The Originals Residence, Les Sources Callou, Vichy

The location was fantastic, but the stay was the opposite of what we'd hoped for while preparing for exams. There were no photos of our room, only the duplex, so the 15m² room for two came as a real surprise. Peace and quiet were out of reach: neighbors shouted on the landing in the middle of the night, went out to smoke every half hour, and their TV came right through the thin walls. When we asked them at 2 a.m. to keep it down, they replied, "Oh, you want to sleep?" The toilets and showers throughout the apartments were incredibly loud, too. The TV in our room never worked.

There's not much space, but it was just right for two. The bed was huge and comfortable, and the little extras were thoughtful: shower gel, shampoo, tea, coffee, mineral water, a bathrobe, and a good-quality hairdryer. It's close to the city center and the Bicuse roundabout. I'd recommend it.

The bed was perfect and there was lots of storage. The apartment is in a very good location, and check-in and check-out were extremely easy to do ourselves. One drawback is the very narrow shower, which might be an issue depending on your build.

I found the room well looked after, though quite dated, and it was fine for a single night. Getting there means climbing two flights of stairs in an old house, so it's a tough choice if you have mobility issues. The shower is tiny and shares a room with the toilet. There isn't a chair, just two high stools at a very small folding table, only about 5 cm above the stools. The spaces in front of the house were taken, so we had to look toward the river for parking and walk quite a way. I'd suggest it for one night if you don't have luggage to carry.