My husband and i stayed at the Hermitage Hotel, Monte Carlo, for 3 nights as part of a prize my husband won through work. The hotel itself is beautiful from the outside and lavishly decorated on the inside. Our room was of good size, beautiful decoration (if a little worn) with a beautiful marble bathroom and a view out on to the streets of Monte Carlo. The hotel did not have a pool however you do get free use of the exclusive spa that you can obtain direct acess to from the hotel. The staff were polite and efficient although not paricularly friendly. Breakfast was lovely with a very good choice of fruits, cheeses, pastries, smoked salmon, cereals and cooked items such as sausage and bacon. The location of the hotel is fantastic - a 5 minute walk from the Casino and main Monte Crlo square.

With regards to downsides, as with EVERYTHING in monte-carlo, the hotel was very expensive. We did not eat at the hotel due to the prices - about £25-£30 for a main course. We did however have a drink, a Jamesons & Coke and white wine spritzer which came to just over £20!!! There are plenty of other restaurants and bars within the area where you can get pizza's etc for much cheaper.

Overall, whilst i would not go back to Monte-Carlo again, i did enjoy my stay at the Hotel Hermitage and would have no problems in recommending it.

The hotel was fabulous, we were concerned after already booking the hotel when we read some not good reviews. The location of the hotel was ideal for harbour, casinos, shop and restaurants. The staff went out their way to be helpful, and as for the room..it was perfect. The attention to detail in its decoration was outstanding.. together with fabulous sea views. Room service was better than most first class restaurants. Adjourning the hotel was a spa that hotel guests could use. Sunbathing terrace overlooking the harbour..in March..what more could you ask for?

This is a truely amazing hotel. We visited late October 2006 and were amazed by the place from the moment we stepped into the fantastic foyer.

It is a beautiful hotel. Taking advice from these reviews, we tried to communicate in French when possible and the staff seemed to respect this, but equally helped us in English when the effort became too much!

Our room was gorgeous, including a great flat screen TV, two mini balconies overlooking the bay and two sinks. We had asked for a step up from the basic room when booking.

The service was flawless, from organisation of our baggage to an extremely helpful concierge and staff behind the main desk.

Breakfast included such a variety to surely suit all tastes and, if not, the decor of the room was amazing enough to make it worth the visit!

We dined once in the main restaurant and, I admit, that was mostly paid for with casino winnings so it didn't feel as expensive as it was! However, the meal was amazing. In hindsight, I wish I'd missed the cheese course as I only had a small amount not wishing to spoil my dessert and it was expensive but apart from that the standard and presentation of the food was incredible. Also, I tried to order in French and ask questions about the menu and the waiter was incredibly good at respecting this and replying in French but helping me in English when I got stuck. My friend was obviously not a French speaker and was subtly given a menu in English when we ordered desserts!

Expensive but absolutely worth it for a special holiday experience. Oh, and if you can, take the helicopter transfer from Nice airport as it really starts the holiday in a very special way!

We found the Hermitage to be very nice & comfortable to stay with a great location & view. We like it better than Hotel de Paris because it's set up with an atmosphere of a smaller boutique hotel. The room size & quality vary dramatically according to their higher prices & availability. They gave us choices of what 's still available when we arrived. In our experience, the staff & their service are quite good though not impeccable. The hotel made a special arrangement with the restaurant chef to cook up a certain dish that we really wanted even though it's not on the menu. The staff in general was polite and came very promptly whenever we needed help in our room.

I did overhear some unhappy guests due to the lack of staff training in handling unsatisfied customers who thought they should get a better room for the price they paid. They could have better answers and handled the situation more sensitively instead of saying that they don't upgrade for free. It could be bluntness or a matter of limited language skill.

Their typical repeat guests that we saw seemed to be wearing high end designer everything down to their perfect stacks of suitcases and even jogging suits when they exercised.