Madame Vacances Les Cottages de Valjoly

This was meant to be a special first holiday with our four-month-old baby, but it was completely ruined. As soon as we entered the cottage, we saw a rat and went straight back to reception to explain that this was far from what we expected. The place felt unsafe and unhygienic for our baby, and the cottages were old, dirty, and had vermin. We asked for a refund and were told to contact Voyage Privé. We tried calling and messaging the emergency number, but nobody responded.

The disabled ramps by the shops and restaurants were blocked by bar tables and chairs, which made things a nightmare for my disabled mom. There was also a dispute after we left: reception called two hours later claiming we’d left rubbish, failed to clean the windows, and left the cabins dirty. I explained that we’d raised the cleaning problems when we arrived and had left the cabins cleaner than we found them, with no rubbish. The man said he had photos, but when I said I had photos too, he called me a liar. I asked him to email his pictures because he was pressuring me to pay an 85 euro cleaning fee per cabin. A week later, nothing had arrived, so I can only presume it was a scam to get more money. The cabins were dated, and they hadn’t been properly cleaned when we arrived. We told reception, but nothing was done, so we cleaned them ourselves. Even so, we were told to sweep and tidy them before leaving. The scenery was beautiful.

A quiet spot well away from the busy city, just right for a family break if you want to relax and get out for some activities. There are long walks through the forest, and the lake, pedalos, indoor pool, and horse riding are all on site.

We had a beautiful lake view during our 14-day stay, and the good weather meant we spent plenty of time swimming, hiking, running, horse riding, and playing outside. The bungalow itself was the harder part. It felt pretty cramped for five people, even though it was meant for six. Cooking was difficult in the tiny kitchen, and the fridge couldn’t hold enough for six, so we had to shop every day or two. There wasn’t enough bedroom storage for everyone’s clothes, and we ended up leaving some in the car. The small bathroom also had too little room for towels and toiletry bags. Several things were broken or didn’t work, including lightbulbs and the extractor hood. We reported them to the helpdesk and were told they’d be fixed, but nobody ever showed up.