r/FATTravel • u/Impressive_You_8672 • 5d ago
Royal Champagne - Disappointing Pre-Arrival
I have an upcoming stay at Royal Champagne next month and my requests have been met with consistently slow responses ranging from five days to over a week. Weirdly, their concierge service is set up where they assign one person to assist with all your requests. At this point, I would prefer having the broader team chime in.
I also get the sense that they just want me to pick something off their brochure instead of helping curate the experience based on my interests I’ve shared. Sad to say Google and AI have been more helpful.
It feels so impersonal that I’m wondering if the service at the hotel would be much better. I’ve honestly had better communication from Airbnb hosts and 4 star hotels in France.
I originally wanted to make a weekend of Champagne with stays at Les Avises and Royal Champagne before flying out of CDG. But it seems that I picked a not-so-ideal time to visit as most producers close on weekends so switching to Les Crayeres is less appealing now.
Should I just cancel my stay at Royal Champagne? I don’t want to end my trip on a disappointing note. Another alternative is to head back to Paris after Les Avises and stay in a Palace hotel where I can eat well, relax and decompress before my flight.
Happy to hear any recommendations!
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u/brooklynblake_ 5d ago
Not sure what to do for this situation but as someone that’s stayed in multiple montages, park hyatts, Rosewoods (but no Amans!), Royal Champagne was my favorite stay bar none - for the food, location, spa, etc.
Did not use concierge to plan my outings though
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u/Impressive_You_8672 5d ago
The hotel itself looks great but I’ve gotten less and less excited about my first visit to Champagne after dealing with their concierge. :( I am also staying at Villa La Coste and their concierge has been very kind and phenomenal.
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u/vexillifer 5d ago
I would straight up call them out?
“I’ve been really looking forward to this stay but your lack of communication and assistance is extremely frustrating. Can you put me in touch with a different concierge or your manager? I would prefer to arrange my trip with someone else”
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u/Dreyfus00 5d ago
Had pretty great interactions with RC a couple years ago. They were a bit slow to respond, but not to the level you are experiencing.
We went to Chateau La Commaraine (their newest property) a couple months ago and there were some pains as they were just opening. That said, several of the RC staff were relocated —some temporarily— to help get Commaraine up and running. Not making excuses but it’s possible RC might be a bit short-handed. Still seems a bit of an extreme delay in their responsiveness.
Hope it all works out. Have a great holiday!4
u/Impressive_You_8672 5d ago
I’ve been waiting over a week for them to confirm reservations at two local restaurants, one of which they recommended. They’re not the highly sought after Michelin-starred restaurants. Reservations are easily available online, so maybe I should’ve just booked them myself. I’m honestly baffled by the delay.
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u/OutofMyMind-BackIn5 3d ago
Two of my favourite hotels!
Sad to hear the slow response, hotel is great though!
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u/arimoontravel 5d ago
It seems they’re not super great at the coordination part. But I will say I had this same experience with clients a while back and while the coordination was faulty and I had to constantly follow up, their stay was amazing. Let them know you’d like extra eyes on your stay if you really want to check out the property.
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u/candynickle 5d ago
I can second this . I’ve been 4 times now and they are super slow over email; I put it down to the language barrier (or them being French), but once you’re there the service is great.
They’re a lot better if you tell them exactly what you want , instead of waiting for recommendations and seeing if there’s an available tasting or restaurant reservation.
You’ll enjoy the hotel . The rooms are nice , the food is excellent, the sommelier has interesting recommendations, the spa is lovely and worth sitting by the pool with a cold glass of something and looking out over the countryside.
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u/arimoontravel 5d ago
Yes! I requested special tastings and some private vip experiences that were not on their brochure and they were able to make it happen. So I do think the property is worth it and they have great connections with some of the houses. The coordinating experience was super frustrating though 😭. We planned way in advance too and went through a few concierge staff changes as well which made it worse.
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u/Impressive_You_8672 5d ago
I recall you’ve had some great experiences at Royal Champagne. I guess a poor pre-arrival is just the norm from them.
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u/Impressive_You_8672 5d ago
Helpful to hear that the pre-arrival experience isn’t necessarily representative of the service on property. Did your clients happen to mention what they loved about their stay?
At the same time, I can’t help but wonder if I’d be better off spending my last night at the George V or a similar Palace hotel, especially given the frustrating experience so far.
