After reading this forum for a while, I have made reservations for the Churchill Hotel in Bayeux for early next June. At the time of booking they offered breakfast for 10 Euros. Trying to watch my spending, I was wondering if it is worth the price or if we might be better off eating breakfast elsewhere? There are four of us, myself, my wife and 23 year old daughter and 18 year old son.
Thanks.
It would be helpful to know what "breakfast" means to you. Is that eggs prepared to order with pork and hash brown potatoes? Will your day be ruined if you don't get that? OTOH, if you mean a mostly cold buffet with many choices, you may be very satisfied with the traditional European hotel breakfast. I think 10 Euros is a good deal. But I place some value on going downstairs without leaving the building, and being able to use the facilities in my room before beginning a day of sightseeing. A more intangible good (I mean, that can't be measured in dollars) is that a buffet breakfast is ready as soon as you enter the dining room. If you go out, you may have to walk, and then wait for service, cutting into your precious sightseeing time. Is that worth saving 3 Euros p.p. on the meal?
It's unfortunate that internet marketing pressures have led many hotels to unbundle breakfast from the room prices, so that they can advertise a lower number in a competitive marketplace. I recently paid 26 Euros in Duesseldorf and 32 Euros (at a high-end luxury hotel) in Frankfurt. But they were extremely fine breakfasts-even if they weren't what you get at a diner on a U.S. highway.
We took a Normandy trip a year ago and stayed at the Churchill hotel in Bayeux. It was a hot breakfast with eggs, bacon, etc. Sometimes I value a full menu like that over a croissant. I think it is a matter of you deciding which you want. There is a grocery store a few doors down from the hotel where you could buy some baked goods early and take to your room if you want to have your own breakfast. I will also add that there is a laundromat a close walk away from the hotel that was very handy for us as we needed a place to wash our clothes.
I would encourage you to make certain you see the British cemetery that is in Bayeux if you are doing a WW2 trip. It was a nice walk from the hotel and meant so much to us to get to see the personal messages the Brits allowed the family members to put on the gravestones of their deceased loved ones. After seeing the American cemetery it was good to see the difference in the 2 places. We also loved seeing the beautiful cathedral there.
Hope this helps!
If you want eggs, meat, OJ and so forth, this won't the traditional French breakfast, which is normally a "cafe creme, croissant" and to hell with it. Cost: about 6 EU.
If that's what you want, though, 10 EU sounds pretty good to me. If the hotel has a buffet line set up, you can probably take all you want.
You won't find eggs and company for much less in any cafe.
These are the type of answers that I was looking for. Rather than type of breakfast, I should have been more clear and said "quality" of breakfast. My son can eat enough to support a dozen lumberjacks, and doesn't gain an ounce.
When in Paris, I stay at Hotel Relais Bosquet and simply love their traditional French breakfast.
Consider also how picky you are about the style of your eggs. I like my eggs rather well done. The French (as well as some Americans, of course) prefer theirs quite runny. In France I could only eat cooked-to-order eggs (which you probably won't get as part of a 10-euro breakfast) or hard-boiled (often available, but probably not always offered, and peeling them can take a surprising amount of time). My policy is always to opt out of hotel breakfasts wherever I can, because I can always find something a lot less expensive elsewhere. I am, however, prepared to settle for something continental style if I don't come across a carry-out option with something like mini-quiches or cheese sandwiches. I found mini-quiches widely available, usually for less than 3 euros.
If your party has some OJ rather than coffee/tea drinkers, consider that at some hotels the OJ is pretty poor. Not consuming a beverage makes a hotel breakfast a less-good deal.
I got stuck in several places that mandated breakfast on my most recent trip to France and England. A few of them had serving schedules that I found terribly early--ending breakfast at 8 or 8:30 AM. Definitely check to be sure that you won't be so constrained unless you know that all in your group will be rising early every day.
Otherwise, I agree that the convenience of a hotel breakfast is worth something, and 10 euros is not a bad financial deal if you are big-breakfast eaters and would otherwise be looking for an eggs-and-meat breakfast elsewhere.
Edited to add: If quality is a major focus, I suggest reading through the reviews on booking.com and trip advisor. Some of them will mention the breakfast, and you may be able to get a good sense of how it will appeal to you.
One other thing I should have mentioned is that buffet breakfasts can be very picked-over if you arrive just 15 or 20 minutes before closing time. A good hotel will keep the offerings well-stocked, but I walked into one that had two lone bagels on the bread counter and a flock of empty fruit bowls. It wasn't until the next morning that I discovered the breakfast was pretty decent, but you had to wake up early to get it.
I'd go for the hotel breakfast on Day 1 and see what you think. The area is not in my recollection exactly full of wonderful alternative choices.
In Bayeux we stayed in d'Argouges just up the main street from Churchill and they also offered what we thought was an expensive breakfast.
After the first day we decided to just walk down the main street and stop in a bakery cafe and have a lovely delicious pastry and cocoa/tea/or coffee. We tried a couple different places and they were all great. We sometimes got our food and drink to go and sat on bench in the town or along the river and enjoyed our breakfast.
It seems like there is at least 1 bakery per block - but maybe I'm exaggerating ... LOL
Go the first day and check out the breakfast.
If you don't like it - eat it anyway, then let your son go out to the nearest patisserie and fill up on whatever he wants.
Most items in patisseries cost about 2 or 3 EU.
If I was trying to feed an 18 year old male, I would save myself a fortune and get the buffet!
I think I remember seeing at least a couple of creperies in Bayeux, but I don't know that they open early enough to be breakfast options.
Or you might just get him a pizza or quiche - 5 or 6 EU - both perfectly acceptable for breakfast, in my opinion. Get thee to the nearest patisserie or boulangerie.
10 Euros in France for Breakfast at a hotel I think is very reasonable.We have been paying anything from 15-20 Euros. in our hotel If you go outside and take a Coffee and a quasaunt it will cost you that.At least in the Churchill you will have a full menu to take.
I'm going to be staying at the Logis Hôtel Lion d'Or when Im there in June.
Yesterday I was giving my French students a listening exercise called " à l'hôtel" and in the dialogue the room was 55€ and breakfast was 6€. I belted out "merde...quel bon deal!"
We are booked at Churchill for four days including breakfast, {Merde, c'est bon!)
Thanks for the replies.
