La Taverne de l'Escuelle

Have you ever heard of a hotel where, when staying for two nights, your room was not made after your first night? In all my years of travel, this had never ever happened to me. Cursory vacuuming, quick-and-dirty wiping of the bathroom, rapid making of the bed, yes; I’ve had all of those. But NO CLEANING AT ALL, not even a pretense, that’s a first for me, and I got it at the Taverne de l’Escuelle! And please note that a village tavern it may be, yet the owners see fit to price the rooms at almost 100 euros a night (in November!)… which is definitely not in the “humble village inn” bracket. Add to that mediocre accommodations, 1- or 2-star at the most, a bathroom recently redone but already showing lack of cleaning in the shower corners (complemented by a substantial sample of cobwebs around the ceiling corners), a bath towel with a really bad smell, poor sound insulation (the owners seem to have a weakness for African music) and a hesitant wifi (definitely insufficient to stream a movie or a series), and you will inevitably be led to the conclusion that this establishment is grossly overpriced and should definitely be avoided. One final word: it happens more and more often that hotel and restaurant owners and/or managers see fit to respond to reviews posted by their clients. Just remember, when you read those responses, that such owners/managers have a vested interest in selling you their services, where I have no vested interest whatsoever in expressing the personal and objective viewpoints set forth in this review, and which faithfully describe my actual experience.

We found this hotel to be surprisingly comfortable considering the rustic building and location. It was nearly 100 degrees and no air conditioning, but the big fan kept it cool enough for the one night we were there. Our room overlooked the village square, which has a couple of outdoor bars. But we ate dinner and breakfast at the hotel. The food was very good. All the staff we met were friendly and helpful. We loved this little village, and this hotel is certainly the place to stay.