Driving to the south of France? We suggest you stop in Bourges IBIS Styles.

When those lovely people at Accor heard we were making a very lo-o-o-ng (11.5hr drive) road trip through France, they incredibly kindly offered to provide a stopover half way.
Naturally I chose the spot in a very careful and  scientific manner – I drew the map on Googlemaps, and plumped for wherever appeared to be halfway on the route…

This meant that we were stopping in Bourges!

Accor came back and said that the Bourges IBIS Styles would be perfect for us. No, I’d not really heard of the Ibis Styles brand either, but I was just happy to have a bed for the night, so I naturally said lovely-please-thank-you, and crossed my fingers it would be convenient and nice.

Well, by the time we arrived, we were pretty much done in – 4hrs on the ferry plus 5 and half hours driving made for a very dull family. The hotel was right on the motorway – literally – very convenient, but being in what looked like a retail park and on such a busy road we did rather sink a little at what we might find.

Idiots, we were.

We wheeled the cases into reception, and I practiced my best French on the man at reception; “Un Reservation pour Hitchcock?”
He smiled, and replied in faultless English. Cheating in the language skills, I know, but honestly we were so tired it was a blessed relief.
A speedy check in, and we were on our way to our rooms – we couldn’t have interconnecting, but we had the older boys in a double just up the corridor, and we were in one of the family rooms.

The hotel itself was bright, spacious and really welcoming. The vibrant colours and prints everywhere made it feel fresh and modern, and once we were in, we had absolutely zero knowledge of the motorway right outside. And the family room? Probably the best we’ve EVER had…

This is the boy’s twin room – bright, modern, fresh, and spacious enough for two teens.
On the way out, the room was set up as a double – Boy did not have such a good nights sleep. It turns out No.1 is a duvet hogger. Boy was most pleased to find separate twin beds for the return leg!

But the family room? How’s this for a-maz-ing? SUCH a brilliant design, with the children ‘upstairs’.

Upstairs they have their own twin room, their own TV and play space – and don’t worry, there’s a brilliant safety gate at the top of the stairs for younger guests.

And did I mention the bathroom? Fabulous. And HUGE! The older boys traipsed down the corridor to use ours – their room had its own, but they wanted to shower in the blue lights! I loved the wet room style – there was bags of room to help the 6yr old in the shower, and no aching back stretching over the bath. I want a bathroom just like this at home.

After freshening up, we headed straight out to find something to eat. I know we should have got back in the car to go and find something local in the city… but honestly, we were exhausted. As probably most people are who will use the hotel as a stopover on a long journey. There is a Restaurant Grill Courtepaille within a minutes walk – and we’d totally recommend it. We ate there twice, and both times it was fabulous. The food’s great, the service excellent, and it was the perfect convenient choice for weary travellers.

This was the view from our room. I know, depressing isn’t it? But with the blind down, we never knew – and there was absolutely NO noise issue. The hotel is so quiet – we didn’t even hear the lift which was dead opposite our room. Total peace (except when our brood were haring through the corridors. Sorry about that ibis.)

There are no tea & coffee facilities in the rooms, but there’s a great coffee machine in reception which you can visit at any time and take back to your room. The beds were unbelievably comfortable, the bed linen great quality and we all had the best night’s sleep we’d had for ages. The following morning we wandered down to breakfast (very loose timings from 7 to 11, and checkout is not til 12) and found a typical hotel buffet breakfast waiting for us.

Bear waiting on a delivery of croissants from Papa (the pesky slidey things on a pesky slidey plate on the pesky slidey tray were a bit of a hazard to other guests when left to collect her own).

And breakfast for Maman. Marvellous.

Tables are laid with trays, and you simply collect a tray from your table, and go collect what you fancy from the fruit and pastries, cereals, yoghurts, ham and cheese and of course endless juice, tea and coffee to drink.

We stayed at the ibis Styles Bourges on the way back too – in the very same rooms, and had an equally fabulous stay. The staff are unfailingly friendly (and their English puts my French to pitiful shame), the children were not just tolerated but positively welcomed (the Monsters University welcome packs were a BIG hit!) the rooms are spacious and comfortable and the whole place is spotlessly clean,  fresh and inviting. We’d recommend the Ibis Styles hotels to any family – and will definitely use them again ourselves.

A family room at the IBIS Styles in Bourges is currently £97 a night, sleeps up to 4 and includes unlimited WIFI and breakfast.