La Creole Beach Hôtel & Spa

“A very pleasant place to stay - highly recommended!”

I stayed here with our son and one of our daughters during their university reading week, and we had a very pleasant time! The hotel is very nicely laid out, with a very nice beach. The food was excellent, and the staff were very friendly. The grounds are lovely, with beautiful flowers and even … more

I stayed here with our son and one of our daughters during their university reading week, and we had a very pleasant time! The hotel is very nicely laid out, with a very nice beach. The food was excellent, and the staff were very friendly. The grounds are lovely, with beautiful flowers and even wildlife (pelicans diving for fish at the beach, the occasional iguana moseying about). We had adjoining rooms on the third floor of the "Chelonia" building, with windows overlooking the water and manicured grounds (partly incorporating the faint vestiges of a 17th century fortress turret - complete with a couple of old cannons). The windows were sliding glass doors opening onto a narrow, European-style balcony (room enough to stand or hang clothes over the railing, but not sit). We spent a few late afternoons wandering the grounds, taking photos against the mountainous backdrop of Basse-Terre over the water, before heading to dinner. The breakfast buffet was excellent, and we used the same restaurant "La Route des Épices" for the dinner buffet, a few nights. In between, there were paninis available for lunch at the Yureli Beach Bar (the menu includes club sandwiches and salads, which were sometimes unavailable). There are a few good restaurant options within a short (3-5 min) walking distance from the hotel (we ate at "Le Restaurant le Massai" one night, and "Coconut Coast" another couple of nights). We had planned to eat at "Le Zawag" (a really lovely, fancier, restaurant on the hotel grounds) for our last night, but failed to make a reservation (which I think should be done at least a day in advance) and so ate at "Le Canopy" (the rooftop restaurant at the nearby casino) instead. The comfy bar "La Rhumerie" is nicely situated, adjacent but above the swimming pool area, and became a focal point for live music, most evenings. You can rent jet skis on the beach (my son and I took them out for a spin, one afternoon). It's also possible to arrange excursions (the concierge desk was able to schedule a wonderful half-day out on the water with "Cap Lagon", in the Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin, a major marine natural reserve and UNESCO-recognized biosphere reserve to the north, between Basse-Terre and Grande-Terre, which included snorkeling and a tour of the mangrove forest). They even arranged a driver for us, although there's a Hertz rental car agency right across from the hotel parking lot, and we rented a car on a couple of other days, in order to explore more of Guadeloupe (hiking to waterfalls, visiting the fantastic outdoor zoo, and ziplining through the rain forest!) We found the hotel staff very responsive (at one point, there was a water leak in one of our rooms, and they came to fix it, right away). They also arranged transport back to the airport, on our last day. The one thing I would say is that one should have some fluency in French, since few of the hotel staff spoke English, which represents a great opportunity to brush up on your French! In summary, we had a wonderful and memorable week at La Creole, and I would definitely recommend it.

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“You, as hotel guest, are not the priority …”

We decided to spent Christmas and New Year in this hotel, which seems to be perfect for holidays – from the pictures. They are a couple of things we would have loved to know before deciding for that hotel … which could have decreased either the frustration or just changed the decision … Not everyth… more

We decided to spent Christmas and New Year in this hotel, which seems to be perfect for holidays – from the pictures. They are a couple of things we would have loved to know before deciding for that hotel … which could have decreased either the frustration or just changed the decision … Not everything is negative. Let’s start with the positive aspects : staff is really kind and attentive (majority …); very good location to visit the island, nice sand beach, fresh fruit juice in the morning, nice clean rooms, gifts every day in the room linked to local culture, the a la carte restaurant (not included in the full or half board), decoration for the celebrations and especially the St Sylvester Night (fireworks, animations, lights, dancing on beach, …). But, because there is a big but … - As everywhere apparently in Guadalupe, the beach is not private … which means that you have, all the time a serious flow of externals through the hotel. In theory they only use the beach but in reality, it is everywhere in the hotel … Even at swimming pool supposed to be for hotel guests only. There are only 6 or 7 umbrellas on the beach, and if you arrive two late … you don’t even have a seat. Same for the swimming pool with about 30 seats for 200 rooms … - At reception, in restrooms, in corridors !, on sofas, in the garden for picknicks … plenty of people who are not from the hotel … So noise, trash bins full, queue for restrooms, … Even the sport room is “open” as no card to access (0 towels each time we went). If you go in the morning for an excursion, when you come back : no parking place, no place in the hotel for you … No Control. And if you are at the beach and wish to eat, because of the number of external, you may wait one hour … for a pizza or a sandwisch (quickly out of stock) for lunch. Without saying that in the evening at the bar (show place), a couple of times, no seat to “watch the show or listen to the music” because of externals. Even at St Sylvester, we wanted to take an aperitif … and it was “closed” for us … because externals had booked all the seats and tables. Restaurant (buffet) is also open all the time for external guests which makes it too crowded and often devastated. Christmas night was in particular an awful experience : noisy, a real “canteen” impression, full of guests, … Just bad. There are signs saying don’t bring your food from outside or reserved for hotel guests but absolutely no control or remark so useless. It is not a cheap hotel, esp. at that period and you would expect a bit more consideration. Even if the rooms are comfortable, bathrooms are basic (shower in bath and not easy to adapt temperature of water). In the corridors, you find people who should not be there, giving you a non secure feeling (smoking … and not cigarettes …). In the morning, for breakfast, if you are early (because after it is too noisy you cannot enjtoy the place), you have the choice between inside (noise and “traffic”) or outside where you have chicken and birds making their dejections all over the place, incl. seats.

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