simple with the bilingual receptionist, and a trolley was available to transport our luggage to the next floor via an elevator.
With a 3* hotel, it can often go either way – you are either disappointed or pleasantly surprised. In this case, it was the latter. Thankfully the room had a cheerful colour scheme, making the room seem airy. It was decorated with summery blues and yellow flowers. There was a small wardrobe, a set of drawers, small fridge (but not equipped with drinks, unlike a proper minibar), a desk and chair. Above the wardrobe was a television, but none of the nine channels were in English so we never bothered to watch this, but then the last thing you need while relaxing in La Palmyr is television, really. In general, the room was mostly used as a base from which to sightsee, and head to the beach, from.
We had booked a double room, but as is frequently the situation, it came with twin beds rather than the double bed I had hoped for. They could be pushed together if you wished, however. I chose to discard the boot camp-like brown blanket and white top sheet, sleeping instead just under the lightweight duvet. The beds were fairly comfortable, but I resented the sponge material inside some of the pillows.
The balcony was accessed by double doors and was a reasonable size. Myself and my partner could easily sit outside together. There was a white plastic table and two chairs provided. We opted not to pay the seven euros a day to have breakfast at the hotel, instead buying French pastries from one of the local shops. It was nice to eat breakfast outside on the balcony. It overlooked the restaurant and some of the road, but was always pretty quiet. I was certainly glad we had booked a room from the balcony and would definitely advise people to do this. If you have a family, you can also book a mezzanine room.
The bathroom was clean and white, with a large mirror, sink, toilet and shower/bath combination. We were supplied with the usual freebies such as shampoo, shower cap and soap. The bath has a shower curtain and detachable shower head, with instructions on how to work the shower, but it is very simple to do. It was a powerful shower which is much needed for those hot summer days!
The maid service for the hotel was good, seemingly operating between half nine and as late as one o’ clock, because I departed the hotel at one o’ clock one afternoon, and left the ‘please make up my room’ sign on the door. When I returned that afternoon, it had been cleaned and given a brief tidy, i.e. picking my clothes up from where they had been slung on the floor!
One of the highlights of the La Palmyr hotel is its restaurant, the ‘Flamant Rose’. This is arguably one of the best and fanciest restaurants in La Palmyr. Much of the menu was seafood, other than the childrens menu – this can be a bit of a problem if, like me, you hate the stuff, but I have this trouble at most restaurants. You can dine inside or outside, and we were gently serenaded by one man and his guitar on the small stage. It was an enjoyable meal for all.
If you are coming to La Palmyre, I would definitely recommend the La Palmyr hotel. It has facilities for everyone including children and pets(!), and is the best accommodation in the area. It is not particularly luxurious, but then at 3*, what does one expect? Most importantly it was clean, comfortable and respectable – a pleasure to stay at.