A faithful reproduction of the owner Laurent Phelip's schoolboy days in Vieux Lyon, this charmingly nostalgic theme hotel (". taking us back to our dreams," as the owner puts it) offers public spaces decorated as antique classrooms, complete with polished wooden desks with inkwells and geography maps. The breakfast room is a study hall. Guest rooms range from simple "undergraduate" quarters to "postgraduate" suites—they are challenging in their stark-white minimal decor but most of them come with splendid views over the Saône and Lyon. Pros: in the middle of Vieux Lyon at a reasonable price; schoolboy theme pervasive and funny. Cons: spartan decor; rooms a bit short on space.
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