Estérel Resort

Day 2 at the resort. The rooms are very nice and modern with excellent beds. The check-in was efficient except that they forgot to give us our black wrist bands so we were turned away at the poolside. Had to go back and do a mini second check in. Wasted some time but not bad. It’s on a nice lake. The spa/pool area is well laid out. But the biggest issue which is unfortunately is that 1) there are not enough chairs, so it’s a fight for chairs, people leave their towels all day even if the chairs are not used 2) not enough shaded area. For the life of me, I can’t understand why they have not figured this out. Let me help: put more long chairs. Done. Too bad. It’s an easy fix. Trying to rest on vacation and instead we’re annoyed with the basics. Otherwise, it’s a nice hotel.

Well first off, this is not a Nordic spa in the summer... They advertise having a "bain glacial" (ice bath) but it's not the case. They simply have a small unheated pool. Honestly, the bigger swimming pools are just as "cool" if not cooler in the summer but the lake is likely the coolest of all, year round. Because of this lack of cold plunge, it makes it impossible to complete a thermal cycle at this location and was a real downer for me who loves my thermal cycles that I had fully expected to get based on the services advertised. Of course, outside of summer, the lake would probably do and even the unheated pool in winter. When brought up to management they did address the situation with me but regardless, I don't see myself going back... It's an ok resort for maybe two nights max. My wife and I went for four nights and found there wasn't enough to do, especially in the evening for longer stays. We ended up driving to St Sauveur on our last night for a change of scenery (Bistro St Sauveur to be more precise... An amazing bring your own wine location) The service seemed a little stretched in terms personnel but they all seemed competent, professional and polite. Although the room seemed like it was the better or even best element of our stay, the hallways could be noisy and I could easily hear my upstairs neighbour walking around until past midnight. The spa is ok for anyone who just enjoys lying around on lawn chairs (hardly enough for everyone) and in hot tubs IMO. The sauna was fine but I didn't find the steam bath was working properly. Keep in mind that it's a family location so if you want an adult only spa or resort, look elsewhere. Yoga with Dominique was great. Breakfast was pretty good. Rok was good but rather expensive, especially considering you're cooking your own food lol. I ended up cancelling my Voilier reservation and opted to head to Bistro St Sauveur instead but heard from others that it was ok although pricey as well. I did meet a couple who said the fireplace in their room was stuck on and they had to get it fixed... I can't imagine that in the middle of summer with AC fighting against the heat lol. I hate to end on a bad note but I was rather disappointed that they decided to mow the lawn garden side from 8:30-9:30 am on a Wednesday morning... Seems like they could wait until 10am to let people sleep in

Rooms are beautiful and cozy. However, I wasn’t expecting such small pools/spas for such a big resort. What really turned me off is that many people do not follow rules. There were pools that indicated adults only but had kids anyways who are splashing and fooling around. So much for a relaxing spa weekend getaway…