Le Richelieu Hôtel

Amazing stay with amazing staff.The service was excallant and the facilities were amazing .Definitely will be staying again

Awful experience. We came to Ile De Re last year with our two sons and loved it (we stayed at Hotel Tourias which was great) so we were excited to return and try a different area this time. It did not go well: Firstly, the hotel is tired and needs investment, but, the room was well laid out for a family of four and it's a great location on the beach so we were not too fussed. However, the attitude of the staff (and more specifically the management which is where it likely filters down from) was appalling from start to finish to the point of being negligent. Firstly, breakfast - the food was sloppy/mushy from sitting out too long (at 9am) not to mention you have to do everything entirely yourself (I don't mind that at all at home, but not what I expect from a 'five star' hotel!). From coffee (there is a machine where you fill it yourself) to even boiling your own eggs (they will give you a timer). The staff seemed outraged when you dared ask them to do anything at all, and the most you would get was someone pointing to the buffet and then shuffling off. Everything seemed too much trouble. Further, asking for anything out of the ordinary (like honey for my son to have on some yogurt which we bought from the supermarket in the afternoon) was met with almost immediate refusal ('no we don't have honey at this time, its only during breakfast hours'). There was a complete lack of effort/care by almost all of the staff we encountered (with the exception of one gentleman). The most horrifying of all however was when we were leaving, I asked for hot chocolate for my kids - specifying that it was for children. They served up a boiling cup of hot milk which my three year old picked up and immediately scolded his mouth and tongue. What happened next was even worse, I asked for the manager to elevate the situation and try and get some help/assistance. After repeatedly asking for 15-20 minutes, I went behind the reception and effectively had to pull her out to talk to me. Frankly if I was told (repeatedly by my staff - which she was as I was asking all of them to help) that there had been an accident and a three year old had been burnt on my property by staff who were my responsibility I would be horrified. After 20 minutes I pulled her out to see him, she had very little to say to me (mumbling that she had been in the office trying to find a doctor - which was not the case) and was more concerned about avoiding us, shirking responsibility and just hoping we would go away. Ile de Re is a wonderful place and we have had a lovely time there in the past and with the right management and rejuvenation (ex the spa which is good) this property has a lot of potential, but suffice to say we will never stay there again. I can only hope some lessons are learnt from this and more care is taken but with the current management I suspect not. Be aware.

How can you claim yourselves a 5 star hotel when in the high season your bar closes at 10.30? To be honest we did get a last shot after a rainy day in la flotte. But against hotel policy and because the staff were actually acting against policies … appreciated ! The only 5 star about this is the absurd prices you pay for ‘french’ type of service which is at best 3 stars