Archive for the Nice category
Saturday, Jan 27th, 2007
Categories: Nice
Thursday, 25 January 2007
Our last day and we had to wake up really early to be able to reach our first appointment in time. With just one more to do we were quite looking forward to a day of sight seeing and relaxing around Nice after the meeting. This time we met with Sophie at Hotel Helvetique. This property is in a prime location as its located just 200 meters away from the Promenade des Anglais and the Place Massena and Jardin Albert. The location is set in a shopping street with all kinds of weird and wonderful shops.
The hotel itself is lovely and once inside you will feel very at home. The rooms are spacious and bright and very clean and tidy. The communal area and breakfast room are bright and lively and the en-suite bathrooms are all new and clean.
Each room is equipped with all that you may need during your stay including hairdryers, safety deposit box and television. This property is really lovely and the owners and staff are very warm and welcoming. I would highly recommend it to anyone.
Finally we were done with the work and we could relax and enjoy the sights before taking our flight back to London that afternoon.
We wondered through the historical part of town and to the flower market. It was a beautiful sunny day and even though the city was very quiet there was still a tremendous buzz around.
David had the amazing idea of having a crepe for lunch. Something which I would not refuse, so we found ourselves a charming little café opposite the Palais de Justice and we sat and watched the world go buy while we waiting for our coffee and crepes.
Oh my…what a crepe it was. I was in heaven, it was smothered in Chocolate and pieces of banana. Wonderful!
We had another walk around the shops in the area and slowly made our way back to the hostel where we would enjoy lunch with Ulf, Arno and Albert before saying our goodbyes and making our way to the airport.
Our trip to Nice was one of the easier ones because of its small size. Everything is easily accessible in the city which makes it easy to walk from place to place. There is so much to see, granted we only saw a handful of the amazing sights but with so little time I had to promise myself that I would return under different circumstances, perhaps for a long weekend in the coming summer.
Saturday, Jan 27th, 2007
Categories: Nice
Wednesday, 24 January 2007
Again David and I met for breakfast at 8:00 however this morning we had to back up our belongings as we had arranged other accommodation for the evening. After a lovely breakfast we made our way to Hostel Meyerbeer Beach.
We had arrived and had a look around the property. With its brilliant location it’s no wonder that this hostel is so popular. The rooms are basic and comfortable and all are clean and tidy. The reception and common area are a little cramped but it does mean that you will be socializing with fellow backpackers. The hostel does have a very homely feel to it and plenty of character. I would recommend this property for its stunning location and friendly atmosphere.
Following on from there just around the corner we visited Hostel Paradis. We were given a selection of keys to so we could go and see some of the rooms ourselves. Rooms were very clean, tidy and spacious. The location of this property is also great with a variety of shops, bars and restaurants to keep everyone entertained.
We had covered the first two appointments relatively quickly so we went to an internet café for an hour and caught up on our emails followed by lunch this time at Mac Donald’s.
Our next appointment was at Residence Hoteliere Ajoupa with Abel. This property gives a false impression from the outside. It’s almost hard to see from the street but once inside there are a variety of rooms available. Parts of this building and some specific rooms are undergoing renovations and some very stylish new mini apartments are being built.
These new apartments once complete will be ideal for couples travelling looking for relatively cheap accommodation. The location of this property is brilliant. It is surrounded by beautiful shops, bars and restaurants.
We went directly from that meeting to the next which was at Antares. This property is a great choice for any backpacker. There are a variety of communal areas to hang out and socialize with fellow travellers. The rooms are clean, tidy and very bright and there are a variety of rooms on offer form dorms to privates. The staff were incredibly friendly and eager to help and are passionate about their guests and showing them a good time while visiting Nice.
The following three properties we went to visit were all relatively similar in their set up and ratings. All within less than a minutes walk from each other and also located very centrally it’s another good choice of accommodation.
Hotel Azurea, Hotel du Midi and Hotel Bristol offer travellers an opportunity to stay in reasonably priced accommodation where many services are offered. Such as Wi-Fi, currency exchange, dry-cleaning and care rental. All rooms are tastefully decorated with en-suite facilities which may include a bath or a shower. These hotels have great communal areas where breakfast can be enjoyed as well where you can relax after a hard day sightseeing.
