Le Clos des Fées

I had to cancel my Olympic booking after something came up, with more than a month still to go before the reservation. They kept over $600. In my experience, many hotels give a full refund if you cancel a couple of weeks ahead, so this felt outrageous. I would never stay here. Places that handle cancellations this way make other hotels look bad. How can I get my information to you?

The family was friendly, and the house had a quiet, cozy feel, though it was quite worn, as old homes often are. The creaky floors and dated interior might be part of the charm if you like that sort of thing. There's a glass building in the yard with a hot-water barrel pool that sounds lovely in colder weather. The pool is heated, but the water looked a little cloudy. We chose the place for its outdoor pool and proximity to Château de Chantilly, but the weather turned out badly, so we didn't sunbathe by the pool. It's a homestay in an old villa, with five rooms rented to tourists, rather than a hotel. If you expect hotel amenities or service, you may be disappointed. Our upstairs room had reasonably good WiFi, but there was no coverage downstairs. There were no curtains, and the early daylight made sleeping uncomfortable for us. Only in the morning did I notice the outside shutters. They weren't visible from inside, and nobody mentioned them, as if guests were expected to know. Breakfast is at a large shared table, though you can eat outside too. It came with croissants, jam, cereal, and fruit. We don't usually eat those things in the morning, but the host kindly made scrambled eggs and brought cheese. The bedding felt rough and smelled damp. Booking.com gives misleading information about a restaurant on site, but there isn't one. A few places to eat are around a 10-minute walk away. I also didn't see the beauty and health centre listed there, though perhaps I should have asked about it separately.

We loved it. The rooms felt better than a really modern hotel, and ours, Valentine, had a vintage Scandinavian look. The food was local and tasty.

A lovely B&B, with big rooms that have plenty of character.