La Bastide de Saint Julien

We left disappointed and won’t return. The property itself is impressive, with manicured gardens, a lovely pool and deck, contemporary design in both shared and guest areas, an impressive elevator, and well-appointed rooms. We came with high expectations based on the website, location, interior, and the promise of air-conditioning. The welcome was friendly, and we got our keys right away. Our first room faced the main road and was noisy, even though we’d called ahead to request somewhere quiet. We asked to move and were switched immediately. The second room was too warm. Housekeeping confirmed there were AC problems, especially in that room, and the staff quickly moved us again. There was no restaurant at La Bastide de Saint Julien, and the rainy weather made us decide not to eat elsewhere. At our request, the staff kindly brought a delicious cheese and cold cuts platter with house wine to the outdoor terrace, where we sat under an umbrella in the rain. That part was quite nice. But we slept very badly. Even with the AC running at the lowest temperature and highest ventilation, as the room directory instructed, the temperature didn’t go below 24 Celsius. The bedlinen was 50% polyester and 50% cotton, which we found poor quality. The bathroom also had a loose amenities tray, a broken toilet roll holder, and a broken waste bin. When we raised these problems in the morning, a supervisor or manager said this was a Chambre d'Hote (=Bed & Breakfast), though we couldn’t see how that was relevant or an excuse. They said the AC was centralized, that the 24-degree minimum was set by the company that installed it rather than La Bastide de Saint Julien’s management, and that no one had complained about room temperature or the polyester bedlinen since the property opened. We were also told that apparently we didn’t like anything and complained about everything, implying we were the problem. We didn’t accept those explanations. Since we couldn’t sleep properly, and the final room was a lower category than the one we paid for, we expected an appropriate commercial gesture. We eventually got a refund for the room-category difference and the charge for the cheese and cold cuts platter and bottle of wine was waived, but that didn’t feel adequate.