Château d'Ermenonville

Exterior of the hotel was amazing. Gardens and lake are beautiful. Interior definitely needs attention, i can imagine this would take a large amount of funds which might be the problem. Staff are very friendly and helpful. Dinner was delicious. Breakfast was ok but could do with more variety. I expect fresh coffee in a hotel not a machine. Although our bedroom was upgraded it was stiflingly hot, the fan provided made no difference and the window wouldnt open so we had no fresh air at all. We had a bad nights sleep due to the heat. Due to lack of other guests the hotel has no ambience.

Whilst the hotel looks impressive from the outside the bedrooms are small, dirty and in need of attention. We travelled as part of a group and one couple got a bedroom full of flies and bugs. Although they got moved, the new room was dirty and stained. Staff were also rude and unhelpful. Food was seriously overpriced for what you received. It is a real shame as the hotel as so much potential but I would definitely recommend avoiding this hotel.

Chateau Ermenonville 4 July 2023 room 108 Fabulous setting Beautiful building - no wonder king Henry often visited to meet his mistress Gabrielle d’Estree (v sensible intelligent girl who had 3 of his children but died aged 26 before she could marry and be queen) BUT OH MY GOODNESSS BUT No welcome at all in any way on arrival - almost hostile. My wife wanted to leave at once! Having announced who we were and why (having booked) Told to produce identity Told to produce a credit card Told to photograph a framed notice - to know codes for entrance gate and wifi We asked if we could have dinner and after thought we were told yes; we agreed 19:30 When I wanted the wifi on my iphone I had to log in and switch back and difficult forth to get the detail of the 10 small numbers in the photograph - yes a 10 number code (at least it was only numbers and not numbers and letters with some in capitals !). There was no paper or pen/pencil in the room and i was unable to transcribe. Kettle and sachets of coffee with glasses but no cups, no milk and no decaffeinated coffee A fancy screw top bottle of water - tap water. Nowhere to hang a towel in the bathroom - the only place to put a towel was on top of the shower screen, where the shower wet it, or on the floor. A lot of bathroom floor tiles are missing - tatty. Nice looking shelf unit leaning loosely against the wall in the bathroom, containing folded towels, soap, shampoo and water glasses BUT if you touched it : the shelves all tilted alarmingly - several screws missing or loose The whole unit began to slide sideways - not fixed anywhere - I thought I was about to smash the glasses; I did not touch it again. Fabulous room with an out of this world, wonderful, view down the river. Bedroom furniture: drawer nob missing from “1930s” table; mirror of “1930s” dressing table has lost a lot of silver - all furniture a mismatched, jumble of cast offs that together felt like unloved rubbish stuff and never like much loved antiques. By now my wife was badly spooked - the lack of welcome in every way. She again debated leaving - but we had given a credit card and had booked dinner. Dining room: The waiter on duty did not greet, walked past several times before slowly iphone checking that we could join the otherwise 2/3rds empty room and then off- handedly said we could sit anywhere. We both had the same dishes: a “60 degree egg” that was 90% raw in a cheesy mushroomy sauce ( I hope the eggs are guaranteed salmonella free) Followed by a nice round steak with only 4 small, tasteless things that we were told were bits of a mushroom of some sort. No vegetable. Oh and we each had to use two and a half dry, hard, long bread-rolls - no butter; our plates we scraped clean to soften the bread and for taste. The dinner/Supper was 107€ for two (no wine). You decide if a fair price. My water glass smelled of dirty dishwasher; I could not finish it; when this happens at home the machine gets given a special clean