Bahia Hotel

I felt safe here, thanks to the security measures, and it was good value for the price. The staff I met were all lovely, friendly and helpful. My room was clean and had everything I needed for a single night. I didn’t try the other amenities, but the pool looked nice and opens straight onto the beach.

The pool area was peaceful, and I’d definitely return. Our standard double had everything we needed for a long weekend. The only change I’d make is the room location: ours was beside noisy swinging fire doors. Avoid rooms 02, 102 and 202. Hotel Bahia is right on the beach promenade and near the marina, so it’s great for relaxing and eating out. Nice and Antibes are both about a 30-minute bus ride away.

Our garden-side room felt cozy, had AC, a small entrance and was a huge upgrade over the cheaper rooms for only about 100 euros more. Breakfast was included, plentiful and very good. We stayed almost a week and honestly, the harsh earlier reviews don’t seem fair to this three-star hotel. The staff were very kind and handled our requests, including extra towels. No bugs or ants, and only a few minor mould patches in the shower, nothing worrying. They even let us stay longer by the pool after checkout, and were incredibly patient with guests arriving at 9:59 for breakfast, which runs 7-10am. The building is triangular, with its point facing the sea. Rooms on the pool and garden side are mostly apartments booked through other vendors, or smaller double rooms with balconies. They may look like the better choice, but the pool can make them noisy. The cheaper balcony rooms are at the front and face the parking lot, but that wasn’t tragic. Our side used to face a construction site, now a nice neighbouring hotel that gives some shade. Sometimes there’s a fuel smell from the neighbouring jetski rental, but fortunately it wasn’t unbearable. The beach restaurant isn’t anything special, but it’s cheaper, by 1 or 2 euros on cocktails and meals, and the staff were friendlier than at the other places nearby. There are other venues every 30 metres, such as La Playa, Watiki and Rosy whatever, but they’re about 30% more expensive. Sunbeds and umbrellas here are the cheapest and are for the hotel beach area, which is spacious compared with nearby sunbed areas. You won’t get hassled by impoverished locals there, unlike on the public beach. You’re told beforehand that there’s a 20 deposit for the area gate key, standard for hotels nowadays. Some local pavements had dog feces, a wider Villeneuve-Loubet local government problem, and staff were keen to clean it when we pointed it out. The hotel could do with rooms being treated for mould at the start of each season, maybe March-May, and the outside could use pressure washing or a bit of paint. That would easily earn it better ratings. Guests bring sand in on their shoes, which causes plumbing trouble in the showers, and that could perhaps be addressed somehow. We nearly managed that but luckily avoided the problem. We wished we could stay longer, but it was fully booked. I’m giving 5 stars in response to the unfair earlier 1-star reviews. This place is way better than the comments made it sound.

The pool area was really nice, though the water was quite cold in early May and only some people were swimming. There’s also a large supermarket across the road. The hotel was clean and nice, but a bit dated, especially the bathrooms. Breakfast was decent: boiled eggs, coffee, yoghurt, bread and buns.