Le Relais Louis XI

The building and location are beautiful, which makes the decline here such a shame. Three years ago, when it was part of the Logis group, I had an enjoyable, memorable stay. It’s now independent, run down, poorly managed and understaffed, and the value for money is shockingly poor. On arrival, we wanted a drink in the garden, but the once-beautiful grounds were neglected, with dead plants, broken glass on the patio and full ashtrays. The refreshments were limited: no gin and just one beer choice. It was very hot, and although the old building understandably has no air conditioning, reception told me there was a fan in the cupboard. There was none in either of the two rooms we’d booked for our small group. After showering, I found the gel was used up, and there was only one cup for tea and coffee. I went to reception to sort this out, but it had closed. There were no hotel staff on site. Restaurant staff said the restaurant was a separate business and couldn’t help. The meal was cheerfully served, but seemed to be reheated rather than made there. It was acceptable, but drastically overpriced. Breakfast was also disappointing for €16 per person. The most disturbing issue was ants in my elderly in-laws’ room. With no hotel staff there, we tried the emergency number on the room card, but couldn’t reach anyone from either a mobile or the room phone, so we dealt with it ourselves. The ants seemed attracted to something on the floor, which suggested poor cleanliness. If there had been a medical emergency, we would have had a major problem. The next morning, reception agreed to refund the room with the ants. Since then, the hotel has denied agreeing to that and said I contacted the caretaker, who handled the issue. Either they’ve mistaken me for another dissatisfied guest or that account is fabricated. This place is run down and poorly managed now that it’s independent, despite the beautiful location and historic building.

The hotel was good three years ago when it was part of Logis. It still has the signage, and Booking.com lists it as a Logis, but it’s no longer affiliated. It’s a shame, because the building could be lovely. The garden has dead plants in pots and cigarette butts, and the bar is poorly stocked, with no gin and tonic and only one bottle of Leffe. Dinner was very expensive for food that seemed to have been reheated on site. We asked for a fan in room 240 and were told every room had one in the wardrobe, but by the time we checked, the only hotel staff member had left for the day. My parents were in room 301, where flying ants had infested the room. They had to find a hoover and clean them up themselves because no staff were there, and the emergency number didn’t work. The room was filthy. The hotel later claimed this was part of the river ecosystem and that I’d received an email about it when booking. I never got that email. The next day, we spoke to staff and asked for a refund for room 301. A staff member agreed to support the request through Booking.com. We had a video, and the complaint was translated into French, so the issue was clear. Three weeks later, after lots of chasing, Booking.com offered a €50 voucher as an apology, while the hotel came up with a few stories to avoid responsibility. They don’t understand hospitality. We all got home angry, exhausted and dissatisfied, after a lovely holiday that was spoiled by our stay at hotel Louis x1 meung sur Loire. Avoid at all costs. Ignore positive reviews from two or three years ago, when it was run by LOGIS and was a good hotel. Focus on recent reviews. The good ones look like they were written by the owner.

The restaurant didn't leave much of an impression. The food was neither very good nor very bad, just too expensive for what you get, and the hotel itself felt overpriced too. Our starters looked like supermarket food with a few decorative touches, such as salad leaves and drops of sauce. The hotel has a lot of potential thanks to its location, view and historic building, but it doesn’t live up to it. The rooms are mediocre and more like a hostel. The breakfast room has the same problem, with a stark, bleak atmosphere that brought back memories of Eastern Europe in the 1980s.

The location is pretty cool, and the place has a lot of history. The old building is beautiful, and its interesting rooms made it a joy to stay in. Check-in was clever: we entered a code into a machine and it gave us the key. Still, not meeting anyone felt a little unsettling. I wanted to give it five stars, but two things let it down. The breakfast didn’t offer much choice, and the pastries were dry. We’d stayed at many cheaper hotels that served more. Also, workers on our floor started at around 8am. Guests like to relax and get up in their own time, so I think hotel work should start at 9 or 10 at the earliest. I left both comments in the suggestion box, hoping they’d be acted on.