Hotel Le Metropole - Beaulieu, France
 

We are thinking of staying at the above hotel - it looks very nice and the location right on the water is good. Has anyone actually stayed there and if so what was your experience? <BR><BR>Thanks in advance.

Interested,<BR><BR>I stayed at the Metropole in May, 2001, in a single room with "garden" view. <BR><BR>The service was spectacular and low-key (all staffers acted like every request was a breeze), and the rooms are very charming, decorated in the yellow and blue fabrics of the region. The location is wonderful: it was very easy to walk to the Beaulieu train station, to Cap Ferrat, and to Villefranche.<BR><BR>The best part of the hotel, I guess, was the location/views at the restaurant and lounge areas. I loved taking afternoon champagne on the terrace overlooking the Med.; I really felt "there," if you know what I mean.<BR><BR>The hotel has no beach, but there is a stone-type pier with steps down to the water.<BR><BR>My biggest complaint was that the "garden" view was actually a tree with some flowers planted around its base that I could see if I stood on my tip-toes.<BR><BR>The breakfasts are very expensive at the hotel, so I walked down to the Beaulieu harbor and had breakfast at the cafes there, overlooking the sail boats and rubbing elbows with the crews of the yachts and the sailors of the small craft. Good fun!<BR><BR>s

S,<BR><BR>Thanks for your message.<BR><BR>Your idea of how to spend and afternoon sounds like mine! Glad to hear that the hotel is well located and pleasant to stay in. We will probably only go for the room rate as opposed to half board in order that we can take meals elsewhere and get to see some other places.<BR><BR>Anyone else have anything to add?

I was in Beaulieu last May, at Residence Eiffel which is almost next door to the Metropole.<BR>If you can, take a meal at Le Catalan restaurant. It is about three blocks from the hotel. We had dinner there twice the week we were there. We thought the food was wonderful It is a neighborhood place. I hope I am spelling it correctly. I don't think you will be disappointed.<BR>It is a very nice little town. Also, if you have time visit Villa Kerylos which is next door to the Residence Eiffel. Just walk over. They have a cafe on the lower level with a garden where you can sit to eat. It is really something to see. Lovely <BR>You can have a nice lunch on the water at the African Queen. <BR>You can take the train up and down the coast. We had a car, but we also used the train to go into Nice as parking can be terrible.<BR>You can write to me if you want I will be glad to help if I can.

It is a very lovely hotel in a lovely setting. It is the hotel in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels if you want a peek.

Thank you all for your replies. I think that we will go with this hotel. Sherry - we will give Le Catalan a try - I like the sound of it being a neighborhood place! I will post a report on my return.

Hello,<BR>My husband and I took a nine day trip to the French Riviera in May of 1998. Yes, a few years back, but we still hold wonderful memories of our time there. I also reminisce through old saved websites and see many of the places are still current. We drove from Germany but stayed in Villefranche-sur-mer on suggestion from a friend who had stayed in Nice. We loved Villefranche and the rustic Hotel Welcome held wonderful balcony views overlooking the fishermen gathering their nets at the dock below. We did visit Bealieu-sur-mer also and peeked inside Hotel Le Metropole. It was elegant and on my wish list of places to stay. We dined at the African Queen along the water in Beaulieu. It was great, casual outdoor dinning overlooking the yachts. We actually took the train easily from Villefranche to Monaco and Beaulieu-sur-mer and also to Nice and Cannes in the opposite direction. We saved our driving for Grasse, St. Paul de Vence, Vence, etc. Dinners along the water are very romantic. There is so much to do along the French Riviera. Will write more if interested. Have a wonderful trip.

Hello,<BR>My husband and I took a nine day trip to the French Riviera in May of 1998. Yes, a few years back, but we still hold wonderful memories of our time there. I also reminisce through old saved websites and see many of the places are still current. We drove from Germany but stayed in Villefranche-sur-mer on suggestion from a friend who had stayed in Nice. We loved Villefranche and the rustic Hotel Welcome held wonderful balcony views overlooking the fishermen gathering their nets at the dock below. We did visit Bealieu-sur-mer also and peeked inside Hotel Le Metropole. It was elegant and on my wish list of places to stay. We dined at the African Queen along the water in Beaulieu. It was great, casual outdoor dinning overlooking the yachts. We actually took the train easily from Villefranche to Monaco and Beaulieu-sur-mer and also to Nice and Cannes in the opposite direction. We saved our driving for Grasse, St. Paul de Vence, Vence, etc. Dinners along the water are very romantic. There is so much to do along the French Riviera. Will write more if interested. Have a wonderful trip.

