Club Arnage

Hello everybody!  :)

I need information about some hotels in Le Mans. Does anyone know these two: Hotel Galaxie and Hotel de Rennes? Are they reliable, safe, good, etc?

I'm not only new to this forum, but it's also going to be my very first visit to Le Mans, therefore any help, information, tips, etc. are very much appreciated.  ;)

Thank you very much in advance  ;)


I've been dreaming of going to the 24 Hours of Le Mans for so many years, this year I decided to do it, and now I try to find out as much as I can. I don't want to ruin my week with bad experience...

Don't know these 2 hotels, but if they have space you might have to go for them.
Hotel accomodation can be very differcult to find race week, many hotels booked a year in advance.
Nadine at the Le Mans tourist office might be able to help you, suggest you explain that you are travelling by yourself, could help.

nadine.bouttier@ville-lemans.fr

Hi,

 I've not really tried to book a hotel in Le Mens but as Barry said they are pretty well booked up for the week.

Personally I would recommend Camping you'll get a much better feel for the event.

t.

All hotels are a rip off, just camp like 200,000 other folk do and you won't have a bad experience. The problem is getting to the track from your Le Mans hotel, the traffic is really terrible. I assure if you camp the experience will be all good.

Hotels are GAY! Unlike the campers...

LOL!  ;D I'm sure, camping wouldn't be boring...  ;D
BTW: I don't have any problems with gay guys... It's their life and at least, we have one thing common: we both prefer men  ;)  ;D :angel:

Thank you guys, but for my first time in Le Mans, I'd rather stay in a hotel or a guesthouse.  ;)
I won't travel by car, I'll take a flight from Budapest to Paris and the train from there to Le Mans. I don't really want to carry an entire camping equipment across Europe... To tell you the truth, I don't even have a tent.  :P
I will also need electricity to recharge the batteries of my camera, and I want to take a laptop with me, too, so I can write on-site reports for Hungarian motorsport fans. You know, endurance racing is not widely known in Hungary (yet) and my intention is to change this sad fact.  ;)
I'm going to Le Mans by myself and I think, spending 8 nights in a tent in the middle of a campsite full of drunk guys is not really the safest thing to do for a lady who travels on her own...  ;)
So no camping for me this year, but hopefully I can convince some fans to join me next year and camping won't be a problem anymore...

I'm duty bound to disagree with you!  ;D There's plenty of electricity as we all take generators, the campsites are safe on a personal level, someone will let you lock up your laptop in their car and the "drunk guys" will look after you like a princess! It's nothing like Hungaroring you know.  :angel:

You've come to the right place for advice anyway. See what happened a few years ago when this guy from Texas put up a post back in 2004. John, a fifty something year old, remains a friend to many on here to this day.

http://www.clubarnage.com/forum/index.php?topic=1398.msg14142#msg14142

This is what he wrote when he got back from his first trip (yes he came back again for more the next year :o)...

http://www.clubarnage.com/forum/index.php?topic=2243.msg24301#msg24301

So you've no need to worry about being looked after. People here will help. John's experience is just one of many where the good folk of CA have looked after visitors from afar, and I've never heard any of them say they've not had the best time.

PS Those guys in my photo aren't gay and one of them is me! Not telling which one though!

Well said Mr Z - apart from the part about the Hungaroring where I never had any trouble with the natives.  The Finns on the other hand ...  ::)

Dx

Fran - where are you?  You are surely the best qualified to talk about females camping alone at LM

Probably safer than on your own on a campsite full of sober ones!!  ;D

F

Hi Andrea,

You must do what ever you feel most comfortable with. 

No matter which campsite you choose you can be sure that there will be a CA group not too far away.
Since you will be there for eight nights then I'm guessing you'll be there Sunday to Monday. 

Check out Who, what, where and when. 2009 (http://www.clubarnage.com/forum/index.php?topic=9483.0) To See who might be around when you arrive.

