Domaine de la Commanderie de Ballan

The hotel looks lovely and the entrance hall, stairs and room were beautiful. However, as they say, beauty is only skin deep! I was appalled that, on using the bathroom on arrival, there was no soap for handwashing. I walked into the large shower (just as well it was dry!) to use the shower gel....and there was no shower gel, the container was empty. My husband went to reception to ask for soap, but they had forgotten to order it, so presumably there was none in the whole hotel, or they would have fetched some from an empty room. I would suggest that the provision of soap is essential, whereas guests can do without make up remover pads and cotton buds, which were provided. There were two receptionists on duty, so surly one could have popped to the nearby supermarket to buy soap? As guests, and presumably staff, are unable to wash hands after using the lavatory, I can only assume that this whole establishment is completely lacking in hygiene! It didn't stop there - the curtain was hanging off the rail in the bathroom, the antique chair was broken, the kettle didn't fit under the tap in the washbasin so had to be filled from the shower or using a paper cup. There was a coffee machine with pods and tea bags, but no milk. There was a mini bar which was empty, but would have been handy to use as a fridge. However, once plugged in, it didn't work. There was a pipe across the top of the ceiling which gurgled loudly when others turned on taps. This needed boxing in an lagging to reduce noise. And sound insulation was poor - we could hear those above us moving furniture, and their TV was on until 0230 hrs, so we didn't get a good nights sleep. The bedside table was dirty and the lamp was dusty. All the defects were basic housekeeping tasks, which could so easily have been dealt with prior to guest arrival. Clearly the housekeeping staff are lacking training or inclination. And who would be mad enough to pay E14 each for breakfast in a basket delivered to the room?? We wouldn't stay here again. Our hotel the previous night was of far better standard, with a wonderful breakfast included for a similar price. As my mother would say, this hotel was fur coat and no knickers!!

We stayed for one night as a family of 4 along with another family we were travelling with. I start with the positives: 1. Beautiful building and grounds. 2. Nice pool area. 3. Comfortable rooms with good air con. Unfortunately however there are a number of things which let the hotel down and means we would not stay again or recommend to other travellers. The negatives were: 1. Terrible service. The women we dealt with on the front desk were quite rude and looked annoyed anytime we asked a question or needed help. If you try calling or emailing the hotel in advance or after the stay they are completely unresponsive, ignoring emails and never answering the phone. 2. Food. There is no restaurant or proper food options available. For breakfast they charge 28 Euros per person for a small basket of bread, eggs, croissants and meat/cheese. The croissants were stale. The website suggests there is food which can be ordered for lunch/dinner but when we arrived we were told this wasn't an option and we'd have to go out to eat. 3. 200 EURO hold on credit card not returned. When checking in they took a 200 euro hold on our credit card. Not sure why this is needed as there is no mini bar, no ability to order room service or charge things to the room and we had to pay for our breakfast when we checked in. We were told the hold would be reversed the afternoon of checkout but 5 days later it's still not be done. The same has happened with our friends who also stayed. I've tried contacting the hotel but they ignore all emails so I now have the hassle of having to contact my bank to remove the charge on the credit card. After staying at the hotel I looked at a few reviews online (should have checked before the stay) and there are similar themes from other travellers. You will also note that when travellers post a negative review or a complaint online the hotel management are very rude and aggressive in response. There is never a polite apology or recognition that someone has received bad service. On this basis I would suggest avoiding staying at this hotel.

This was a beautiful Chateau with modern oppulate rooms. The shower was huge and the bed was very comfortable. The staff were very friendly and spoke english very well which made check in easier for us. Wish we had of stayed longer and would recommend.