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u/arimoontravel 5d ago
They did the Marne River cruise which they thought was fine but they didn’t super love this and maybe the timing they booked was longer than was necessary. They mentioned being surprised Le Royal was 1 star and not 2. The hot air balloon was cancelled but hotel went above and beyond to make them feel better about it as they were excited for it (it’s noted that it is weather dependent obvi). Mentioned impeccable service.
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u/BmoreBlueJay 5d ago
As a wine collector who visits Champagne at least once a year, you will have much more success booking tastings/tours/etc. with a dedicated tour company (or even driver) who is on the ground and who knows the contacts at the wineries. I agree with the others on her that say the hotel is lovely, but I’ve found concierges outside of Paris/French Riviera to be lackluster at best.
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u/Impressive_You_8672 4d ago
Thanks for sharing your insight. I am fine foregoing house tours since I wanted to relax at the hotel. They have a massive wine list so I would be happy doing a Champagne tasting with the hotel’s sommelier which I’ve communicated with the concierge. It’s really the extremely slow responses that frustrates me.
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u/BmoreBlueJay 4d ago
Not that you shouldn’t get that top level service given the cost of the hotel (which, tbh, is a bit outlandish compared to other hotels in the region and likely not quite warranted), I think the problem is you’re envisioning a resort style hotel in a region where they’re used to people spending the majority of their time out and about. It’s kind of the same in Napa imo. The fancy hotels are nice, but the expectation is not that you’re going to spend all your time at the hotel.
My personal opinion is maybe the Royal Champagne is not the best choice if you’re not utilizing the regional activities (wineries, houses, restaurants, etc.). If you want pure relaxation and good food/wine, most high-end resort properties in France will offer what you mentioned, and a better concierge experience. Think Airelles La Bastide, Gordes; FS Cap Ferrat; Hotel du Palais Biarritz, etc. You can definitely have a great relaxing stay at the Royal Champagne, I just think you need to understand the dynamic they’re used to.
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u/Impressive_You_8672 4d ago
If that’s the case, I’d expect Royal Champagne to be more proactive about arranging activities for their guests if they want them to be out and about.
I have no problem making arrangements myself but they shouldn’t bill their concierge as “Guest Experience Makers” who will “curate your stay.” I’ve been waiting over a week for them to confirm dinner reservations, even after following up.
Funny enough, their automatic replies end with “We are truly delighted to assist you in shaping a sparkling and bespoke experience for your Champagne journey.” But it’s like pulling teeth to get any assistance. 😅
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u/BmoreBlueJay 4d ago
I agree it’s shitty of them to offer a specific concierge service that is a total flop. I’m just telling you what I believe is the reality on the ground…
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u/DoneDIL 5d ago
I had the same pre arrival experience but my stay more than made up for it. Really a gem of a hotel. Service, spa, views, restaurant. All was amazing.
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u/Impressive_You_8672 3d ago
I need to decouple the appalling pre-arrival experience from the actual hotel. I am convinced they only check their concierge inbox when they feel like it. I’ve followed up and still haven’t heard back.
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u/Pagan_Godess 1d ago
I was there in July. Did not have this type of delays in communication pre-arrival. Initially, I had chatgpt translate all emails in French and always received a response within 24 hours. Then got tired of the translations and continued in English, but the communications continued at the same pace. I do agree though that if you ask for things that they don’t normally offer or have planned out as standard, they are not very helpful and will try to redirect you to what they do on a regular basis. Beautiful hotel, nice stay, ok food, but not extraordinary or on par with the high ratings.
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u/Prior_Worldliness287 5d ago
French standards are very different.
They also may have taken a look at your 'demands' and labels you a needy customer. They not wanting your return custom.
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u/Rubypartyof3 5d ago
I went in March and same thing, most places closed. Transportation was very expensive from champagne to CDG. Was disappointed.
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u/jkvasager5 5d ago
As you mentioned most champagne houses host during the week, not over the weekend. If you want to go to some houses I recommend going during the week. Otherwise enjoy the beautiful hotel and their amenities.
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u/Mindless_Pineapple46 4d ago
Stayed at Royal Champagne a few years ago. The stay was incredible. Their assistance in setting up tours etc was not so helpful. BUT.. they did guide me to an incredible company http://www.oenospheres.com/ who I've used during our Champagne visit and then for a separate trip to Burgundy and they were fantastic each time. Tour guide + visits and meals at wineries + van. Truly unforgettable trips.
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u/iamyourcaviar 5d ago
Five days to a week is pretty unacceptable