Aquabella Hotel Aix-en-Provence

We had a terrific time at this hotel. I used to live in Aix as a student and this hotel was just perfect for bopping about town. You were a minute's walk from the main part of the old town and it was easy to go back to the hotel for a mini rest, mid-day. I reserved through Orbitz and paid $153 for 2 people, which included an enormous breakfast. We were bumped up to a suite for free and we had windows which swung open and we could enjoy the sunset looking over the ruins of the roman baths. The breakfast was unusual in the size and selection of the buffet: whole figs, prunes, yogurts, 5 types of breads, 5-6 types of pastries, croissants and rolls; 5 types of cheeses, eggs, 5 types of meats, including bacon and sausages, hot milk,coffee, pitchers of fresh orange juice and fresh grapefruit juice, and a very friendly staff. A couple of newspapers in English as well as other languages. Every day they filled the room with oils, bath salts and other lotions and shampoos in the bathroom, that smelled amazing. It is a spa, so these toilletries are great souvenirs, with scents like jasmine, and orange flower, and citrus fruit. There was a concierge who researched all kinds of things for us, free of charge. I thought the price was well worth it, as we started off the day full and did not have to search out a restaurant immediately. We were so close and the room was so spacious and light that you could take a siesta and pop right back out again. I don't know if all the rooms face the pool, but I would request that as the view is amazing. I think we were on the fourth floor, which was a nice perspective to see the ruins.

Unique Quality: The use of the spa is included in the price and there are naturally heated mineral baths, as well as a pool where you can rest and relax.

Directions: Just down the street from the Cathedrale Saint Sauveur in the old town

We got a pretty good deal to stay here over the weekend of my 28th birthday, booked online and saved almost fifty percent (we paid about seventy euros for a double). The rooms were nice, the hotel nice, but the price does not include breakfast (11 euros extra). There are jacuzzis and stuff, and this is the hotel of the Thermes Sextius, but I never got around to using the facilities.
I must say though, being a three star hotel it wasn't THAT good. I have stayed in nicer two stars. At the end of the day it is a room with a bed and a TV and a bath. Oh, and in the morning when i went to take a shower, the water was cold!!!! So much for the Thermes.

Unique Quality: Like I say, the hotel of the Thermes, but I never got down there. The location is good; at the end of the Cours Sextius, not far from the Cathedrale, and nearby to the great little furniture store Fly. Not that that is important if you aren't actually living there.

Directions: If you arrive at the bus station, just cut past the Cite du Livre and over the car park by the Sextius-Mirabeau development, then walk up Cours Sextius and turn right at the Thermes.