Le Jardin d'Emile

Cassis is nestled into the cliffs! The Jardin d’Emile is an Amazing location, beautiful views, lovely breakfast, the room was clean and comfortable and spacious overlooking the Mediterranean. You could walk to the water front and enjoy delicious food, drinks, local shopping, and village life.

I am a seasoned traveler and have made bookings for years and years of travel based on Tripadvisor reviews. This is the first time where I feel completely perplexed (deceived!) by all the 5 star reviews. Actually I am shocked. First, I want to make clear that I do not enjoy writing negative reviews. But, in the interest of providing frequent travelers like myself with an honest assessment of this hotel, I feel compelled to do so. Negatives: • The hotel is not “quaint.” It is rundown, old and musty smelling. The room deodorizer used to cover up the mustiness gave me a headache. We had a room with a balcony, but that didn’t make up for the fact that the furnishings were very old and tired which made the place felt unclean as a result. • The door to the balcony was hard to manage. With the high winds that night, we felt very lucky that it did not blow open during the night. • The bathroom had a standalone tub, with NO separate shower stall. We skipped the bath. • The lighting was very dim. I wondered if that was intentional. • The main “lounge area” (which a prior reviewer praised), looked messy, old, and uninviting. I should have taken a picture. • Breakfast needed to be ordered the night before – ok, I’ve experienced it at prior hotels. But they wanted you to tell them exactly what you wanted so that they could pick it up elsewhere in the morning to give to you. For 19 euros, only pastries and coffee available. Eggs, etc. were extra. For that price you could have 2 full, fresh breakfasts by walking the short distance to town. • The pictures on the website are beyond deceiving. Not even close to what we saw. • Here’s a kicker - when my husband and I walked into town for dinner, we were told if we returned after 9 am, that we would have to walk uphill to the hotel next door and ask them to unlock the gates to let us back onto our hotel property. Huh? • And all of the above for 215 euros per night! We paid far less at other hotels on this trip with triple the amount of amenities, not to mention much nicer accommodations. Truly a rip-off. Positives • Parking is free • The young lady who checked us in was very sweet and helpful. She provided us with several restaurant recommendations. • While the room felt very old and musty, the bed sheets were at least clean. Not worth 215 euros though. I would bet in its heyday that this was a charming boutique hotel. But it is clearly well past its prime and I wouldn’t even pay 50 euros to stay there now. Sorry. There are many other nicer hotels in the area to choose from.

We loved our stay at Jardin d’Emile. Located at a quiet end of Cassis with a beautiful beach across the street, the hotel has lovely treed grounds and friendly, accommodating proprietors. Our terrace had a wonderful view of the sea and big pines in the foreground. But possibly the best thing about our stay was the amazing breakfast served right on our terrace. Fresh-squeezed orange juice, home-baked cakes and breads— it was very special. If you like quiet, away from the crowds, I highly recommend this gem of a hotel.