Hotel de Normandie

Had most unfortunate circumstances at arrival - had a heat stroke and fainted in the lobby, the next morning our car's tyre was flat. The Receptionists were super helpful, I'm grateful for their assistance. Helped me out, called road assistance & interpreted for me. Will stay there again anytime! Place itself is what you'd expect for the price. It's dated, but clean and comfortable, bathrooms are new. Location couldn't be better!

Very basic hotel. Tiny bathroom. The location is perfect. Near a major train station, tram stop and underground stop. You can walk to all main tourist attractions. Plenty of restaurants and bakeries nearby. When you flush the toilet some water splashes in the sink. Interesting. Very strange to have to pay 1eur only in cash for the local tax. I had no cash with me as I normally don't withdraw cash. They were really pushy and did not want to accept card. They suggested me to buy their overpriced drinks. Simplicity would be that they take this tax when you book.

What I will say about the Hotel De Normandie is : I got three good nights sleep in a comfortable bed - and the breakfast was more than adequate. However .. if you arrive after dark the hotel takes some finding. You need to go up the Lyon Parrache escalator to the station concourse and walk through the station towards the back. Eventually on your left you'll see "Ibis Hotels" in bright red letters then you've found the de Normandie. Except that the de Normandie isn't lit up .. I mean the Hotel de Normandie sign above the Hotel. You can get to the Hotel without going into the station but this isn't recommended because you have to cross busy roads. SO .. a good hotel in an unfortunate location.

We drove in at night - past the local street girls who looked like they were selling their bodies - with our child staring in horror. We almost left but it was late and we had nowhere else booked, so we toughed it out. Didn't sleep well in the uncomfortable bed and worried about our safety. Avoid this one!

The hotel is very close to perrache station but we got the impression that perrache is a not so nice area at night but fine during the day and near the station. The staff were super friendly and helpful and the room was fine . It was a bit hot to sleep as the window of our room wasn't facing the bed but other than that we enjoyed our stay and I would stay again in a season not too hot . Good value for money.