Chateau de Candie

Breakfast was fantastic, with pretty much anything you could want to eat. The rest of the stay had its ups and downs. Check-in went smoothly, and both rooms were ready early. One was upgraded to the hotel’s best suite, but the other had bugs everywhere and had to be changed. The staff were professional, friendly, and quick to sort that out. The restaurant had lovely lighting, music, and atmosphere, though the service was all over the place. Different waiters kept asking us the same questions, and we weren’t sure our order had gone through. It had actually been entered twice, so one dish arrived doubled. The table was crowded with unused glasses and cutlery that stayed there until we asked for it to be cleared. Wine came already poured, so we couldn’t check the bottle or even know for sure what we were being served. The food was just as uneven. One steak was genuinely good, while a salad starter looked like it had been sitting out for days, and a salmon dish was only half cooked and missing a side. The staff were polite, but seemed young and in need of proper training. There’s plenty of room to improve, even with that excellent breakfast.

Really great hotel and friendly staff. I’ll be back. I don’t know what the bad reviews are about.

The room was lovely, with a freestanding bath, sofa, comfortable bed, and chateau-style decor. We also enjoyed a glass of their own wine in the bar, and the service was friendly. The hotel is beautiful and close to Chambery. We ate at the more casual restaurant, where the food was very nice for a reasonable price, and they were helpful with allergies. Our last-minute rate was good, and the room was near the restaurant. That was fine at night, but from early morning we could hear the door banging shut repeatedly. It might suit early risers heading out to explore the grounds. The pool looked lovely too, though it was too cold to use the night we stayed. Everything was clean and comfortable.

We couldn’t reach the hotel in time because of a huge fire on the way, so we called to cancel. They agreed to cancel the reservation, but later charged us for the full night. There was a small cancellation clause saying the fee was the same as the room rate. The communication was really bad.