Hotel recommendations?

Hello! We’re planning our first trip to France, in June. We’ll be in Toulouse, Montpellier, and some as-yet-undetermined small town in Languedoc-Roussillon.

We’re hoping to get some input from folks who know these areas - the first question is about hotels. We have found that often the kind of hotels we like aren’t yet in the guide books.

Does anyone know of a hotel that comes close to our ideal? We appreciate any leads.



Our ideal hotel:


  • primarily non-smoking (we’re both very sensitive to smoke)
  • preferably no pets (we’re both highly allergic)
  • small, friendly, with family-style dining or kitchen privileges
  • encourages interaction between guests, knowledgeable about the area and happy to share advice
  • nice area within walking distance of center of town, easy access to public transportation
  • rooms have either two beds or king-size bed



    We don’t care whether bathrooms are shared.

    English-speaking staff would be helpful, but we both speak enough French to get by.



    Your opinion:
  • What is a reasonable cost for this?
  • Can we expect to be able to extend our stay? or is it important to book an entire week? We’re aiming for flexibility.



    Julie & Rick

    (posted also on L-R group)

thanks Anna - we’ll add beautiful Gers to our list!
We currently live in Costa Rica, and if pets are brought into a place, they generally don’t object. Smoking is waning, but still done. Still, if we can avoid sneezing all over everyone, we’ll try for a place without :-S

The hotel you want might be very difficult to find, I could well be wrong, but living in the beautiful area of Gers in the South West of France, smoking and pets are more than welcome in hotels. I even take my very well behaved dog into restaurants, unheard of and not allowed in Great Britain. Good luck and if you really want the most beautiful area to visit then without doubt its Gers. Very close to Toulouse.