Au Mesnil Le Bas Bray

...fine... okay.

We were meant to stay Friday night through Sunday morning, but after breakfast on Saturday we left. The room had a decent mattress, but broken taps in the bathroom and just one towel per person, with no toiletries. In the restroom, you had to be careful with the toilet paper or it would come apart in your hands. The meal was awful from the first course through dessert. Everything was frozen and barely prepared, and there was no choice of menu whatever package you paid for. Nothing was local, and they didn't even know what cheese was. Breakfast was just as bad: awful coffee and orange juice, stale bread, industrial jam, and no croissants. The welcome was cold, with no warmth at all. The website photos don't match what you actually get, and it's upsetting to think tourists could be misled like that. Aside from the waitress, the owners should find another line of work. This job involves welcoming people and sharing with them, and they don't seem to like either.

The place is lovely, with a big building in the middle of nature, animals around, and a pleasant little pond. The welcome was nice too, which makes the condition of the facilities a shame. Our room was Louis XV. It was pretty, the bed was comfortable, and the bathroom was clean, but there was dust and cobwebs everywhere. The stairs and common room also had lots of cobwebs, as if they hadn't been cleaned or used in ages. The entrance brochures were 3-4 years old. It would be useful to have a kettle in the common space so guests could make a hot drink in their room. We used a Smartbox voucher, which didn't include drinks. A whisky and Coke came to €13, with the whisky at €7 and a 33cl can of Coke at €6. That's steep for an aperitif. There was also a tourist tax of €1 per person per day that the Smartbox website hadn't mentioned. Given the state of the facilities, they might want to rethink the prices.

Breakfast had stale bread, industrial jam, and a kettle on the table for tea. At dinner we only had a starter and a carafe of lukewarm white wine, yet the bill was €66.50. We had €66 on us, and even scraping together €50 was a struggle. The welcome was icy, apart from one enormous dog. The rooms aren't accessible for people with reduced mobility, and they don't accept card payments, neither of which was mentioned. Reception, rooms, breakfast, and meals were all appalling. The prices were exorbitant. Not recommended. Never go there.