We had finished our appointments for the day so headed back to our hotel to collect our bags so we could make our way to Hostel Saint Exupery where we would be spending our last night in Nice. We were once again picked up by the lovely staff from the Hostel. This free service is offered to those who are carrying heavy backpacks etc since the property is at the top of steep hill it makes it a little easier to reach the hostel by car.
Arriving there at around six in the evening we sat in the old Chapel and had a few drinks with Arno. His brother and a few friends joined us later and we continued the drinking. After some dinner we ventured out in the car to do a bit of exploring. Arno and Albert took us to Monaco to see the Casino and some other sights.
I would love to return to visit Monaco during the day as even at night it was mesmerizing. The castle at top the hill and the incredible yachts parked in the bay. We managed to have a quick wonder around the casino as well where at the entrance there are a series of photographs which cover some history about the building and the royal family. It is a whole different life there all together, the cars you see parked outside the casino resemble the line up of cars available in Project Gotham Racing on the xbox 360. It was all totally surreal.
At around midnight we had to start making our way back to the hostel as Arno need to pick up some backpackers from the pick up point near the hostel. Feeling rather exhausted having drunk a little too much and having walked so much during the day I will more than ready for bed.
The guys stayed up chatting for a while longer and I went to bed, after a quick shower I climbed into bed with the intention of reading a bit, I don’t think I even made it to the end of the first page before I was asleep.
Saturday, Jan 27th, 2007
Categories: Nice
Tuesday, 23 January 2007
On the previous evening we decided we would meet at 8 in the morning to have breakfast together. We enjoyed some lovely fresh pastries and cereal at the hotel before making our way to our first appointment which was at Villa Saint Exupery where we had organised to meet with Ulf and Arno. Situated relatively centrally although in a slightly hilly part of the city this hostel is in the most exquisite position, having formally been a Carmelite Monastery it has incredible charm. We were lucky to be picked up by the hostels shuttle service which would take us to the top of the hill while we were en-route up there.
We were invited into the common area where we had a meeting with Ulf, Arno and Albert, Ulf is the owner of the property and Arno and Albert are his sons.
Following the chat we had a quick tour round the property so we could get an idea of the different sorts of rooms on offer. All rooms were very clean and tidy and very bright and airy which makes them perfect for the very hot summers typical to that region.
The hostel has incredible charm with a fantastic common area where breakfast is served in the mornings and where other meals can be enjoyed throughout the day. There are several internet terminals available 24 hours a day as well as Wi-Fi throughout the building.
We had originally planned to spend all three nights at Hotel Compte de Nice however we thought it probably best to try and experience some of the other hospitality on offer to us so we managed to organise at stay at Villa Saint Exupery on the last night.
Following on from our visit there we made our way to the Kyriad Hotel. This hotel is situated in the very centre of the city. With beautiful clean and tidy rooms and all the facilities you could possibly need on hand it’s a great choice of accommodation. Breakfast can be enjoyed on the lovely courtyard area outside in the summer months.
Our next appointment was only at 13:00 that afternoon so we decided that considering we had some time to kill we would have some lunch and wonder about to see some of the sights. We stopped at KFC of all places as I guess it was just the most familiar we could find. I must say though, I felt kind of guilty doing so knowing there was plenty of lovely food on offer else where. Well we had the KFC and had a walk around some of the local shops. There is an unbelievable variety of shops to visit, from famous brands to shops that sell one offs and those that sell anything and everything you could possibly wish for.
Granted it wasn’t the best season to be visiting Nice as it was rather cold but there was still plenty to do. With Monaco and Monte Carlo in easy driving distance along with many other beautiful little towns there is plenty to keep one occupied.
At 13:00 we made our way to Hotel Trocadero where we met with Ray along with Nabila. She showed us around the property which was undergoing some renovation. The hotel was due to open just a week later so they really had their work cut out for them.
The rooms were really lovely with huge bathrooms of which many boasted lovely double doors which opened out onto the streets below. All rooms had beautiful high ceilings and plenty of space. This property I would highly recommend for a number of reasons those which include its situation within the city and also its fantastic value for money.
