Best Western Les Aureliades

There are shops and groceries nearby, and each room has a balcony or terrace. The hotel itself was clean, the staff were polite, and having a small kitchen in the room was handy. There's also a swimming pool. Breakfast was so-so, but about what you'd expect at this price. The price and quality felt fair.

The room itself was comfortable, nicely decorated and clean, with a very good bed. Parking was convenient, the water pressure in the bath and shower was good, and the bathroom was fine apart from the bath. I also found the cleaning staff friendly and professional. There was a loud fan running through much of the night, though I got used to it after a couple of days, and the TV lost its memory whenever I left, so it needed to be rescanned each time I wanted to watch something. The main problem was the WiFi. It was very slow and only usable after 11pm. When I mentioned it, staff shrugged and said it struggled when lots of people were online. I had been booked there partly because I needed WiFi, so that was frustrating. The bath was also absurdly short and narrow. I'm 6'2 and of average width, but barely fit; with me in it, a mug of water would nearly have filled it. The shower, on the other hand, was great. I stayed for work for 10 days, and the reception staff made the experience harder. They were coldly polite at best and sometimes nearly rude. I never got a hello, a goodbye, or even a smile, and issues were met with a sigh, even when someone tried to sort them out. Even asking for a couple more sugar sachets seemed to annoy them. A friendly, welcoming manner could have made up for a lot, including the WiFi, but I didn't feel welcome there. For a couple who don't need reliable WiFi or staff who ask how their day went or how the doctor visit was, the hotel might be adequate. As a solo business traveller, those things make a difference, and the Kyriad Prestige at Saint Nazaire fell short. I don't usually leave bad reviews, but for the cost of showing a little warmth, they earned this two-star rating.

The hotel is easy to find, and the rooms are modern, comfortable, and nicely equipped with a fridge and microwave. There are several restaurants, a McDonald's, and a supermarket nearby, and breakfast was okay, with bacon and scrambled eggs available. The setting wasn't what the photos suggested. New buildings are going up around it, so if you get a room on the wrong side, you look out at the workers and they can see in. The pool was closed in April, and even when open, being right beside an office building and reached through reception didn't make it feel appealing. The fridge was useful, but it was noisy along with the air conditioning, and I woke three times when the cooler started up again. I booked because of the fitness room, but it was closed because the hot tub wasn't working. The equipment had been dumped in corners of the conference room with no real indication it could be used, though the door said “fitness.” For a business trip or a one-night stop it's more than okay, but I wouldn't recommend it for a longer private stay.

I was disappointed to find the kitchen locked in my room, since I had chosen this hotel because it came with a kitchen. For stays of 1-4 days, they charge 15€ per day to use it, plus a 250€ deposit and 5€ for a kit to clean it before leaving. Their website doesn't warn you about this when booking a stay of four days or less. With those extra charges, the accommodation is too expensive for this kind of hotel and location.