Huge potential but disappointing facilities. Abusive owner.
22 August 2023 at 01:24:03
I rarely write reviews but felt I needed to as this campsite was disappointing and it was such a shame as it has so much potential to be really great as the setting at the Chateaux is amazing.
We arrived at 7:15pm, before reception closed after a long drive up from southern France (the location of... the campsite is near the motorway, which you can hear in the distance but that was ok) and check in was straightforward. The Dutch owner was friendly at this point. We were told if we needed anything to go to the bar after 8:30pm when reception closed. At just after 10pm having set up we realised we hadn’t been given the wi Fi code so went to the bar as directed. No one was there but we recognised the Dutch owner so asked him. Cue a torrent of abuse as to why we wanted this and that he had worked all that day since 7am. He did then get us a code (which turned out to be the barrier code and not the wi Fi, which he literally threw at me), but all the time muttering and swearing under his breath at me and my young daughter (whilst I don’t speak Dutch, I have Dutch friends so knew he was swearing). This really tainted the start of our stay and made us feel like we were an inconvenience rather than a guest on holiday. I also have a very stressful job in the UK working in homeless hostels often working 12 hour shifts so wanted to relax on holiday and not to be made to feel guilty for asking a simple request that could have been written on a notice board or map of the site given to us. I wanted to say we all have stressful jobs but not all of us get to work in such a wonderful location!! (But to be honest I was afraid of him at that point). Also, the wi Fi wasn’t great on site. Only worked on my husbands phone intermittently and not mine at all.
The site isn’t cheap compared to other French campsites and the facilities are very neglected. The shower block is not very clean and only 1 of the 4 showers worked with very hot water. Only 2/3 toilets worked. Pitches are hard gravel making it difficult to get pegs in for awnings or tents. Most pitches have some shade but not all have views. The restaurant food is reasonable but as another viewer noted, very over priced - a burger and chips was nearly 20 euros (and we are used to London prices!). The young girl serving was friendly enough and spoke some English. Probably best to shop in the main supermarket before you arrive. Baked goods can be ordered the day before and were more reasonably priced. The indoor pool was shut, which would have been a nice break from the heat (there is no shade by the outdoor pool other than some cheap umbrellas). There were trampolines for children and a good play area but we witnessed the owner shout at some children to get off them so our children were scared to use them, after they witnessed this and the earlier tirade at us when we arrived!
The outdoor pool had an amazing backdrop of the castle but was also neglected. Only one water slide was in use, the water inside was only turned on after the pool had been open for a few hours and slide was only for children. The pool tiles were coming off the pool edge in some places and attracted lots of wasps. The pool itself was not heated but as we were there in the heatwave, this was actually very refreshing but in cooler weather would probably be too chilly to enjoy. The pool bar was nice but only took cash not cards, so bring cash and again was very overpriced (3 euros fora tiny Coke).
We didn’t get to see inside the castle and advertised services such as massage were not available (even though we were there in high season - August).
Overall a campsite with huge potential but felt a bit sad and not somewhere we would return in the future. I know people have off days but abusing your guests and making them feel like you don’t want them there (like it’s all just a way to make money to renovate your chateaux!) is not the way to run a campsite.
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9 September 2023 at 06:02:59
22 August 2023 at 01:24:03
