Residence les Iris

Even though it’s billed as a “Hotel” (Or “ ‘otel” as they say in France) this 14 room Inn really feels more like a bed and breakfast. It’s in an older 3 story wooden building with no elevator, very thin walls and – at least in our bathroom – a sloping floor. Not a good choice for a handicapped person who likes loud sex and has a poor sense of balance Fortunately that was not our demographic. And based on what we saw the hotel seems to be one of the best – if not the best – hotels in town. Like all hotels in St Pierre it was centrally located. Like all hotels in St Pierre it was not particularly cheap at $128 (Cdn) for the night and breakfast in the morning at the small restaurant attached to the hotel. We skipped it (And they seemed disappointed since they had set a place for us)

We’re not bed and breakfast people – we prefer a nice big Westin. But as far as we could tell, every hotel in St Pierre is a home grown affair. While we found reference to a more modern place called the “Hotel Neptune” it doesn’t appear to exist anymore. So we ended up at the Les Iris. There’s no lobby to speak of – just a check in desk as you enter the hotel. Interestingly, even though there’s one just one ferry and one flight a day to the hotel, we had to wait 15 minutes for the desk clerk to show up from some other part of the island. There’s a phone on the desk with instructions on where to call if the desk is unattended. The whole city is a very informal place – a lot like a college campus. But you’d think that if the desk only needed manned for an hour or two a day it would be possible to do it…..

The décor at the hotel was low end Ikea But it was well maintained and the service was friendly. There only amenities were a microwave and a refrigerator in the room. The hotel was also attached to a modern travel agency.

Overall – we can recommend the hotel given the alternatives. But don’t expect higher standards than a rural “Best Western”

Unique Quality: One thing to note. The pictures of the outside of the hotel on the website are not actually the of the enterance to the "Lobby" They make the hotel look far more charming than it is - and are of a store on the corner. The actual entrance makes you ask yourself "This is it?!?"

Directions: Centrally located - but so is everything else