La Chaumiere

Beautiful setting, great service, lovely and excellent restaurant on premises.

Extra charges for gym and hot tub unfortunate.

Set in an old timber framed house with views across the river to Le Harve, the hotel is set in quiet gardens with direct access to the beach for walks to Honfleur or along the coast. They pride themselves on their ecological approach, best shown by the lack of litter on our breakfast table. You take butter from a huge block on the serving table, spoon jam or honey from jars onto a plate, sugar in in a bowl, nothing is packed unless it has to be. Breakfast is very French with fresh bread and jams, a little ham and cheese, but no great international spread. This must reduce waste too. Dinner was delicious with simple fish dishes for us like a fish pie and cod served on cabbage with a shellfish sauce and two wonderful fruit desserts. As I cannot eat dairy, the idea of a choice of desserts was amazing! Service was very good with helpful suggestions and English spoken. For those that like to feel at home, the resident dog and cat are guest friendly without imposing themselves. Our downstairs room was very comfortable and decorated in a modern style which fitted very well with the old building. A terrace outside was private but offered a view of the river and direct access into the gardens. We would definitely stay again as this place is head and shoulders above the accommodation in the town and yet you are only a couple of minutes drive away.

The bathroom looks great but using it reveals design faults. Made a hash of washing my face in the designer washbasin and got water all over the floor and my slippers! Use the flannel as trying to splash water over your face will result in wet feet! The bathroom has no door so if you value privacy when cleaning your teeth or showering, take note. The loo is separate and does have a door! The light fittings will warm the back of your head at the basin - I am 5’7” so anyone taller may have more problems than me - must be quite unpleasant in summer. The shower is a wet room type so again you will get water where you don’t want it if you are not careful. There is a bath mat to avoid slipping - use it! The drive could also benefit from some of the potholes being filled.

Very pet friendly, which is why we chose it, and the large grounds and way down to the beach only made that better.

Room was a little small for the price paid, but we did have an outside area for the dog to go out.