This hotel has an amazing location and history; situated on beach promenade in Cabourg. Now run as Sofitel luxury offering, it doesn't live up to its promise. A redecoration in the not too distant past overlaid Sofitel funky modern with a disorienting result and the loss of all period charm. And the redecoration is not standing up to every wear and tear. Furniture chipped at traffic points, wallpaper wearing where staff hit it with service carts, dents in the wall where the door knob hit repeatedly. More attention to infrastructure would have been a better investment (water is hard, takes long to warm up, room too hot or too cold, lifts capacity too low, steam and sauna 'spa' tiny and overused).
They are trying for an upmarket five star experience and they are missing the mark by a mile. The hotel is let down by the limitations of the building and the staff. The rule in hotels - everything flows from the general manager. A great hotel is made by good facilities and the right GM. The staff lack leadership; they are not attentive until you attract their attention with a big tip. On a cold winter day, the doormen loitered inside until we had parked and carried our own bags up the stairs into the lobby. And it wasn't just us, this was a normal pattern.
Parking is 'free' outside the hotel. However as another reviewer observed, finding a...This hotel has an amazing location and history; situated on beach promenade in Cabourg. Now run as Sofitel luxury offering, it doesn't live up to its promise. A redecoration in the not too distant past overlaid Sofitel funky modern with a disorienting result and the loss of all period charm. And the redecoration is not standing up to every wear and tear. Furniture chipped at traffic points, wallpaper wearing where staff hit it with service carts, dents in the wall where the door knob hit repeatedly. More attention to infrastructure would have been a better investment (water is hard, takes long to warm up, room too hot or too cold, lifts capacity too low, steam and sauna 'spa' tiny and overused).
They are trying for an upmarket five star experience and they are missing the mark by a mile. The hotel is let down by the limitations of the building and the staff. The rule in hotels - everything flows from the general manager. A great hotel is made by good facilities and the right GM. The staff lack leadership; they are not attentive until you attract their attention with a big tip. On a cold winter day, the doormen loitered inside until we had parked and carried our own bags up the stairs into the lobby. And it wasn't just us, this was a normal pattern.
Parking is 'free' outside the hotel. However as another reviewer observed, finding a spot is the local equivalent of winning the lottery. There is pay parking operated by the hotel during normal business hours, that being 9 am to 10 pm. We were leaving to catch the early ferry so we played parking lotto buying the doormen's help with the aforementioned sizable tip. Early departure meant we also missed out on our 'included' breakfast. Only included from 7:30 am. No provision for even a cup of coffee and a croissant for early departures. The staff unapologetic about this. The Gallic shrug frequently in use.
We did have breakfast on Saturday and it was acceptable but there was one thing - and its a tiny thing - that really bothered me. I asked for boiled eggs and they came in cheap plastic serving dishes - clearly intended to be disposable. I bet it's painful to clean egg cups but that doesn't make plastic okay.
Being canny consumers of hotels - we worked out that they gave us the smallest room of the category we paid for. Fourth floor, first bedroom on the right. It was too narrow for the furniture they put in it. Part of the bathroom space was given over to a service cupboard.
So we only had one wash basin and bathtub that you needed a ladder to climb over the rim. All decorated in 'whorehouse modern'. Less black tile tarted up with silver - give us a separate walk in shower. Or at least a bidet....
And the price was eye watering. It was a weekend in early December. My husband wanted to give me a lovely treat and I do enjoy a grand hotel. We had a lovely weekend in France but despite the hotel not because of it. After a few hours in the hotel we resolved not to part with a single sou more of our money than the room rate - astonishing given that we are prone to ordering room service coffee, raiding the mini bar and buying extravagantly priced Cognac after dinner. I just checked the bill - the room and nothing but the room. 600€ per night. Two nights.
We will return to this area, it's wonderful We won't return to the hotel.More
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