Hotel Vatel in Bordeaux

EDIT: Appreciate the apology from the hotel, although I hope that the hotel does take my drain fly sighting seriously. Maybe I experienced bad timing but seeing one is still not a good sign.

Booked one of the luxury rooms and while at first glance it looked amazing, minor details emerged that dulled the experience. One of the hand towels I received was tattered and had holes in it. There were also mosquitoes and I spotted and killed a drain fly in the shower, a sign of possibly unclean bathroom drains. It was a bit unpleasant having a mosquito buzzing near my ear at bedtime and constantly being on alert to swat them. Not up to the standards of a four star hotel like I would expect.

On the plus side, the location was convenient and the staff was very helpful. It is a prime location as it is very close to the tram station.

Booked one of the luxury rooms and while the room looked amazing at first glance, there were soon small things that did not make this a four star hotel experience. Shortly after being in the room, I noticed a mosquito and killed it. I would have dismissed it if there was one that somehow flew into the room while the door was open but this was not the case. There were definitely more the next day and my second night in the room was made uncomfortable by a buzzing mosquito near my ear. My mother awoke with bites. Not only that, I spotted and killed a drain fly while taking a shower. While it was only one, it is still not a good sign as it indicates unclean drains and the possibility that there may be more on the way. This is the only time I ever stayed in a four star hotel that I encountered a drain fly. Furthermore, one of the hand towels we received was tattered with holes and was thin from overuse. Again, not something I would expect from a four star hotel, especially from one of the more expensive luxury rooms. It is all not bad though. I can say that this hotel is located near the tram in a very nice part of Bordeaux. The beds are comfortable too. Furthermore, the staff were very accommodating and pleasant. I would maybe just suggest putting some mosquito dunks or other pest control in the nearby fountain, clean out the bathroom drains, and provide better towels… Not a four star hotel experience otherwise and left me disappointed with the lack of care.

Booked one of the luxury rooms and while the room looked amazing at first glance, there were soon small things that did not make this a four star hotel experience. Shortly after being in the room, I noticed a mosquito and killed it. I would have dismissed it if there was one that somehow flew into the room while the door was open but this was not the case. There were definitely more the next day and my second night in the room was made uncomfortable by a buzzing mosquito near my ear. My mother awoke with bites. Not only that, I spotted and killed a drain fly while taking a shower. This is not a good sign as it indicates a budding infestation and unclean drains. This is the only time I ever stayed in a four star hotel that had this kind of problem. Furthermore, one of the hand towels we received was tattered with holes and looked kind of nasty. Again, not something I would expect from a four star hotel, especially from one of the more expensive luxury rooms. It is all not bad though. I can say that this hotel is located near the tram in a very nice part of Bordeaux. The beds are comfortable too. Furthermore, the staff were very accommodating and pleasant. I would maybe just suggest putting some mosquito dunks or other pest control in the nearby fountain, clean out the bathroom drains, and provide better towels… Not a four star hotel experience otherwise.

OK, but would stay closer to city center
The hotel is located about a mile away from the Bordeaux city center. There is a metro station in front of the hotel, so it’s not hard to get around. The hotel is clean and there is a refrigerator in the room. We were there three days and on the first two days we were woken up by someone pounding a hammer to repair floors. Also, the WiFi would only connect to one phone in our room at a time.