Novotel Orleans Chemins de Sologne Demeures de Campagne

As a hotel it's okay. Rooms are clean enough, staff is friendly enough. The big plus is the grass court outside, and the pool, allowing the kids some activities after a day in the car. The distance from the Netherlands is ideal: a day's drive. But it's pricey for a family of 5. We've had lesser experiences in the restaurant. For two years in a row the receipt did not match the prices on the menu, and things were just messed up. Food is average; chicken is often dry and portions are quite small. We had to complain and spend time fixing this. Breakfast on the other hand is great. The last time we were promised a discount on the second room, but it was never given. Have been waiting for customer support for 2 1/2 months now, and after several phone calls... absolutely nothing. No news, no information, nothing.

Everything is at ground level in this hotel but this does mean a long walk to your room and if you were a lone traveller opening a window at night might make you feel uncomfortable. Reception was a bit confused at checkin of our group and some rooms were not available which given that we arrived after 3pm was odd. The hotel has obviously had a face lift and was not unattractive but they really needed to strip off the artex on the ceilings and walls first as the result is a bit downmarket especially in the rooms. Some pictures had been placed in the corridors but there run out halfway down and they really didnt go with the rest of the decor. The room was nice but a bit dark although fine for a night. The toilet and bathrooms did not get modernised, other than the basin and good lighting over the mirror, and were clean and functional although the grouting on the floor looked like it had never been cleaned. The bed and pillows were comfortable, the bedside table lights worked well and the room was quiet so we slept well. Breakfast was quite nice, the orange juice, yogurt and fruits were fine and there is a kettle in the room. The set menu for dinner was ok but what was served differed from what was on the menu we saw which was odd. As I was ill staff kindly did me a mushroom omelette with vanilla ice cream to follow which was most welcome, although it did need chasing up to get delivered. Overall fine for a night but given its out of town location you will need to eat here.

All the people wear swimsuits and are barefoot at the reception, I felt almost like being at a beach. Flip flops and shorts at dinner are the usual attire. You are requested to keep the cutlery used for the starter for the main course. It is not acceptable to be decently dressed for dinner among barefoot companies.