As the only 5 star hotel on the island, it is popular with Japanese and French tourists. But not as popular with me.

The hotel is situated far from the action in Point Magnin just below the Casino and directly on the stunning beach.

There are 3 restaurants – L’Hippocampe – French dining; Shogun – Japanese, and Sextant – International cuisine. We ate the buffet breakfast at Sextant daily and had one dinner there as well. Breakfasts were probably at a 4 -star standard – plentiful, but didn’t change its offerings from one day to the next. Most days we ate at a leisurely 9am except one day at 6.45am – and there was a stark difference in freshness and presentation.

The pool is beautiful, the beach clean and well maintained, and the overall service of a very high standard.

The biggest, if not only letdown, are the rooms themselves. They are dated and are in need of a refurb. Small things such as the number of soap bars in the bathroom (1); the size of the TV (17″) which made viewing difficult from the bed; and the leaking shower onto the bathroom floor – if fixed, would make for a more ‘grand’ experience.

But again, the wonderful service, smiles, and ‘can-do’ attitude of the staff
made it a pleasure to stay.