ibis budget Pouilly-en-Auxois

The room seemed clean, and there was a decent amount of parking. Everything else was frustrating. The advertised air conditioning wasn’t there, and after a long day we found the top bunk unmade, so we had to set it up ourselves. We got only two towels and no shower towel for our three-bedroom room. There was no toilet paper either, and it took 10 minutes to get some from the front desk. The shower took ages to warm up, then swung between freezing and scalding. We’ve also been charged twice, despite paying through another retailer, and are trying to get the money back.

We’ve stayed here every year for six years, but after this visit we’re inclined to try one of the other places on the highway. When we came down for breakfast, posters and a very aggressive woman told us we wouldn’t be served because we hadn’t booked ahead. The manager later backed that up, saying that because it was “low cost” and due to “regulations,” he couldn’t serve us. He offered no options or alternatives, and when we asked, just said to go to McDonald’s, without saying where or how to find one. There was no message about the breakfast requirement on the booking site. If we had known beforehand, or been given some alternative, that would have been appreciated. Instead, the woman serving breakfast treated us pitifully. We’ve never faced this kind of disdain from Accor before. Value for money doesn’t excuse service that isn’t decent, honest and kind.

We knew to expect a budget stay, but not to be treated with such disdain. There was no air conditioning, despite it being advertised on Booking.com, on one of the hottest nights of the year so far. The next morning, the front desk team was extremely rude and aggressive. They said we should have reserved breakfast, though there had been no option to do so and no notice about it at the front door, in the bedroom or online when we booked. They made it very clear we weren’t welcome and were an inconvenience. I speak a reasonable amount of French and understand much more. This was one of our worst overnight stops while travelling through France. I rarely write reviews, but feel others should be warned.

The place was dirty and run-down, nothing like the pictures. Cockroaches were everywhere. We killed a few, then spotted another in a spiderweb. When we asked to change rooms, the manager said, "its a wood bug, they are in the walls, floor,rooms and everywhere they are not dangerous". We left the dump and won’t be back.