Hôtel la Montagne Fleurie

Thanks so much for making us feel so welcome and accepting our little dog. Your hotel is beautiful, with lovely woodwork. See you soon, we’ll come back to visit!

We stayed two nights. Our room was comfortable and well kept, and the rooms are well insulated. The common areas have a rustic look, and the owners keep the whole place very clean. We appreciated the location, and in the middle of summer it was easy to park on nearby streets. Breakfast isn’t homemade and there isn’t much choice, but it seemed fair for the price.

The building is very pretty, and the rooms are large and tastefully furnished. The hotel is clean, with nothing to complain about there. What let us down was the bare minimum breakfast and the feeling that we were a bother whenever we asked for something. The buffet, if you can call it that, was breakfast in name only, something you could put together at home. It wasn’t suitable for hikers like us or what I’d expect from a three-star place. I understand the owner is very busy, but guests still deserve a little attention. We noticed that many guests were there for spa treatments, and the owner seemed much kinder and more attentive to them than to hikers or other visitors who weren’t having treatment. We found that difference unacceptable. She could also have spared me the comment at breakfast. I accidentally spilled my fruit compote into my coffee while opening it. I apologized for the stain on her tablecloth, but my hand gave way because of muscle weakness in it. She replied, “You need to be more careful when opening it.” There’s no restaurant, just one meal offered at lunch and dinner. We wanted to eat there one evening, but my husband is diabetic, and the owner refused to make him sautéed potatoes, saying it was too much hassle. She offered boiled potatoes instead, which I found appalling. We ate elsewhere. At €18, the meals didn’t seem restaurant quality, more like cafeteria or canteen food. The owner was attentive to spa guests and other hotel residents, but didn’t consider us hikers and visitors when planning the menu. There were clear double standards. She was always rushing around, had no time to answer questions, or replied very curtly. We left yesterday with only a quick goodbye. We won’t stay here again. We’ll choose a proper hotel instead, as there are two in Barèges that we’ve already checked out. Avoid this one unless all you’re after is the beautiful setting.

Late August 2022. I was a hiker arriving around 8:30 or 9:00 PM. They looked at me like some kind of “foreigner,” then told me there were no rooms left, even though it was clear there were rooms available. The receptionist had made it clear she couldn’t decide. Was it prejudice against hikers who look disheveled? Or did they just not need to make an effort in a stage town on the Tour de France? Maybe more on that another time.