Hotel La Forge

This was the worst experience I’ve had with a business in my professional life. It was a work booking through Egencia/Expedia, and I can’t believe Expedia supports a business that behaved this unprofessionally. My boss was charged over €300 a night for a room that smelled of sweat, with a broken shower and bedsheets with holes. I understand it’s a two-star hotel, but the price should at least come with an acceptable level of service, and it didn’t. The confirmation said payment would be taken at the hotel, but they charged for the reservation when it was booked. They also billed him for an extra night and then refused to refund it, saying “he is rich so he can pay.” The owners were extremely rude and unreasonable. They don’t speak English and got very agitated when my boss complained about the broken shower. While he was staying there, I felt I had to be nice to them because I was genuinely worried they might ransack his room while he was out. Don’t book their “taxi” either. They charged me €250 for 20-30 minutes of driving, then, for the pickup part of the trip, parked 2.5 miles from the agreed meeting point. My boss and his customers had to walk that distance in the rain to find the driver. I strongly advise against staying here. If you do, don’t pay in advance for anything, pay after the stay or service. From the online reviews, this doesn’t seem like a one-off. Local taxi agencies even laughed and said “good luck” when I mentioned “La Forge,” so it seems to be known locally for the wrong reasons. Based on that, I really believe the positive comments are from family rather than actual customers. Their response to my review only reinforces my view that they’re completely bonkers. My boss didn’t break the shower or cut holes in the sheets, and we never asked for compensation. We wanted the money back for the extra night they charged for no reason and for the taxi service they didn’t complete. These people aren’t normal. Be careful and don’t spend your money there.

The woman who checked us in also cooked dinner and breakfast, which was impressive. The rooms were cleanish, and while they could use some updating, you get what you pay for. La Forge is definitely dated, but it has some old European charm, and I think some reviewers may have been too hard on it. With a bit of modernization, it could make a hell of a B&B.

I’d read the reviews on Tripadvisor after someone in our group booked without doing any research. Honestly, I was braced for something between Fawlty Towers and who knows what, and had three other places’ names and numbers saved on my phone before we arrived. But check-in and getting our room went smoothly, and I was, well, surprised. We were only there for three nights, mostly to sleep and shower before heading out early. It’s about six minutes from the SPA Francourchamps circuit, and it worked fine for that. The downstairs decor still seems to be a work in progress, but our room was cosy and warm, with a TV. The bathroom was fine, pretty clean and had plenty of hot water. So, it was fine for me.

A touch eccentric and old-fashioned, but perfectly nice. The room was clean, the beds reasonably comfortable, and the bathroom and shower were good.