Hôtel la Fiancée du Pirate

Spectacular views, good facilities, tasty breakfast, and friendly hosts. Rooms are basic but clean. I was left grumpy though as I have never had my refundable deposit returned. Despite there being no reason for keeping it. Schoolboy error on my part. I should have insisted on collecting it before we left!

The fiancee du pirate is an small owner run hotel high above Villefranche sur Mer in Col de Villefranche. The price is reasonable compared to those on the main sea front. The breakfast was excellent although starting at 8.30am was a little late for us and at 16 euros a person, I thought a little expensive. The owners were friendly most of the time, although their constant smoking in the public areas was a little disappointing. The rooms are as I expected, a little tired in places but the aircon worked well and the beds were comfortable. The pool was lovely, quiet most of the time and a perfect temperature with a lovely view. Walking to Villefranche sur Mer ( where the main restaurants and shops were) down the 700 steps, took some effort and took about 25 minutes and I would say only the very fit would attempt to climb back up in the height of summer so we spend lots of money on ubers instead of walking back, although we did walk on several occasions when the uber vehicles were unavailable. (Def not recommended for those with less than moderate fitness levels though!) Would I stay here again? No, mainly because of the location being so high above the main town. If you are on a budget and want to stay on the outskirts of villefranche, then it's not a bad option but I think you can do better in Beaulieu or Nice itself and then catch the train to the lovely and lively Villefranche sur mer.

Very difficult to rate this hotel. Lovely, friendly staff and very nice pool area. The room has OK'sh for few nights but wouldn't recommend staying any longer. We were there for 3 nights so was ok. It was quite a small room/bathroom with very little room for clothes etc if your were staying for any longer.. Parts of the room looked as though it had been refurbished but other parts hadn't and looked tired and worn. There was also no safe and no mini fridge. I guess, financially, with covid its been difficult for hotels to carry out any significant refurbs. It was expensive and not really value for money. We paid more for this hotel than a Spa Hotel in Antibes! Not suitable for anyone with mobility issues as there was no lift - you had to carry suitcases down a number of steps - however the hotel staff were very helpful.

This hotel has the most beautiful setting on the Cote dAzur and the hosts Emilie and Hugues could not be friendlier or more helpful, nothing was too much trouble. We had our 9 year old grand daughter with us and she was made to feel like it was her home from the moment we arrived. The home made breakfast was expansive and delicious and a great way to start the day. We will definitely return.

We stayed in the hotel in August 2022, shortly after it had been acquired by a new owner. The new management clearly had a lot to learn about running a hotel. The hotel is situated on a main road a few miles outside Nice. While it is on several bus routes, the buses are not particularly frequent (particularly in the evening) and are quite unreliable so you really need a car. There are steep stone steps from the road down to reception and then steep stairs either up or down to rooms and down to the pool so this is not suitable for people with mobility issues or families with young children. The rooms are very basic with little storage - just an open rail and a couple of baskets. The views over the bay are stunning but the inside rooms don't have balconies, although some of the rooms have outside seating. There was a shortage of basics, such as towels, when we were there - we had to wait for them to be washed before we could have fresh ones. The continental breakfast was OK although there were quite a lot of flies around. The outdoor tables are only for 2 so if you are a larger group you need to sit indoors. There was no evidence of any food or drink being served other than at breakfast - we and several other families brought food in for lunch and were criticised by one member of staff who said he could could cook for us - this was a surprise to us as there was no menu provided and this member of staff only worked every other week. The pool is very pleasant although there are only about 10 chairs around it. There is a supermarket, restaurant and bakery very clos e to the hotel. You can walk into Villefranche but it takes about half an hour down a steep hill. Coming back in the evening is difficult as the buses stop running early and you can wait a long time for an Uber. Overall, while the staff are friendly, the facilities are very basis and management have a lot to learn about how to run a hotel. This was very expensive for what it was.

Beautiful hotel in Villafranche with wonderful views to the sea and coast line from a distance. Rooms are spacious, very clean and quiet with comfortable beds….All we needed for our stay. Breakfast was great and the fresh coffee was delicious. Emilie was an excellent host, ready to help in every possible way! She walked the extra mile to make our staying a very pleasant one. She recommended a restaurant on our last night and tue food was delicious. The restaurant was just minutes away by taxi from the hotel.I definitely recommend this place to stay and I will definitely return!