Debbie, <BR>Please share some more details of your trip with us! A trip in that region is on my list of to-do's.<BR><BR>Thanks

Thanks Debbie for the input! I am glad to see there is such positive feedback.

For Mike and others interested in our French Riviera trip...<BR><BR>My husband and I took a wonderful nine day trip to the French Riviera in May of 98. We were then living in Germany, and our daylong drive down through the majestic Alps of Switzerland then through a portion of the Italian Riviera was spectacular. We enjoyed the whole scenic day with lunch consisting of rusticellos and cappucinos in Italy along the way. We arrived the first evening at our stay for seven nights, the historic and charming Hotel Welcome in Villefranche-sur-mer. Our black iron, balconied room overlooked the water below. It was a perfect Cote d' Azur view taking in the fishermen with their nets, the old citadel to the right and the winding train along the rocks to our far left and finally the mouth of the bay far out in front to the beyond. (I must post these beautiful pictures sometime!) Continued below…<BR>

Continued French Riviera Trip...Anyway, as far as our activities, days were easily filled with some of the following: sightseeing historic Villefranche and neighboring St. Jean Cap Ferrat by little tourist train (fun way to get us acclimated), and dinning in the fine restaurants of each for lunch and dinner. The next day we took the big train for a full day of sightseeing in Monaco. There we saw the changing of the guards at the palace (saw Prince Ranier by chance), visited Princess Grace's resting place at the cathedral (not planned but happened upon), took a tour around the whole principality, gambled at the Monte Carlo casino, watched some of the set up for the big Monte Carlo Grand Prix and hung out in some of the pretty public gardens overlooking the yachts below. Also visited Beaulieu-sur-mer and dined at the African Queen (great). Another day drove up to tour the wonderful St. Paul de Vence then Vence just beyond. I rummaged through the outdoor market in Vence and bargained for some great small antiques (that luckily fit into the back of our sports car). The same afternoon we intended on driving the Napoleon’s Route to Grasse but were turned back due to an accident. Instead we shifted gears and drove on down to Cannes for a peek (as the Cannes Film Festival had just begun), then stopped in Cagnes-sur-mer to tour the museum home and grounds of painter Renoir (very relaxing). That same evening we returned to Vence to partake in one of the highlights of our trip: dining at Auberge de Seigneurs. This is an awesome experience for any traveler who has the time. We were there for hours as we were catered to with what seemed liked endless courses to our meal while our main course of chicken roasted on an old rotisserie over an open fire. Very rustic and romantic setting for a couple. The madame owner ended the evening by giving each lady a red rose and everyone a shot of liquor consisting of vodka marinated with orange blossoms. When I chokingly asked what it was, she humorously said "French Coca-Cola." Another day was spent entirely at the Cannes Film Festival, star gazing and staying for the red carpet intro that evening (touristy fun, yes, but we got the t-shirt:). One full day was spent taking the bus directly to the harbor of Nice, antique shopping, walking the famous Promenade des Anglais, touring the Pattise (sp?) Museum, and taking boating excursions along the French Riviera. <BR><BR>

Last leg of French Riviera trip...<BR><BR>We ended our week with a leisurely drive northward, stopping in Arles for sightseeing and winding down into the forgotten land of the Valley of the Tarn. The weekend was spent in the amazingly affordable 1492 Chateau de la Caze. My husband asked, "How do you find these places?" It was a perfect, cobblestoned castle with moat and four poster beds situated directly along a roaring river that literally lulled you to sleep in this never-never land. The drive back to Germany was also perfect through the back roads of rural France. These are really the areas many Americans picture as "true France." I hope this gives you some insight to our most memorable experiences of our French Riviera trip. Our simple advice: Pick and choose from other travelers’ experiences along with guide book suggestions, and you can't go wrong on the romantic French Riviera! In the final words of a true southerner, “It’s all good.” Happy travels.