Budget Hotels

[TrishT]

We're driving all round France setting off end of April on a go as you please tour so won't be pre-booking anywhere.  We hope to find budget hotels close to wherever we decide to stop on the way and although we are aware of Formule and ETAP hotels we feel sure there must be other similar chains throughout France.  I'd be grateful for any information or suggestions.

[Autismuk]

Formule 1 : Cheapest, no ensuite but a sink in the room. Standard double with bed over top arrangement.

Premiere Classe : Next up ; fewer but they are ensuite. Same layout.

B&B Hotel : Something resembling a proper bathroom, same layout, also have some double + 2 single rooms.

Very similar ; concrete block hotels. They are cheap and cheerful and fairly clean. Free brochures with maps & directions available from any branch. The websites list hotels as well ; just drop into one when you pass and pick up a book.

The most common ones are F1, comfortably. Depends how much you want to spend. Sadly the old Cafe/Bar/Restaurant/Hotel that were anywhere in France when I first went 20+ years ago aren't very common.

They are on the outskirts of most major towns ; usually in commercial estates. Large towns can have 4 or 5 of them.

https://www.envergure.fr/pclassefr.html

http://www.hotel-bb.com/

http://www.hotelformule1.com/formule1/index.html

You could of course get a small tent or similar And take your own pillows ; they do have some, but they're not very nice

There are other cheap'n'cheerful chains as well but I think they are smaller.

[moon]

Would highly recommend the B&B chain mentioned in the previous post, fantastic value for families still great value for couples/singles.

Bob

[JohnM]

I've never had a bad stay in http://www.villages-hotel.com/ . However, don't have your speakers too loud when you access the web site.

 

[suein56]

John

Thanks for that - I had not heard of villages-hotel before and so I had a look - gosh, they look very good for the price and especially so considering what's included ie parking, pets etc.

Sue

PS I hear what you mean - I nearly fell off my chair AND I was ½ expecting something noisy after your prevenir.

[JohnM]

The only downside that I know of with Villages (apart from the coq on the website) is that if you have room at the front and your curtains don't fit totally, your room is bathed in a green glow - but that same green glow does mean you can see the hotel from a mile or so away when you are looking for it late at night!

 

[Ron Avery]

Amazed that in response to this request nobody has mentioned Campanile and Ibis hotels, too far from the Autoroutes?  Both are nationwide and interrnational chains, can be booked on-line and are cheap and excellent value, the rooms are the same in all hotels, doubles with en-suite.  Campanile are also in England. Parking is normally free, on site and supervised.  Have stayed in both groups hotels all over France and not had a bad experience yet staff are very friendly and many speak English if that is important to you.  If you want to go a bit up market try Accor Hotels also bookable on-line.

[Miki]

I don't think Ibis and Campanile can be classed as true budget hotels, they are generally rated somewhat slightly higher.

The big problem we feel with the cheapo hotels is normally the bed, we found most to be rubbish but at the price.......Has anyone ever tried the Bonsai hotels, the worst beds we have ever slept on were in the Cherbourg hotel but at the price, which I think is pretty low I guess you have to accept what you get but never again in that hotel  !!

Nuit hotels are another budget type.

 

[0BRIAN WOODHEADI,m here in franceddMMyyyy0Falseen-USI,m here in franceTrue]

Miki,declare an interest,you run a bed and breakfast and would say that,we have used most of the major chains of hotels and found them to be if a little noisy on occasion fit for the night.

[Miki]

Are you for real. You are such a plank.

I argued strongly for members to have the right to have a signature with their website URL.

Perhaps you might have noticed that I do not put ours on here, do you also notice we don't even chase people who ask for B&B on this forum ? (absolutely nothing against any that do inform enquirers on the forum)

I could shout from the rooftops about our bed and breakfast and it would be pretty pointless, they have no idea where to find me and as we are full for many weeks of the year, we simply do not want any more than the amount we get now. We close for nearly 4 months a year, doesn't seem like someone who needs to down hotel beds. Having said that, 50% of ours are brand new this year

I will tell you something outie, B&B's in France are quite new, in fact gîtes (in this instance meaning cottages) are only 50 years old this year and chambres d'hôtes much less. Many French and others, are now cottoning on to the fact that many of the cheapo hotels are really not too different to the old and infamous 1 star hotels (you know, the ones with the carpet up the wall and wallpaper across the ceiling, dodgy lights and plugs, with a bathroom on each floor) and discovering chambres d'hôtes.

Many commercants are building up a network of places to stay through word of mouth and we know of several salesmen who find that they can now stomach up to 4 nights away from their home by staying with families, with decent meals and wholesome breakfast and not in soulless plastic "hotels" week after week, year after year. Each year more and more couples and families now seek out B&B's, one look at a regional G de Fr brochure will prove that and as for the All France book, well.........................

Now how about the truck driving you are always going on about, found any takers from all your rabbit about it on here ? I do hope the cab is comfortable !!

 

[PeterCD]

Would concur with the Campanile comments - we used them all over France for years while house hunting and always felt they offered good value for money