Le Petit Nice - Passedat

Meh. So the restaurant is amazing, but the hotel is dated and not very competent. We stayed for 2 nights. The staff were very pleasant. Breakfasts were perfect -- not too little, not too much. Negronis on the patio in the sun looking out over the Med -- perfect. BUT. When we checked in they charged us for the room for two nights. When we checked out, they double charged us for the room (and the dinner at their excellent 3 star restaurant). We told them they had already charged us for the room, but they said that was wrong, We had to call them when the charges cleared to explain they had double charged us for the room. They agreed to refund the overcharge, but we did not receive an apology. Unacceptable, lousy customer service. Inexcusable. Why rip-off your customers and refuse to apologize when you do so? Not like they would have refunded us our 750 euros of overcharge had we not called them on it. Incompetent. Unacceptable.

The alley between main hotel & rooms was rancid with the garbage from the kitchen, it need pressure washing every morning, all guests pass by this, it was more than unpleasant, the kitchen waste needs to be "vacuum" packed, not oozing down the street. The pool area is insufficient, you can barely pass around it with only 6 sunbeds squashed at one end, & then bean bags in other small areas, not enough shade & pool salt water not very refreshing in the heat. Also wet used towels not cleared away as guests departed, we had to remove ourselves. For such an over priced hotel it was unacceptable, & the location was teaming with people desperate to get into the sea or sunbathing themselves on the rocks, car access tricky but nice guy to help in the parking area. Continental breakfast expensive, no coffee machine /kettle in rooms. Well groomed staff. Our terrace dirty on arrival but cleaned on request.

It’s a No from us unfortunately, and definitely not for anyone with babies/families. Tried to keep an open mind reading the reviews previously but a few things have definitely disappointed us. The view was great and we had an amazing time exploring the area but we won’t return to this hotel. The price range is definitely 5* but in our opinion the hotel is not. We have booked a specific terraced room above the main restaurant with a direct view over the sea. I emailed the hotel too and they have reassured me that the room will be on the 1st floor above the restaurant so we could leave our baby sleeping in the room and the camera signal would stretch well to the restaurant area so we could have my Birthday meal there and relax being very close to our baby. When we arrived they have put us in a completely different room (albeit with a terrace), in a different ‘newly built’ block outside of the hotel gate. The view of the sea was restricted and the room was facing the main gates, the hotel wall, the alley with motorbikes driving past and bins being collected. So no direct view of the sea and too far from the restaurant to leave the baby in the room sleeping comfortably. They have offered us a different room in the same building and then one on the 3rd floor for the second night but it wasn’t fitting the criteria still. We have decided to cancel the reservation at the main restaurant to avoid further disappointment. The lift in the new block wasn’t working either so every day we had carry our pushchair up and down. Then there was a broken highchair. They brought us one with the bottom straps missing so the baby was literally sliding out. When we asked for another highchair the breakfast waiter simply said that was the only one they had. No apologies, nothing. On the last day we have decided to spent the morning by the pool. Unfortunately they have treated it and it was unusable until 12pm. We have requested an iron but it was never brought to the room. No info given at check in about things like check out times, swimming pool open time, breakfast times etc. Swimming pool is beautiful but not there aren’t enough sun beds (only about 6). Very awkward when you arrive but there is nowhere to sit but on the floor on the towel. That’s just a few main points, there are more. Definitely room for improvement for the hotel, no quite sure how they can justify their pricing and calling this 5* by just having a 3* restaurant on site.

This is difficult to write because I had a wonderful time just staring at the sea, and swimming a the little nearby swimming beach. But here were the problems. This is not a 5 start hotel. For 700-900 Eu a night, breakfast needs to be included. Even though there is a 3 Michelin start restaurant on the property, the room service menu is so limited, poorly executed and sometime unavailable. Go figure. I ordered an omelette and tea at 7 am on day of departure, and was told at 7 am that the omelette couldn't be done until 8. Went to the airport hungry. Even though someone buzzed the taxi in, there was no one to help with bags, or at reception. Often there was no one at reception. They seem to hang out in a small room just to the left, but they can't or don't see the front desk, so I often had to peer around and into the room to get attention. The fitness room is not a "wellness" center. Only 1 person or couple can use it at a time. It's so small and yet there's a full size, free standing bathtub in it next to the spin cyle. Why? The equipment is lovely to look at, but unusable (except the ergometer). No room really for yoga mat to stretch or do yoga. Seems like a lot of these things could be fixed quite easily.

Great views, very good location, very good restaurant. The hotel needs renovation, hotel staff very poor for five stars. No concierge, no hotel taxi. Very bad value for money, many times higher than the standard of the hotel. I do not recommend the hotel, but I do very recommend the restaurants.

Grand Chef Passedat knows how to delight. A rare 3-Star restaurant and 5-star hotel that delivers on each and all of the stars. We hope to return again. If you are into gastronomic seafood this restaurant provides rare dishes that will surprise and delight. Superb service by highly trained and kind staff. Fabulous on-the-sea-cliff alfresco dining, with endless sunset dinner (830-1030pm) in July.