Following on from that we went to see Hotel Pastoral where we were to meet with Frederic. He sadly couldn’t join us so we had a quick show round the property with one of the staff. The rooms were basic however they were also very clean and tidy. This property is very central. It’s based just a five minutes walk from the main train station as well as only a 15 minute walk from the beach and the old town.
Again having had such a short appointment we had time to do some more exploring. We had a wonder through the old town and visited some more shops. We also found a bit of time to sit and admire the beautiful beaches. The weather had been relatively warm on our arrival but by this stage we had heard reports of snow in the surrounding mountains and the temperature dropped substantially.
Next up was Fauborg Montmartre Hostel. We met with Nina, a backpacker who ended up doing some little odd jobs for the owner who is known as “The Pink Lady”. This hostel is the kind of place for a long term backpacker to stay. It’s the kind of environment where you will be spending all your time with fellow backpackers. There is limited privacy as the rooms are very small and intimate. There is no communal meeting area apart from the restaurant so the rooms are where all the socializing happens. The facilities are very basic but this is budget accommodation.
The last appointment on the Tuesday was at Hotel Boreal. Again this property is very centrally located. With a quaint little communal area downstairs as well as a bar it’s a great place to socialize. All rooms are very clean and tidy. All are en-suite too. This hotel offers everything including Wi-Fi but this is at an additional cost to regular room rates.
Having completed our work for the day we went to a local supermarket to pick up some goodies for our dinner. We bought a lovely fresh baguette, some fresh cold meats, fruit, choc-chip biscuits and a couple of beers and went back to the apartment for a carpet picnic and an early night in. We had some preparations to get done for the following day so we got on with some work followed by our picnic then early to bed.
Saturday, Jan 27th, 2007
Categories: Nice
Monday 22nd January 2007
David and I went to work at the HostelBookers offices in London that morning to get the few final preparations in place for the trip to Visit Nice Hostels. We left the city at around 10:30am and made our way to Victoria station to catch the Gatwick Express to Gatwick Airport. Our flight to Nice was at 14:20. With an effortless check in we hung around the departure lounge and discussed some plans for the trip.
On route I managed to sleep for the most part while David got stuck into doing some work on his laptop. Within an hour and a half we arrived in Nice, the weather from my aeroplane window looked particularly grim but when we actually got outside it was pleasantly mild. Something I was particularly pleased about having spent a few days in Turin, Italy the previous week feeling ever so miserable because of the freezing cold and windy weather.
With a fair bit of travel under my belt at this stage I found the process of making our way to the centre of the city incredibly easy. There have been times when it’s taken hours and endless questions to find our destination from the often out of town airports that the budget airlines normally fly to. This unusual bit of luck left David and I in good spirits as we took the bus from Terminal one at Nice airport to just near the property where we would spend the first two nights of our trip. Given the opportunity we would love to stay at all the properties we work with so we could truly experience what they are about but with limited time and several meetings we had to choose the most central of accommodation choices to accommodate us on our visit.
The journey from Airport to our bus stop took about 40 minutes although we must take into account that we were travelling in peak hour traffic. Ordinarily I would imagine the journey would be a little quicker. From Terminal 1 we took the No.23 bus towards the centre of town, we had been instructed to get off the bus on the second stop after the main train station which is called Gare SNCF. The bus was jam packed with excitable school kids so we were happy to get off and make our way to Hotel, Compte de Nice where we could have a rest before heading out for dinner and a quick pint before heading back for some much needed sleep.
We wondered down the main street down to the beach, it was completely dark now so we weren’t able to make out too much about our surroundings. That would have to wait until morning. Having had a good look around at the menu on offer at the various restaurants around the beach front we settled on a quaint little restaurant away from the main street where we enjoyed a lovely meal and a good beer. Feeling rather sleepy and satisfied after dinner we took a leisurely stroll back to the hotel and if I am not mistaken we were asleep by 10.
David and I had each been allocated a lovely little apartment which was part of the hotel. With basic kitchen facilities, television, en-suite bathroom and wi-fi access in the lobby lounge it had all we needed.