As far as camping gear goes.  Buy it at the super market and leave it behind.  It's cheaper than a hotel and taxi/bus fare.

Le Mans is more than the Race.   If you stay in a hotel (If you can find one) you will miss much of the peripheral stuff.

t.

I thought, you're not  ;) I spoke in general terms...

Thanks for everything, guys  :) It seems I managed to find the best forum with lots of nice people. :)

I think, I'll stay in town this year and will hopefully join you for camping next year.  ;)  ;D Like I said, I have never been to Le Mans before and it seems a nice place, so I'd like to explore the town, as well.  ;) 



As for the Hungaroring, I prefer to stay in Budapest, in a hotel in the city centre. I usually meet fellow fans and friends in the city, and staying at a campsite or guesthouse near the circuit would only cause problems. If you're lucky enough you can even bump into team staff and drivers. There are also couple of nice places where you can eat out and go out in the evening with friends.


Speaking of eating: How much money will I need for food & drink per day in LM and at the track respectively? I'm not a big eater, especially not if there are more exciting things around.  :P 
I invested in a Club24 membership. On the website they say something about catering, too. Does anyone have any experience with it?

The Finns? HA! That's nothing! You should - or rather shouldn't - meet some of the Polish guys!  ::) ::) >:(
In 2006 one of them nearly broke my ribs and knocked me out after the race, in 2007 we didn't see the race because of them as they were standing on their seats all the time. Last year I rather kept out of their way. This year they will have an own grandstand, but I'm not sure if they will use it. Many fans had problems with them, since Kuby started to race. Of course, most of the Polish fans are ok, but there are couple of troublemakers... The Finns were only a little loud last year, when they arrived back at the hotel around 4 a.m... :P  There are not as many Finnish fans at the Hungarian GP nowadays as in the past though...

Apart from the Polish gorillas in 2006, my worst experience with foreign guys was couple of years ago, when a bunch of drunk British guys went mad and demolished half of the floor in the hotel where I stayed. It wasn't at a race weekend, so they were not fans, just tourists. I had an exam at university in Roman law the next day. Unnecessary to say that I failed. I've been told later that the hotel had to renovate couple of rooms because of them.

It seems, every nation has its black sheep. I guess, being an idiot doesn't depend on nationality...  :P ;) :)

LOL!!!   :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

The Cathedral is a very pleasant place.  The walk along the River is pleasant too.  I'm not sure what other sites there are to see.


That depends where you eat.  I have eaten out a few times but I tend not to bother about the cost so can't remember how much I paid.
But I never felt I was being Ripped off.

I tend not to eat in the Circuit as it is expensive and doesn't look that good to me.

I have had Pizza in the ACO (Club 24) places it was OK.  But I wouldn't go out of my way to get it again.

I the CA Guide Has some info on Restaurants near the Circuit.

t.

Thanks a lot, LM  ;) :-*

Fear not, that was simply me, sat drinking beer, at Sebring last month whilst pointing out to Doris the failings in her efforts to wash our dishes properly in the RV. There was a bit of food stuck to the plate and I think she was trying to pretend it wasn't there. Washing-up dishes is women's work, nevertheless Doris was very grateful for my useful advice if I remember correctly. If a jobs worth doing it's worth doing properly.

Hi Andrea,
              As you ae determined to use hotel. I suggest you look at the "CAGuide" thread. There are a couple of hotels across the street from the Gare (rail station) The Tram runs past the Gare and goes to the Tertre Rouge area of the track. Much better than taxi and easier than the bus. 1.25 Euro from memory. Many food stalls. 5-6 Euro for Sausage on a bun with frites from memory.
Canada Phil

I always used to stay in BP as my parents lived there for a while.  Like you say, if you know the city, you know where to see the teams.   8)

Dx

You bastard Zarse!!!  That's the last time I let you have my bed. 

Dx

I can highly recomend the Galaxie, as we stayed there a couple of times before moving over here permanently.  We had some pretty good company too, including the late David Leslie.  Likewise in the excellent restaurant downstairs (Le Corail) where we had a long chat with the estimable Huge Chamberpot - LM is like that - you can't help but fall over these people all the time during race week.  However, as others have said - it is most likely to be fully booked, and this close to the race my experience is that you'd be lucky to get within 50 ks of the circuit.

There is nothing wrong with the camping and lone women need have little fear of anything unpleasant happening.  Although I take two chaps with me myself, they need a lot more sleep than I do -  poor little mites - so I'm often out and about by myself and never feel threatened.

Besides, now that you are here, you will never be alone at LM as there are 1000 plus mates waiting to meet and greet you.  Some of them even have spare tents in their barns... ;)

Thank you very much for the info, Termie!  ;) :)

My hope is that, due to the economic crisis, there will be some people who cancel their booking and there will be one or two hotel or guest rooms left somewhere. I wrote to nearly all hotels in LM, and have received some answers already. For example, a lady at H. Anjou was so kind and gave me the contact address of the German agency which booked the entire hotel. Now I'm waiting for their answer, too.

http://www.dailysportscar.com/viewArticle.cfm?articleUID=637562CF-1143-FDC9-356FA591D266433D&custUID=FBD2B510-1143-FDC9-35A0FB0AA64906D4

This might help you.

regards Adam

Well the price is not a bad at I thought it might be but €720 Ouch.

Then my friend google came up with this.
Cheap and Nasty (http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g187195-d596280-r5444800-Mister_Bed_Le_Mans-Le_Mans_Pays_de_la_Loire.html#REVIEWS)
t.

ahaha yeh its abit expensive, especially when it can only be for 8 nights no longer no less. plus from going by that review seems like crap, although a bed is a bed lol.

Andrea,
          You can buy a tent and a sleeping bag.cheaper than one night in an hotel.  Carrefour willl provide as Mr Toad would say.
Then just leave it behind. Showers are a short walk and no hairdryers  ;D
 Phil

Thanx, Phil, but I found a hotel room!  ;) Galaxie confirmed my booking yesterday. The reason why I asked about those 2 hotels (Galaxie and de Rennes) in this thread was that they had free room(s).
I couldn't find any ratings on the internet for Galaxie but Termie said it's ok, so I booked there.
Hotel de Rennes have positive AND negative ratings on the internet and their price was a bit higher than the offer of Galaxie.

Mister Bed seems a bit weird for me... They say they're close to the city center. Looking at the map, it doesn't seem to be sooo close... Plus they want 90 € for a night and you can only book for 8 nights? I don't know if that hotel rating is true, but if it is: for that room they want 90 €?  :o
In Budapest during F1 you get a hotel room for 70-80 € in a 3 star hotel in the middle of the city center - in a proper room and with breakfast!

Galaxie is opposite the railway station so not in the city centre but this is not relevant as the tram stops outside so you can get straight to the track and/or the middle of town, very quickly, cheaply and easily.  Or it's ten minutes of pretty steep walking into town.

Most of their rooms are fine although some of those in the little annexe are a bit scruffy, they are certainly very clean and the people who run the place are charming and very welcoming.  As said above, great company and nosh in the Corail downstairs.  See you in June. :)

I don't mind walking. I would even walk to the circuit if there was no tram, bus or any other solution  :P It can't be much worse than walking up the hill from the train to the Hungaroring in 40 degrees in the blazing sun without any shadows on the way.

As for scruffy hotel rooms: there's a hotel in Budapest which used to advertise itself as a 4 star hotel but in fact those 4 stars existed only on the paper. The hotel was so bad, it didn't even deserve 1 star.  ::)

I've done that walk a few times.  It's a killer!

Dx

I have always used the Le Mans Accomidation people linked from the offical site - the rooms are OK and vaired.... It is a case of staying in someone's spare room - one year we had an annex to ourselves...